Re: 'Halton might pull plug on fluoridated water' ( Nov. 14 )

On behalf of the 3,500 members of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, I'm writing to support the proposed ban on fluoride in Halton's drinking water.

The decline in caries (cavities) in communities that are fluoridated has been significant -- but so is the decline in communities that are not fluoridated. For example, B.C. drinking water is 95 per cent nonfluoridated, whereas drinking water in Alberta is 75 per cent fluoridated; yet the two provinces have similar rates of caries.

Fluoridation comes with significant risks. Animal studies have shown the chemical is a potential immunotoxin, embryotoxin and neurotoxin. Because fluoridation is unlikely to be the cause of caries decline in North America and because the potential for adverse effects is real, we believe fluoridation of drinking water is scientifically untenable.