Dentists Neglect Low-Incomed 364 Days a Year

One day a year, dentists country-wide celebrate “Give-Kids-A-Smile” day, (GKAS),
with much self-promotion and merchandising. But for the rest of the year, most
dentists refuse children on Medicaid or other government-sponsored insurance
(1).  In a study of 35 state Medicaid programs, investigators revealed that only
16% of dentists, on average, actively participated in state Medicaid
programs.(1a) Half of poor 8-year-olds and younger live with unfilled cavities or in dental anguish.(13a)
 
Instead, dentistry promotes water fluoridation to remedy tooth decay
disparities between haves and have-nots.
 
Unfortunately, that’s failing:
 
New York State Department of Health statistics (2) illustrate
fluoridation’s inability to equalize cavity rates between low and high
socio-economic-status (SES)  groups, and that fluoridation and tooth decay rates
are not inversely related (3) See chart: http://www.freewebs.com/fluoridation/chart.htm
 
For example, non-fluoridated Nassau, Suffolk and Rockland Counties’
third-graders decay rates: 50%, 54% and 46%, respectively.  In slightly
fluoridated Albany County 38% have cavities.
 
Highly fluoridated NYS Counties include Monroe, Erie, Chemung, Broome,
Wayne and Jefferson. Third-graders decay rates: 56%, 59%, 55%, 63%,66%,66%  and
69%, respectively..  
 
Despite fluoridated water reaching about ¾ of New Yorkers, 54% of
third-graders have cavities and more untreated decay than third-graders
nationally (33% vs 26%). Only one-fourth of NYS dentists submitted Medicaid
claims (4).
 
Third-graders in 100% fluoridated New York City had more untreated cavities
(38%) than their state and national counterparts (4).
 
Before organized dentistry became fluoride fixated, a 1950 Connecticut
study, before fluoridation, clearly linked more fruit, vegetable and milk
consumption to less cavities (5) Dentist Weston Price reported a similar
correlation world-wide in his 1938 book, “Nutrition and Physical
Degeneration.”
 
Today Connecticut mandates fluoridation. Yet 48% of 4-year-olds suffer
untreated cavities (6) partially because 85% of dentists won’t or can’t treat
patients with low-paying government-sponsored insurance (7).
 
After 60 years of water fluoridation reaching 2/3 of Americans via public
water supplies, virtually 100% via the food supply and fluoridated dental
products a multi-billion dollar international business, up to ½ of U.S.
schoolchildren sport fluoride overdose symptoms as dental fluorosis – white
spotted, yellow or brown, sometimes pitted teeth (8) But tooth decay is still a
national epidemic, especially among low-income Americans who can't find dentists
willing or able to fix their rotting teeth.
 
Regardless of fluoride intake, modern science continues to show that young
children with fewer cavities eat more produce (9). Only 12% of US kids eat
enough fruits and vegetables.(10) And, the poor are priced out of healthful
eating. (10a)
 
"Will dentists hand out food vouchers and dietary advice on GKAS Day or
just more fluoride?” asks Paul Beeber, President, New York State Coalition
Opposed to Fluoridation. “It’s not all about avoiding sugar as most dentists
preach,” says Beeber.
 
“With fluorosis rampant, dentists could make more kids smile by stopping
fluoridation,” says Beeber
 
Dental Health Aide Therapists (DHATs) could be the solution to the oral
health crisis.  DHATs are to dentists what Physician’s Assistants and Nurse
Practitioners are to Physicians.   DHATs work successfully throughout the world
and can drill, fill and pull teeth in the mouths and geographic areas where
dentists can’t or won’t go, more cheaply and as effectively. (11)
 
Unfortunately, organized dentistry is suing to stop the first New Zealand
trained U.S. DHAT from supplying much-needed dental care in Alaska where
officials are unable to entice dentists  to live or work. (12a) Defying
organized dentistry, the first U.S. school just opened in Alaska to train more
DHATs (12)
 
Children need dental care not more fluoride.  In fluoridated Arlington,
Texas, 61 percent of children examined had active decay After dentists donated
their services, tooth decay was cut to less than half of what it was when the
program started.(13)
 
Nationally, up to 48% of poor children, 8-year–olds and under, have
unfilled cavities, whether their water is fluoridated or not. (13a).
 
Fluoride varnish is now used on children as soon as teeth emerge.
 
Fluoride varnish contains a highly toxic 22,600 parts per million (ppm)
fluoride (14) compared to one ppm in fluoridated drinking water that’s not
advised for under one-year-old babies (15) and 1,000 ppm in toothpaste that’s
not to be used by children less than two years old. (16)
 
“Fluoride. It just doesn’t make sense anymore,” says Beeber.
 References:
 
More evidence that fluoridation fails New York State:
 
http://fluoridedangers.blogspot.com/2005/12/fluoridation-fails-new-york-state.html
 
(1) U.S. Dep’t of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research
and Quality, “Dental Care Improving Access and Quality”
 
http://www.ahrq.gov/research/dentalcare/dentria.htm#poor
 
And
 
U.S. General Accounting Organization, “Oral Health Factors Contributing to
Low Use of Dental Services by Low-Income Populations,” September 2000
 
http://www.gao.gov/archive/2000/he00149.pdf
 
(1a) "Disparities in Oral Health and Access to Care: Findings of National
Surveys," by Edelstein  Ambulatory Pediatrics, March-April 2002
 
(2)  New York State Department of Health, Community Health Assessment
Indicators (Oral Health) http://www.health.state.ny.us/statistics/chac/chai/index.htm
 
(3)  Fluoridation rate of NYS Counties provided by Tim Cook, DDS, former
NYS Dep’t of Health employee
 
 (4)  The Impact of Oral Disease in New York State,” New York State
Department of Health, Bureau of Dental Health, December 2006, Green et al (page
8)
 
http://www.nyhealth.gov/prevention/dental/docs/impact_of_oral_disease.pdf 
)
 
(5) Potgieter, M., Morse, E.H., Erlenbach, F. M., and Dall, R.: The food
habits and dental status of some Connecticut children. J. Dent. Res., 35:638.
1956
 
http://tinyurl.com/2lagfg
 
(6)  Connecticut State Department of Public Health, “Open Wide Curriculum –
Lesson 1: Dental Decay,” http://www.dph.state.ct.us/bch/oralhealth/publications_reports/openwide_curriculum/OW_Lesson_1.pdf
 
(7) “Elements of effective action to improve oral health & access to
dental care for Connecticut’s children & families,” Commissioned by
Connecticut Health Foundation and Children’s Fund of Connecticut, Prepared by
James J. Crall, DDS, ScD and Burton L. Edelstein DDS, MPH (page 4)
 
http://www.cthealth.org/matriarch/documents/oralhealthsum.pdf
 
(8) http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/figures/s403a1t23.gif
 
(9)  “The relationship between healthful eating practices and dental caries
in children aged 2-5 years in the United States, 1988-94,” J. Am Dent Assoc,
January 2004, by Dye et al.
 
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=14959875&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_docsum
 
(10) “U.S. Kids’ Health Habits Put Them at Risk,” Healthscout.com, Jan 26,
2007  http://www.healthscout.com/news/1/601319/main.html
 
(10a) http://www.commondreams.org/headlines07/0129-06.htm
 
(11) http://www.anthc.org/cs/chs/dhs/
 
(12) http://www.anthc.org/cs/chs/dhs/upload/UAATheNothernLight-DentalDebateGoesToCourt_2-21-06_AFleming.pdf
 
(12b)  http://www.adn.com/front/story/8566500p-8459175c.html
 
(13) http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/16566335.htm
 
(13a)http://drc.hhs.gov/report/dqs_tables/dqs_1_1_1.htm
 
(14)
 
http://www.colgateprofessional.com/app/ColgateProfessional/US/EN/Products/ProductItems/ColgateDuraphat.cvsp
 
(15) http://groups.google.com/group/Fluoridation-News-Releases/browse_thread/thread/51981fb711662057
 
(16) http://www.aapd.org/pediatricinformation/faq.asp