AROUND 100 children a week in the Blackburn area are having rotten teeth extracted - and dental experts say it is because the local water supply is not fluoridated.
But what particularly concerns many local dentists is the number of under fives who are having to undergo general anaesthetic to have decayed teeth removed.
The new figures show that the district has one of the worst dental health records in the country. Now the poor condition of children's teeth in Blackburn has been raised in Parliament by the Minister for Public Health, Tessa Jowell. She highlighted the fact that there had been no improvement in tooth decay rates in Blackburn over the last ten years, with the Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Health Care NHS Trust languishing near the bottom of the UK dental health league.
From being 142nd in 1985, it had now slipped to 175th out of 208.
But Home Secretary and Blackburn MP Jack Straw is understood to be against fluoridation, despite the high rate of tooth decay among children in his constituency.
He said: "My personal views on this issue are well known. That is why I am delighted that, under the Government's plans, local consultation will be an essential part of any consideration process."
Gordon Taylor, clinical director of community dental services for Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley, treats special needs children with medical conditions who have tooth decay.
He said: "The scaremongering about fluoridation has got out of proportion. Fluoridation is safe and effective and if the fluoride levels in water were adjusted, the effects on teeth would be dramatic."
"It is not just children who are at risk.
"We would all benefit from fluoridation for healthy teeth for life.
"We are all susceptible to tooth decay which is very difficult to treat."
Mr Taylor, who has a dental practice in Darwen, added: "We have the worst dental health record in the country, particularly for pre-school children who have to be treated with general anaesthetic for rotten teeth."
Sheila Jones, co-ordinator for the National Alliance for Equity in Dental Health, is concerned that water companies were blocking plans to fluoridate supplies.
Doctor Gary Whittle, dental health consultant for the East Lancashire Health Authority, said: "Fluoridation is more than a good idea. It would be a stride forward in any terms, as East Lancashire is in desperate need for fluoridation."
Support for fluoridation is growing, with 31 organisations supporting a campaign to end dental health inequalities by giving health authorities, not private water companies, the final say about whether water supplies should be fluoridated.
A spokesman for North West Water said: "If we are told to fluoridate the water then we will.
"Our main role is to provide clean, safe water and the matter of fluoridation is a government issue."
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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