Tooth for a tooth: The illusion of "pure water" turned tooth decay into a tax on the poor

A new Israeli study finds that the cessation of mandatory water fluoridation in 2014 led to an increase in tooth decay among children, especially in weaker socioeconomic groups. Researchers call for reinstating fluoridation to reduce oral health disparities.

A new study by researchers from the Hebrew University and Sheba Medical Center, published in the Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, finds that the cessation of mandatory water fluoridation in Israel in 2014 led to a significant increase in tooth decay among 12-year-old children. The study is based on dental treatment data of 28,000 children at MaccabiDent clinics between 2014 and 2022. It found that in low socioeconomic status localities where water was not fluoridated, the rate of decay was more than double that in high-status areas. In fluoridated localities, the gaps were smaller. Higher DMFT values were also found among girls compared to boys. The researchers call for reinstating mandatory fluoridation to reduce oral health disparities. Prof. Nadav Davidovitch from Ben-Gurion University supports the findings and calls the cessation a "grave mistake" and a "generational blunder."