The Case Against Fluoride ─ How Hazardous Waste Ended Up in Our Drinking Water and the Bad Science and Powerful Politics That Keep It There

Connett (environmental chemistry and toxiclogy, St Lawrence U., retired), Beck (emeritus, medical biophysics, U. of Calgary, Canada) and Micklem (emeritus, School of Biological Sciences, U. of Edinburgh, UK) line up evidence against the US national policy of water fluoridation. Writing for general readers with no presupposed scientific background, they argue that the scientific literature as well as findings of a 2006 review conducted by the National Research Council, overwhelmingly suggest that ingesting fluoride carries more health risks than it prevents. Organized into six parts, the volume covers ethical and general arguments against fluoride, evidence that fluoride is ineffective in preventing tooth decay, historical events leading to the adoption of mandatory fluoridation, evidence of harm, consideration of the margin of safety argument used by proponents, and motivations and techniques for the promotion of fluoridation. Copious references and endnotes are provided. Connett is the director of the Fluoride Action Network. Annotation c2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Dr. James S. Beck is a Professor Emeritus of Medical Biophysics at the University of Calgary and holds doctorates in medicine from Washington University School of Medicine and biophysics from the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Dr. Paul Connett, author of The Case Against Fluoride, is the Director of the Fluoride Action Network (FAN), and the Executive Director of its parent body, the American Environmental Health Studies Project (AEHSP). He has spoken and given more than 2,000 presentations in forty-nine states and fifty-two countries on the issue of waste management. He holds a bachelors degree from the University of Cambridge and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Dartmouth College and is a retired professor of environmental chemistry and toxicology at St. Lawrence University. He lives in Binghamton, New York.

H. Spedding Micklem is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. He holds a D.Phil from the University of Oxford. He lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.