Fluoride levels in tap water should be reduced even though there are no adverse health effects, according to a report published by the Forum on Fluoridation today.
Small amounts of fluoride are added to tap water supplies by the State in an effort to reduce tooth decay. However, there are some suggestions that the chemical is harmful.
The report says that in the light of the best available scientific evidence - the Fluoridation of Water Supplies Regulations 1965 - should be amended to redefine the optimal level of fluoride in drinking water from the present level of 0.8 to 1.0 parts-per-million (ppm) to between 0.6 and 0.8 ppm, with a target value of 0.7 ppm.
The report also recommends that parents should be advised not to use toothpaste containing fluoride when brushing their children's teeth who are under two years of age.
Parents are also advised to supervise children between the ages of two and seven when brushing teeth to ensure that no more than a pea sized amount of toothpaste is used and that they don't swallow the toothpaste.
Another of the reports' recommendations is that an expert body should be established to implement the recommendations of the Forum and to advise the Minister for Health and Children on an ongoing basis on all aspects of fluoride and its delivery methods as an established health technology.
The Minister for Health, Mr Micheál Martin said: "Fluoridation is a public health measure. A public health measure good for the oral health of all age groups and sections of society. It's effective in reducing dental decay. We've got 40 years of documented support for that.
"The safety and effectiveness of water fluoridation has also been endorsed by a number of international and reputable bodies such as the World Health Organisation, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States Public Health Service and the United States Surgeon General," he added.
However, Fine Gael health spokeswoman, Ms Olivia Mitchell said that fluoridation of our drinking water had exposed the public to pointless health risks and its continuation has exposed the exchequer to massive claims for damages.
"Fluoride is implicated with skeletal fluorosis, alzheimers, osteoporosis, under active thyroid and many other diseases. In some cases the evidence of damage is overwhelming. In others the jury is still out, but for as long as it is, the precautionary principle must apply," she said.