Putting fluoride in drinking water is one of those age-old public health policies. Nationally, its origins in practice date back to the 1960s, and though I don’t have information on when we in Minot began adding fluoride to our drinking water, I can say that as of 2013, it was a tool we were still using.
In 2013, Minot’s water test indicated a level of 1.42 parts per million or milligrams per liter.
Now a new federal study by the Department of Health and Human Services is lowering the recommended amounts of fluoride that is added to public water systems. The new federal recommendations are 0.7 parts per million or milligrams per liter. Half as much as we’re currently adding to water in Minot.
This is a story The Minot Voice will be covering in more detail in the coming days as we get more information from City of Minot officials.
If you’d like more context on the issue, this article from NPR will fill in a lot of the holes.
