DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — The city of Delray Beach will continue to add fluoride in it's potable water despite some pushback and some cities in our area pausing the use of the mineral.
On Tuesday commissioners voted 3-2 in favor of maintaining the resource stating that it's especially important to underserved communities that rely on the fluoride in the city's water to prevent tooth decay.
Commissioners explain their reasons for keeping fluoride in water
"I was very disappointed," said Delray Beach resident Angela Hill. "Why should they get to decide?"
Hill is a grandmother who said she's concerned about the negative impacts that fluoride could have on her family and is forced to resort to expensive methods to get water without fluoride.
"Depending on how much I consume, on a monthly basis you're talking about me adding anywhere from $200 to $500 to a budget that I can't afford," said Hill.
She's calling for a revote after health concerns of fluoride took her to make her voice heard at the city commission meeting.
"I would rather my boys have no teeth and dentures than for them to be on medication for the rest of their lives for ADHD," said Hill.
It's a disorder some studies have linked to fluoride, which is intended to prevent tooth decay.
WATCH: Port St. Lucie temporarily halts adding fluoride to city water
A couple of dental experts took to the podium during the meeting in support of fluoride in the water.
Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo also attended the meeting calling the use of fluoride in the water public health malpractice, given some studies have raised concerns.
"In my mind, when you see something like that, it's reckless to continue recommending that and waiting for more evidence," said Ladapo. "There's enough smoke there for concern about fire."
WPTV turned to Dr. Craig Spodak, a dentist who’s been practicing for 27 years with Spodak Dental Group off West Atlantic Avenue.
It's a practice that was founded in Delray Beach by his father in 1976 almost 50 years ago.
"I see patients that desperately need fluoride that are resistant to wanting to use it that have massive decay in their mouth and I see other people that are using it preventatively," said Spodak.
He said those who get fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash don't necessarily need fluoride from water.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Why Stuart is pausing adding fluoride to its water
WPTV did some digging and found that neighboring cities like Boynton Beach and Boca Raton don't add fluoride to its water.
City of Boca Raton officials said it's a mineral they've never used.
A few spots on the Treasure Coast have paused fluoride use, including Stuart, Port St. Lucie and Fort Pierce utilities, which serves unincorporated parts of St. Lucie County.
The city of Delray Beach Utilities stated over the last 35+ years, the city has utilized fluoride.
They said adding fluoride to the city water has incurred annual expenditures of over $50,000 for both the chemical and the maintenance of the equipment necessary for it.
WATCH BELOW: Fort Pierce removes fluoride from drinking water
"If we took fluoride out of the water the folks who are most underserved in the community would be the ones who suffer the most," said Deputy Vice-Mayor Rob Long.
City officials tell WPTV that the raw water contains naturally occurring fluoride in concentrations of approximately 0.2 milligrams per liter (mg/L) and that the treatment plat adds fluoride to get a final concentration of between 0.5mg/l to 0.7mg/l.
That's at or below the 0.7mg/l recommended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"We can't just tell them to go buy it now, something you've gotten for decades," said Long.
