Regina city council to vote on adding fluoride to water supply

Chris Edwards · CBC News

· Posted: May 02, 2025 2:10 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

Several twelve members of the nationalist are scheduled to look earlier Regina metropolis assembly connected Friday to statement adding fluoride to the city's h2o supply.

The delegates are gathered to sermon a question enactment guardant by Coun. Clark Bezo to postpone the city's 2021 determination to adhd fluoride to Regina's h2o proviso until much studies concluded determination are "no important neurotoxic effects oregon different bodily harms" associated with fluoridation.

The archetypal 2021 program was for Regina to follow a h2o fluoridation programme akin to the 1 presently operating successful Moose Jaw, staying wrong fluoride levels recommended by Health Canada.

Regina's fluoridation was to statesman aft the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Plant renewal task was completed successful mid-2025. Those upgrades person been delayed until March 2026.

As proceedings began Friday, 29 in-person delegates and astir 80 correspondences were scheduled to contiguous arguments. Some are doctors representing aesculapian groups saying fluoridation would payment the city, portion others are speaking independently arguing that fluoridation is dangerous and would trim IQ scores successful children.

Dr. Susan Petryk, a pediatrician based successful Regina, argued powerfully successful favour of fluoridation. She reported that h2o fluoridation reduces cavities by 25 per cent, that its wide wellness benefits would beryllium wide and that astatine harmless levels it would not enactment the assemblage astatine risk.

"Make the wellness of your community, not misinformation, your priority," she said successful effect to a question by Coun. Froh astir which voices should beryllium prioritized successful this debate. "The benignant of expertise that's required should travel from experts successful the field.

"'Bringing into question' is not evidence."

Other members of the nationalist spoke against flouridation.

"No 1 contiguous is suggesting that dental wellness is not important. No 1 is saying that we bash not privation to code wellness inequalities," said delegate Malia Carson.

"City assembly is voting connected whether oregon not to instrumentality a nationalist wellness argumentation that is forcefully medicating an full colonisation without their consent."

"I judge the broadside that is opposed to fluoridation is being labelled arsenic pseudoscience whereas the broadside that is for it, promoting it, is 'the science,'" said Scott Carson, who was besides opposed to fluoridation.

The question to postpone fluoridation would besides allocate $2.1 cardinal successful superior costs and $300,000 successful operating backing to the Water Plant Capital Reserve done the postponement period. 

Fluoride is added to the h2o proviso of galore large Canadian cities, including Toronto, Ottawa, Edmonton and Saskatoon. Adding fluoride to Regina's h2o has been held to 4 nationalist referendums successful 1954, 1958, 1965 and 1985. Each time, the nationalist voted against it.

City assembly volition ballot connected the question aft each delegates person the accidental to beryllium heard.