22 September 2021
ABC News Online
Reporter: Kerrin Thomas
Member dentist Dr Mark Brisley has featured alongside ADA NSW President Dr Kathleen Matthews on this ABC News website highlighting the importance of water fluoridation for oral health.
‘Port Macquarie council resumes fluoridation, but dentists worry about impact of pause’
The oral health impacts of an almost two-year pause on water fluoridation in the Port Macquarie area, on the NSW Mid North Coast, will not be seen for years, according to a dentist with more than 30 years’ experience.
Fluoridation of the drinking water supply for Port Macquarie and the Camden Haven areas resumed last week, almost two years after it was paused due to a lack of flow in the Hastings River during the drought.
But it is expected to be about 12 months before fluoride levels for the area reach the level required by NSW Health. Mark Brisley started working as a dentist in Port Macquarie in the 1990s and said it was important children got the right amount of fluoride, as it helped strengthen the enamel while teeth were being formed in the gums.
“If they go through a period of a year or two where they’re not getting the right amount of fluoride in their diet, that will translate to a weaker area of that tooth when it’s being formed,” Dr Brisley said.
