Residents and a health official debate fluoride policy and school-based health centers during St. Clair County public comments

Several residents and a health official used the public-comment period to address drinking-water fluoridation, school-based clinical services and teen mental-health outreach.

Tim Evans, who identified himself as a long-term St. Clair County resident and a chemical engineer, urged the board not to stop fluoridating municipal water supplies. He referenced a memorandum from the county medical director, Dr. Nevin, that recommended stopping fluoride additions. Evans said the studies cited in the memorandum drew largely from research abroad and often at concentrations higher than U.S. municipal fluoridation levels; he said peer-reviewed studies in settings comparable to U.S. water systems have not shown a correlation between community fluoridation and decreased cognitive function. “The…