Little opposition to the plan came from Pasco residents. But members of a group opposing fluoride, the Safe Water Coalition, fought the proposal. Fluoride occurs naturally in water in some areas, but city water in Pasco, Richland and Kennewick has little of it. Tri-City dentists told the Pasco council in the fall that they see young children here with mouths full of cavities. Without fluoride in the water, children must be given daily prescription pills from 6 months to age 16 to get adequate fluoride to protect their teeth, according to the American Dental Association.
Few children are given the pills consistently, it says.
According to the foundation, fluoridated water systems can reduce the incidence of tooth decay by as much as 60 percent. It's particularly helpful for children. Drinking fluoridated water makes children's enamel stronger and more resistant to decay, resulting in fewer fillings and lost teeth over the person's lifetime, according to dentists. It can also prevent problems in adults, decreasing gum disease and fighting the cavities adults tend to get along their gum lines, dentists told the council. The Benton-Franklin County Medical Society and the Benton Franklin County Dental Society both endorsed fluoridation.