Fluoridated water has harmed Americans: economic evidence

A new study published in the Journal of Health Economics provides compelling evidence that fluoridated community water harmed Americans: childhood exposure to it reduced high school graduation rates, economic sufficiency, physical ability, and health in adulthood. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends water fluoridation, and many states and local governments require it.

This study is the dissertation of Dr. Adam Roberts from Texas A&M University, who is now a financial economist in the Office of the Comptroller of the Monet within the U.S. Treasury Department. From the many data sources, Dr. Roberts natural fluoride levels for most US communities via a Freedom of Information Act request to the CDC.

Using a sample of more than twenty million individuals, he compared those who had been exposed to fluoridated water during childhood with those of the same age in the same province who had not been exposed. He found robust evidence that, despite the dental benefits, fluoride exposure in childhood led to a net negative effect in adulthood, including lower high school graduation rates, reduced economic sufficiency, and poorer physical skills and health.

This study illustrates how economists use rigorous analytical tools and extensive data to answer complex medical and health questions. Another example comes true Dr. Todd Eldera professor of economics at Michigan State University, who found that children whose birthdays fall in the month prior to their state’s kindergarten eligibility deadline (i.e., the youngest in the class) were significantly more likely to be diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ) than those whose birthdays fall in the following month (i.e. the oldest in the class).

Dr. Elder concluded that ADHD is often misdiagnosed due to subjective comparative ratings by teachers of children in the same classroom. The negative consequences are significant, including negative health consequences and financial burdens resulting from treatments and medications for ADHD.

Another one study by six economists, published in the Quarterly journal of economicsused data on supermarket entry and household movement to find that personal demand explains 90% of the difference in healthy versus unhealthy food consumption. Therefore, policy efforts aimed at equalizing the supply of healthy groceries in neighborhoods are wasteful and ineffective.

It is no coincidence that economists provide compelling evidence on medical and health issues. As the late economist Edward Lazear wrote in his famous article: Economic imperialism:

“Economics is not just a social science; it is a real science. Like the natural sciences, economics uses a methodology that produces rebuttable implications and tests these implications using sound statistical techniques… The purpose of economic theory is to unify thinking and provide a language that can be used to understand a variety of social phenomena. ..The fact that there have been so many successful attempts in so many different directions is a testament to the strength of the economy.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, promised to return U.S. health agencies to their “tradition of gold standard, evidence-based science” and to provide “transparency and access to all data.” When evidence-based decision-making is embedded in broad health-related policies and practices, we can look forward to impactful economic research that will help make America healthier.