#health

The peer-reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association looked at 74 articles on studies on the links between IQ points and fluoride. Authors of the JAMA article determined that there is a high risk of scientific bias in 52 of those studies and a low risk of bias in 22. Forty-five of the articles originated from China.

The links between fluoride and loss of intelligence show up when the fluoride levels in water are above 1.5 milligrams per liter, the JAMA review found.

“There were limited data and uncertainty in the dose-response association between fluoride exposure and children’s IQ when fluoride exposure was estimated by drinking water alone at concentrations less than 1.5 mg/L,” the JAMA review said.

“That’s much higher than what we use for public water fluoridation,” said Washington state health officer Kwan-Gett.

The CDC says the recommended level for fluoride in a public water system is 0.7 milligrams per liter. Dorow pointed to the centuries-old concept that the dose of a substance often dictates whether or not it is poisonous, not the substance itself.

“There are no negative impacts at normal levels,” Kwan-Gett said.

It cited Denmark's recommendation against 10 diseases as a model for the US. But that comparison was criticised by Dr. Andrew D. Racine, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics. "The United States is not Denmark, and there is no reason to impose the Danish immunization schedule on America's families. America is a unique country, and Denmark's population, public health infrastructure, and disease-risk differ greatly from our own." Denmark's population is around 6 million while the US has about 340 million people.

Republican Senator Bill Cassiday from Louisiana, who is a doctor, also criticised the new recommendation. "Changing the pediatric vaccine schedule based on no scientific input on safety risks and little transparency will cause unnecessary fear for patients and doctors, and will make America sicker," he said in a statement.

The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is safe and provides 97% protection against the disease after two doses. Most children in the U.S. are required to get the shot to attend school. But vaccination rates have declined as more parents waive the shots or have fallen behind on recommended vaccination schedules.

Amid a lobbying blitz and a flood of campaign cash, senators inserted language into this week’s emergency spending bill that eliminates rules designed to prevent food contamination and foodborne illnesses at farms and restaurants, according to legislative text reviewed by The Lever. The bill would also limit the development of rules to regulate ultra-processed foods, despite such foods being derided by the “Make America Healthy Again Movement,” championed by President Donald Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Last year saw a doubling of Americans who were hospitalized or killed by contaminated food outbreaks, according to data compiled by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. In all, there are now “10 million cases of foodborne illnesses annually in the United States (and) these illnesses result in about 53,300 hospitalizations and over 900 deaths,” according to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office. Despite that, the new funding bill blocks federal rules designed to trace sources of outbreaks, and to prevent contamination of produce. One provision in the legislation states that no funds “may be used to administer or enforce the ‘Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods,’ published on Nov. 21, 2022.” Originally proposed by the first Trump administration during the pandemic when COVID-19 posed severe risks of contaminating food systems, the Food and Drug Administration’s traceability rule aimed to establish new record-keeping standards for companies to track their food products across the supply chain. Those records could help regulators identify the point of origin in the event of a major disease outbreak or food contamination event. The rule applied to produce, seafood, and certain dairy products, such as cheese, and exempted small businesses from the rule.