FAN Bulletin 785

April 1, 2007

Dear All,

In today’s bulletin we continue listing the names of those distinguished professionals from the past who were reported to have had reservations concerning fluoridation.

In part 1 (Bulletin # 775) we listed 83 physicians and dentists practicing in Michigan, who signed a petition opposing fluoridation which was sent to the Michigan Governor in March, 1955.

In part 2 (Bulletin #776) we listed 44 Physicians and Members of the Pinellas County Medical Society, who signed a public statement opposing fluoridation of the public water supply of St. Petersburg, Florida in 1957.

In part 3 (Bulletin #778) we listed 300 medical and dental professionals who warned of the dangers of fluoridation and whose names appeared in a New York Newspaper on February 20, 1957.

In today’s listing (part 4, see below) we print a list sent to us by Albert Burgstahler. According to Albert these names were assembled by an apprentice writer for the Christian Science Monitor in 1966. Very helpfully, many of the names are annotated. Again, as one goes through this list it is difficult to understand how fluoridation promoters in the past and the present could attempt to characterize opponents in the insulting way that they have done, and still do.

One can appreciate how difficult it must be for the hardliners, who hold onto this practice like a cherished “belief system,” to admit that they could be wrong on this measure. To protect this belief system it is critically important for them that they do not read the primary literature on health effects or the opponents’ rational summaries of the arguments. At all costs they must keep away from web sites like ours, otherwise they are forced to live with what psychologists have called “discordance”: having to hold onto two sets of ideas which contradict one another. Thus it is much easier for them to dismiss all web information as “junk science” and all opponents as “crackpots.” The beauty of this approach, if one stoops to it, is that if one can label your opponent in this way, one can put all their arguments, and all the facts they mobilize, into a box and throw it away.

However, when Professor Emeritus Ernest Newbrun recently (January 2007) described opponents of fluoridation, or as he put it “Antifluoridation types,” to a university audience as:

right-wing extremists
misguided environmentalists (Greens)
chiropractors
elderly concerned about costs
food faddists
anti-science naturalists
self-proclaimed neutrals
born-again antifluoridationists (slide 97 of his power point presentation)

He crossed the line from “self serving denial” to flagrant “intellectual dishonesty.”

Newbrun knew that this was not a fair or accurate characterization of his opponents. I offer two pieces of evidence that he was being dishonest here. A few years ago, along with the late Hershel Horowitz, Newbrun wrote a piece for a journal responding to Dr. John Colquhoun’s article “Why I changed my mind on fluoridation.” ( Colquhoun J. (1997) Why I changed my mind about Fluoridation. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine 41: 29-44. http://www.fluoride-journal.com/98-31-2/312103.htm ) Their article in the same journal, Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, was entitled “Why we haven’t changed our minds on fluoridation.” For Newbrun to have co-authored this article he would have had to examine Colquhoun’s arguments and must have known who he was. He must have known that Colquhoun had impeccable credentials – former Principle Dental Officer for Auckland, NZ’s largest city; an avid promoter of fluoridation before he examined the evidence more closely; an author of a PhD thesis “Education and Fluoridation in New Zealand: An Historical study” (University of Auckland, 1987) and for many years the editor of the journal Fluoride. There is no way that Newbrun could have put John in any of these disparaging (for him) categories. Furthermore, in Newbrun’s power point presentation he uses a figure used by Howard Pollick in a lengthy exchange he had with me in the journal: International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health. There is no way that Newbrun could have accessed this figure without being aware of the quality of the scientific exchange between myself and Pollick. Again based on this exchange, it would be impossible for Newbrun to “honestly” put me into any one of his boxes.

Back to the past. Please read through the list below from the 1960s and see for yourself how well qualified have been the many professionals who have either opposed fluoridation outright or expressed serious reservations about it.

Although 50 years have gone by since this list was prepared I would be anxious to hear from anyone who knew any of these people and also for any corrections to spelling and titles etc.

Soon we will be moving into our list of professionals who have expressed their reservations about fluoridation in the present. Please send me the names of any professional you know who has spoken up against this practice in your town or state.

Paul Connett

Voices from the Past, part 4 (a list assembled in 1966).

SCIENTISTS AND CLINICIANS IN MEDICINE, DENTISTRY, CHEMISTRY, AND SANITARY ENGINEERING, WHO, AT THE PRESENT TIME, ARE OPPOSED TO OR WHO HAVE RESERVATIONS CONCERNING THE FLUORIDATION OF PUBLIC WATER SUPPLIES.

*Reported to have reservations concerning fluoridation – have not yet been able to verify personally. (Twelve other research scientists have asked that their names not be used publicly although they are personally opposed to the fluoridations of public water supplies.)

**This list is not all inclusive but rather indicative of those who have reservations concerning fluoridation.

William A. Albrect, Ph.D., professor emeritus and retired chairman, Department of Soils, University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Columbia, Mo.

L.A. Alesen, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.I.C.S., member, House of Delegates, American Medical Association; past president, California Medical Society and Los Angeles County Medical Association; and former chief of staff, Los Angeles County General Hospital.

Louise Bates Ames, Ph.D., F.A.P.A., director of research, Gesell Institute of Child Development, New Haven, Conn.

Cyrus W. Anderson, M.D., past president Denver and Colorado medical Societies; past president Denver General and Mercy Hospital Staffs; past national director and past president, Colorado Chapter, American Academy of General Practice; and founder member, Southwestern Surgical Congress.

*Donald W. Baker, D.V.M., professor of parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., and president, New York State Veterinary Society.

Olier L. Baril, Ph.D., professor of chemistry, College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Mass.

*Charles C. Bass, M.D., Sc.D., LL.D., dean emeritus, Tulane University Medical School, New Orleans, La., and past president, Society of Tropical Medicine, Society of Clinical Investigation, and Southern Medical Association.

*Simon Beisler, M.D., chief of urology, Roosevelt Hospital, New York City, and past president, New York Urological Association.

*James Winston Benfield, D.D.S., assistant clinical professor, School of Dental and Oral Surgery, Columbia University, New York City.

Herbert Bernstein, D.D.S., formerly staff member, Guggenheim Clinic for Children.

Thomas R. Camp., M.S., of Camp, Dresser & McKee, Consulting Engineers; past chairman, American Sanitary Engineering Intersociety Board; and member, representing American Society of Civil Engineers, Advisory Committee of the USPHS for 1962 Revision of Drinking Water Standards.

*Frederick Cunliff, Ph.D., former chairman, Chemistry Department, Columbia College, Columbia, South Carolina.

Fred Squier Dunn, M.D., D.D.S., head, Oral Surgery Department, Lenox Hill Hospital, New York City.

Frederick B. Exner, M.D., F.A.C.R., past president, Washington State Radiological Society, King County Medical Society, and King County Medical Service Bureau; former consultant, Washington State Board of Health; and former lecturer on medical ethics, Medical Faculty, University of Washington.

*Alexander Farkas, Ph.D., Dr. Chem. Eng., F.A.C.B.A., F.A.C.M.T., head, Biochemical and Organic Chemical Research Laboratories, North Miami Beach, Florida

Charles L. Farrell, M.D., D.M.D., D. Pharm., of South County Medical Associates, Narragansett, Rhode Island; former assistant professor of pharmacology, Rhode Island College of Pharmacy; past president of seven medical societies; and former chairman, American Medical Association Public Health Committee.

Reuben Feltman, D.D.S., research dentist, Passaic General Hospital; secretary, Passaic County Dental Society; and chairman, Society’s Fluoride and Research Committee.

*Johnathan Forman, M.D., F.A.C.A., F.I.I.C.P., F.A.M.A., professor emeritus of the history of medicine, Ohio State University; past president, American College of Allergists; editor-in-chief, Clinical Physiology; member, editoral boards, Journal of Applied Nutrition, Annals of Allergy, world Wide Abstracts for General Practice, and Vox Medica; and former editor, Ohio State Medical Journal.

Donald B. Foster, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology, Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York.

J. Earle Galloway, Ph.D., chairman, Department of Pharmacology, Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa.

John H. Garlock, M.D., consulting surgeon, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City.

Max Ginns, D.M.D., M.R.S.H., senior dental consultant, Worcester (Massachusetts) City Hospital, and past chairman, educational committees, Massachusetts and Worcester District Dental Societies and Massachusetts and Worcester Dental Health Councils.

*John F. Grady, M.D., surgeon, French Hospital, New York City.

*Ludwik Gross, M.D., F.R.C.P., of the New York City, chief of cancer research for a federal agency.

George R. Henshaw, M.D., president emeritus, Montclair (New Jersey) Community Hospital, and former instructor in pharmacology, New York Medical College and Flower-Fifth Avenue Hospital, New York City.

Charles Gordon Heyd, M.D., Dr. Med. Sc., LL.D., past president, American Medical Association, and consulting surgeon, University of New York Post Graduate Hospital

Howard H. Hilleman, Ph.D., F.A.A.A.S., F.I.C.A.N., professor of physiology, anatomy, and fetal development, Corvallis, Oregon.

*W.C. Hueper, M.D., F.A.A.A.S., F.N.Y.A.S., chief, Environmental Cancer Section, National Cancer Institute, USPHS, Bethesda, Md.

*Veikko Oscar Hurme, D.M.D., former director of clinical research, Forsyth Dental Infirmary, Boston, Mass.

Francis L. Ilg, M.D., director, Gesell Institute of Child Development, New Haven, Connecticut.

Benjamin J. Jacobs, D.D.S., consultant on medical care and civil defense, State of New Jersey; president, American Society for the Advancement of General Anesthesia In Dentistry; past president, New Jersey Society of Oral Surgeons; and trustee, Academy of Medicine of New Jersey.

Granville F. Knight, M.D., F.A.C.A., F.I.A.A., of Santa Monica, California, past president, American Academy of Nutrition.

*Edwin G. Langrock, M.D., consulting obstetrician, Beth Israel Hospital, New York City.

*Albert W. Laubengayer, Ph.D., professor of chemistry, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

*Edgar A. Lawrence, M.D., director of medicine, Lenox Hill Hospital, New York City.

Clive M. McCay, Ph.D., professor of nutrition (retired), Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

Laurence H. MacDaniels, Ph.D., professor emeritus and former head, Department of Floriculture, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.

Jack E. McKee, B.S., S.M., Sc.D., professor of environmental health engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif.

Edward A. McLaughlin, M.D., former state director of health, Rhode Island.

John J. Miller, Ph.D., F.I.C.A.N., D.I.B.A.N., president, Miller Pharmacal Co.; former director of biochemical research, J.B. Roerig & Company; past president, Phi Lambda Upsilon; editor abstract division, Clinical Physiology; former editor-in-chief, Chemical Abstracts; and member committee on nutrition, Illinois State Medical Society.

Joseph Franklin Montague, M.D., F.I.C.S., F.A.C.S., founder, New York Intestinal Sanitorium; president, American Medical Authors, Inc.; and editor-in-chief, Health Digest, New York City.

*William P. Murphy, M.D., D.Sc., lecturer on medicine, emeritus, Harvard Medical School; consultant in hematology, Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Boston; consultant in internal medicine, Melrose, Quincy, and Concord (Emerson Hospital), Mass. Hospitals, and Delaware State Hospital in Farnhurst, Del; Nobel Prize winner in medicine.

*Issac Neuwirth, M.D., of New York Medical College and Flower-Fifth Avenue Hospital, New York City.

Girard F. Oberrender, M.D., former director of otolaryngology, Lenox Hill Hospital, New York City, and former professor of otolaryngology, New York Postgraduate Medical School.

*Alton Ochsner, M.D., D.Sc., president and director of general surgery section, Ochsner Clinic and Foundation Hospital; William Henerson, professor emeritus and former chairman Department of Surgery, Tulane University Medical School; and past president, American Cancer Society and American College of Surgeons.

*James B. Patrick, Ph.D., biochemist, Lederle Laboratories, Pearl River, N.Y. Formerly with National Heart Institute, National Institute of Health, USPHS.

Eugene H. Payne, M.D., M.P.H., M.R.S.H., clinical director, Hammond State School, Louisiana State Department of Hospitals, and former clinical investigator (tropical diseases), Parke, Davis & Co.

Francis F. Ray, M.D., research professor of pharmaceutical chemistry and former director, Cancer Research Laboratory, University of Florida, Gainsville, Fla.

Max Spencer Rhode, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.I.C.S., former associate surgeon, Urological Service, Bellevue Hospital, New York City.

Francis M. Pottenger, Jr., M.D., internist of Monrovia, Calif., former chairman, Air Pollution Committees, Los Angeles County and California State Medical Associations, and Scientific Committee, Air Pollution Control District, Los Angeles County; and member, Air Pollution Committee, American College of Chest Physicians.

Walter T. Schrenk, Ph.D., professor of chemical engineering, emeritus and former chairmen, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy, Rolla, Missouri, and past national president, Alpha Chi Sigma.

Herman F. Strongin, Ph.C., M.D., M.P.H., public health consultant, Sherman, Conn.; former medical officer-in-command, Naval Chemical Warfare Research Unit, Bethesda Naval Hospital; former chief of medicine, U.S. Naval Hospital, Croton, Conn.; and former epidemiologist, Middlesex Memorial Hospital.

Alfred Taylor, Ph.D., F.A.A.A.S., F.N.Y.A.S., research scientist, Clayton Foundation Biochemical Institute, University of Texas, Austin, Texas.

James W. Thornton, Ph.C., D.D.S., former instructor of material medica, Washington College of Pharmacy, Wash., D.C., and former narcotics inspector, U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

John V. Vaughen, Ph.D., professor of chemistry, Stetson University, DeLand, St. Petersburg, Florida.

George L. Waldbott, M.D., F.A.C.P., F.A.A.A., F.A.C.A, F.A.C.C.P., past vice president; American College of Allergists, and co-founder and past president, Michigan Allergy Society, Detroit, Michigan.

*Louis S. Wegryn, M.D., of Elizabeth, N.J., past president, N.J. Medical Society.

Fred W. Wittich, M.D., F.A.C.A., F.A.A.A., F.A.M.A. (deceased); of St. Barnabas and Northwestern Hospitals, Minneapolis; past president, International Association of Allergy; past secretary-treasurer, American College of Allergy; former managing editor, Annals of Allergy; and former editor and publisher, Quarterly Review of Allergy and Applied Immunology.

William Wolf, M.D., Ph.D., endocrinologist and diagnostician, and former lecturer and consultant on dental medicine, New York University, N.Y.C.

Australia

Sir Arthur B.P. Amies, C.M.G., D.D.Sc., LL.D., F.R.C.S., F.R.A.C.S., F.D.S.R.C.S., F.R.S.E., F.A.C.D., professor of dental medicine and surgery; dean of the Faculty of Dental Sciences; and vice-chancellor, University of Melbourne.

Colin P. Harrison, M.D., head, Chelmer Diagnostic Laboratories, Melbourne.

Sir Cedric Stanton Hicks, K.B., C.St.J., M.D., Ph.D., F.R.I.C., professor of human physiology and pharmacology, emeritus, and Sheridan Research Fellow, Adelaide University; editor, Australian Journal of Biology; member, editorial board, Excerpta Medica, Amsterdam; and scientific food consultant, Australian Army.

Paul Pincus, D.D.Sc., Ph.D., R.D.S., R.C.S., of the Dental School, University of Melbourne.

John B. Polya, D.Sc., F.R.I.C., F.R.A.C.I., associate professor of chemistry, University of Tasmania, Hobart.

Philip R. N. Sutton, D.D.Sc., L.D.S., senior research fellow, Department of Oral Medicine and Surgery, Dental School, University of Melbourne.

Belgium

Corneille Jean Francois Heymans, M.D., professor of pharmacology, pharmacodynamics and toxicology and director, J.F. Heymans Institute of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Ghent; and Nobel Prize winner in medicine.

Canada

Marcel Boulet, Ph.D., inorganic chemist, Food and Chemistry Section Division of Applied Biology, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa.

Keith F. Box, D.D.S., specialist in periodontal diseases, Toronto, Ontario.

(His father, the late Harold Keith Box, D.D.S., Ph.D., research professor of periondontology, Dental Faculty, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, was also opposed to fluoridation.)

*John Davison, F.L.S., F.B.S.E., F.R.H.S., professor emeritus of botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C.

William J. McCormick, M.D., F.I.C.A.N., of Toronto, Ontario.

John R. Marier, dairy chemistry technician, Food and Chemistry Section, Division of Applied Biology, National Research Council of Canada.

*Robert Newton, M.C., Ph.D., D.Sc., LL.D., F.A.I.C., F.R.S.C., former director, Biology Division, National Research Council of Canada; former director, Alberta Research Council; and former president, University of Alberta.

Charles T. Peterson, D.D.S., specialist in periodontal diseases and director Western Dental Foundation, London, Ontario.

*James J. Rae, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario.

Dyson Rose, Ph.D., chief, Food Chemistry Section, Division of Applied Biology, National Research Council of Canada.

M. Doreen Smith, Ph.D., F.C.I.C., professor of food sciences and head, Department of Food Chemistry, University of Toronto, and honorary director, Institute of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Montreal, Quebec.

Denmark

*Dr. Richard Fge, professor of biochemistry, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

*Knud O. Møller, M.D., Ph.D., professor and director, Department of Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen.

Finland

*Professor Artturi I. Virtanen, director, Biochemical Institute, Helsinki; president, Finnish State Academy of Sciences and Art; and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry.

France

*Dr. Michel Dechaume, professor of stomatology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Paris; president, Congress of Stomatology; and secretary of the Stomatology Review.

*Jean-Marie René Fabre, M.D., D.Sc., professor of toxicology and pharmacy and dean emeritus of the faculty of pharmacy, University of Paris, and honorary president, Academy of Medicine.

*Dr. M. Palfer-Sollier, French National Institute of Hygiene, Paris.

Dr. Truhaut, professor of toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, U. of Paris.

Guillaume Valette, dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Paris.

Germany

Dr. C. Beusch, former superior medical counselor, Board of Health, Frankfurt-am-Main.

Adolf F. J. Butenandt, D. Phil., director, Max-Planck Institute of biochemistry; professor of physiological chemistry, Munich University; president, Max-Planck Society; and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry.

*Professor Dr. Eichholtz, professor emeritus of pharmacology, University of Heidelberg.

Ulrich Rheinwald, medical director, Tooth and Mouth Clinic, Municipal Katherin Hospital, Stuttgart.

Fauzi Rozeik, D.D.S., associate professor of dentistry and director of research, Medical Faculty, Mainz University, and chief physician, Dental Institute of Mainz.

Great Britain

Roger J. Berry, M.D., Helen Hay Whitney Fellow in Radiobiology, Oxford University, and head, Radiobiology Laboratory, Department of Radio-therapy, United Oxford Hospitals.

*Charles S. Dillon, D.D.S., L.D.S., R.F.P.S., Caladh, Fort William, Inverness-Shire, Scotland.

Charles Geoffrey Dobbs, Ph.D., A.R.C.S., senior lecturer (mycology), University College of North Wales, Bangor.

F. Douglas T. Good, M.R.C.V.S., of Tenterden, Kent.

Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood, O.M., M.A., D.Sc., F.R.S., Dr. Lee’s Professor of Chemistry, University of Oxford; past president, Chemical Society; and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry.

*Reginald A. Hozman, M.D., senior lecturer in bacteriology, Institute of Pathology, Welsh National School of Medicine, Newport Road, Cardiff, Wales.

Sire Robert Robinson, O.M., D.Sc., F.R.I.C., F.R.S., M.I.C.E., director, Shell Chemical Company; former Waynflete Professor of Chemistry, Oxford University; past president, Chemical Society; and Nobel prize winner in chemistry.

Hugh MacDonald Sinclair, D.M., F.R.C.S., M.R.C.P., L.M.S.S.A., vice-president and fellow and lecturer in physiology and biochemistry, Magdalen College, Oxford University, and former director, Laboratory of Human Nutrition, Oxford University.

Wilfrid Trillwood, F.P.S., director of pharmaceutical services, United oxford Hospitals.

Dagmar F. C. Wilson, M.D., D.P.H., M.R.C.P., F.R.C.O.G., Institute of Social Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford.

India

J. V. Bhat, Ph.D., D.Sc., professor of microbiology, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Mysore.

Dr. S. C. Pillai, of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Mysore.

Amarjit Singh, M.D., M.R.C.P., professor of medicine and principal, Medical College, University of Patiala, Punjab.

Italy

Andrea Benagiano, D.D.S., dean and director, Dental School, University of Rome; director, George Eastman Higher Institute of Dentistry; president, Association of Italian Medical Dentists; and editor, Annals of Stomatology.

Sergio Fiorentini, professor of dentistry, University of Rome; principal, Department of Operative Dentistry, George Eastman Higher Institute of Dentistry; president, Italian Society of Childrens Dentistry; and sub-editor, Annals of Stomatology.

Giulio Natta, Dr. Chem. Eng., professor and director, Industrial Chemistry Research Center, Polytechnic Institute of Milan, Italy, and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry.

Norway

Harald A. Salvesen, M.D., chief of Medicine, State Hospital of Norway; professor of internal medicine, emeritus, University of Oslo; and physician to the late King Haakon VII.

Republic of South Africa

Douw G. Steyn, B.Sc., Dr. Med. Vet., D.V.Sc., chief research officer, Division of Life Sciences, Atomic Energy Board, Pretoria, and professor emeritus and former head, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Pretoria University.

Sweden

Alfred Åslander, Ph.D., director of agriculture, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm.

*Arvid Carlsson, M.D., professor and chief of Pharmacological Institute, Gothenburg University.

*Allan Strålfors, D.D.Sc., professor of cariology, Royal Dental Institute of Sweden, University of Umea, Malmo.

Hugo Theorell, M.D., professor and director, Biochemistry Department, Nobel Medical Institute, Stockholm; president, Swedish Medical Association; and Nobel Prize winner in medicine.

Hans K. A. S. von Euler-Chelpin, professor of biochemistry, emeritus, Stockholm University, president, Chemical Society, Stockholm; director, Institute for Research in Organic Chemistry; and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry.

Ulf S. von Euler-Chelpin, M.D., D.D.Sc., professor of pharmacology and physiology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm.

Switzerland

Anton Gordonoff, M.D., professor emeritus of toxicology and pharmacology and head, Pharmacology Department, Bern University School of Medicine, and Member, Swiss Commission on Medicines and Drugs.

Walter Rudolf Hess, Dr. Med., Dr. Phil., D.Sc., professor of physiology, emeritus and former director of physiological institute, University of Zürich; president of XVI International Congress of Physiologists; and Nobel Prize winner in medicine.

*Dr. W. Minder, professor of physiology, Bern University School of Medicine.