Benjamin Spock, M.D.

You might guess that I would be opposed to fluoridation of the water supply (to prevent tooth decay) on several counts. I’ve been against pollution of the diet of children and adults with extra sugar and salt, and with additives and preservatives. I’ve always disagreed with those health professionals who assumed, without solid proof, that they knew more than Nature — when, for example, some physicians used to prescribe tonsillectomy on a wholesale basis or tried to change growth patterns of normally short or tall children by means of growth hormones. I’m also against imposing regulations on people in an arbitrary and undemocratic manner. The fact is that I started out as somewhat skeptical and cautious about fluoridation in the 1940’s and early 1950’s. But …

You might guess that I would be opposed to fluoridation of the water supply (to prevent tooth decay) on several counts. I’ve been against pollution of the diet of children and adults with extra sugar and salt, and with additives and preservatives. I’ve always disagreed with those health professionals who assumed, without solid proof, that they knew more than Nature—when, for example, some physicians used to prescribe tonsillectomy on a wholesale basis or tried to change growth patterns of normally short or tall children by means of growth hormones. I’m also against imposing regulations on people in an arbitrary and undemocratic manner. The fact is that I started out as somewhat skeptical and cautious about fluoridation in the 1940’s and early 1950’s. But then I …