As Calgary votes for fluoride, some in B.C. have hope for 'rotten tooth capital of Canada'

After a year that saw both Regina and Calgary voting to add fluoride to their drinking water, some British Columbians are wondering whether it's time for cities in the province to finally consider fluoridation.

About two-thirds of Calgarians who voted in Monday's plebiscite supported the fluoride measure — hopeful news for Dr. Mario Brondani, an associate professor of dentistry at the University of British Columbia and a self-described "passionate advocate for fluoride."

"I think it's time that we perhaps could have this conversation again," he told CBC News.

The Calgary fluoride vote is part of a recent trend. Regina's city council made the same decision this summer, and fluoride is expected to return to the Ontario city of Windsor's water this fall.

Fluoride has never been added to Metro Vancouver's drinking water. In fact, Health Canada estimated that 98 per cent of British Columbians lived in communities without fluoridated water as of 2017.

That's despite decades of research showing that fluoride strengthens tooth enamel, making it more resistant to the acid that causes cavities, and carries little risk to people's health, Brondani said.

For Brondani, it's not just an issue of oral health — it's also about equity in a country where dental care is expensive and very little of it is covered by the public health system.

While many people in B.C. are able to access coverage for dental care through the insurance provided by their employers, those who depend on income or disability assistance are afforded just $1,000 of coverage every two years, even though they tend to have the greatest need for dental care, Brondani said.

"People might say that in Vancouver or in Canada, caries [or cavities] are not that prevalent in our children," he said.

"Well guess what? It is not prevalent in affluent neighbourhoods or affluent families, but it is very prevalent in those that do not have access to care."

A report from the Urban Public Health Network suggests the rate of dental surgery was 60 per cent lower for children in Canada's richest neighbourhoods from 2011 to 2015.

Those sentiments are shared by Joan Rush, chair of the advocacy committee at the Canadian Society for Disability and Oral Health.

She said dentists in B.C. aren't required to train in treating patients with disabilities and complex medical conditions, which makes it difficult to access appropriate care. 

Meanwhile, people living in rural, remote and Indigenous communities often don't have reliable access to any dentists at all, resulting in higher rates of decay and tooth loss.