80% of Missouri is fluoridated. "The dental clinic held over the weekend was so very impressive in so many ways.

These are the hard numbers: 1,856 people served, 2,922 teeth pulled and dentistry valued at $1 million."

Time for tooth decay talk | Springfield News-Leader | News-Leader.com

Maryland is 94% fluoridated "[The dentist] has seen individuals suffering from infections, decay, burning gums and ulcers who rely on aspirin to ease their pain.

Others have teeth that are blackened and crooked.

Many have not been to a dentist in decades.

It is the desperate need for dental attention that keeps her coming back each year to volunteer her time and services to thousands of people attending the Convoy of Hope at Fairgrounds Park in Hagerstown.

'We expect to see at least 2,000 people today," Bye said. "Many of them have been living with discomfort for a long time.'

Snyder estimated that about 5,000 people attended Saturday's Convoy of Hope.

'The first year, about 2,300 people showed up," he said. "Each year since, the numbers have increased.'"


Convoy of Hope offers free services to thousands - Page 2 - herald-mail.com

In 90% fluoridated Ohio: "Many of Ohio's young children are unable to get the dental care they need to stay healthy. According to a recent report from the Ohio Department of Health, more than half of the state's children have experienced tooth decay by third grade. And while it varies by location, family income and insurance, children in Appalachian counties disproportionately suffer the consequences of untreated cavities and have a greater need for urgent dental care."

Dental Health not Necessarily a Smiling Matter for Ohio's Kids:

Kids in fluoridated Alalmeda County, California are suffering in dental painBay Area Dental Health Crisis Part 3 - Video - KTVU San Francisco

http://www.ktvu.com/video/28910318/index.html

Rhode Island is 85% fluoridated and dental decay is a significant public-health problem among Rhode Island children. Despite 202 dentists in 380 locations throughout the state up from only 27 years ago.


Dental care in R.I. for children lags | Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal

Virginia is 95% fluoridated. "In Northern Virginia, 16 percent of lower-income adults have not gone to a dentist in more than five years, according to a report that looks at disparities in oral health in one of the most prosperous regions in the country.

“For people with limited means and no insurance, routine dental care is often out of reach,” said Patricia Mathews, president of the Northern Virginia Health Foundation. “Because of costs, they are more likely to suffer severe pain from untreated dental problems, miss time from work or school, or wind up in a hospital emergency room, which increases health-care costs for everyone.”

Three months after the Northern Virginia Dental Clinic’s Loudoun site opened in October, it had a waiting list of 300 patients, Mathews said. Although some area dentists volunteer at clinics or provide their services at reduced rates, the need far exceeds the number of dentists willing to provide those services, the report said.

Fluoridation Mandated Kentucky has staggering tooth decay rates. It’s clear they need dental care and not fluoride. But what’s solution – more fluoride – making more money for companies selling the fluoride varnish and more money to the dental professionals applying the stuff, having no evidence that children are fluoride-deficient.

Excerpts:
Staggering statistics about Kentucky kids’ poor oral health were brought to the governor’s attention when he was running for office four years ago, Beshear said. The Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at UK sent the Beshears an assessment of the state’s dental health showing that half of Kentucky’s children had decay in their baby teeth; and nearly half of children ages 2, 3 and 4 had untreated dental problems. This is more than twice the national average, Beshear said last week.

Kentucky youths who seek to join the military and present a mouth full of cavities and gaps where teeth had been, are turned away in high numbers, says Dr. Steve Davis, the state’s interim commissioner of public health.


Over the course of the 2011-12 school year, two protective fluoride varnish treatments and educational materials for healthy dental practices will be offered to children in the first through the fifth grades at selected schools in 16 Appalachian Kentucky counties.



Al Smith: 'Smiling Schools' improving health - Central Kentucky News