Anti-brigades march on despite clear evidence

SCIENCE is finding itself fighting a rearguard action as various fringe groups up the ante.

The anti-vaccination, anti-fluoride and anti-climate change brigade have all been denying the scientific evidence on these issues with increasing fervour. Never ones to let the facts get in the way of generating irrational fear, the anti-faction have marshalled all manner of arguments to counter the sound research work of science.

The ring-master of the anti-fluoride movement, Fluoride Free NZ, took an integrity hit when the Advertising Standards Authority found its website was misleading in its attack on medical and dental evidence - and there is plenty of that.

The scientific support for the advantages of fluoride as a way of improving dental health across a population is solid. Numerous studies have been done comparing the dental health of those in communities with fluoridated water against those who are not and the benefits have been overwhelmingly clear.

Despite this, the arguments against fluoridation remains focused on generating fear bound to conspiracy theories rather than good science.

One aspect of the anti-fluoride argument is that governments, by adding fluoride to water supplies, are interfering with a citizen's right to choose. Would this same argument apply to other public safety measures such as wearing seatbelts or motor cycle helmets? It is proven that seatbelts do save lives and this has been reinforced by law.

Ask a person who declares that they never wear a seatbelt whether they would be happy to pay for the higher injury cost resulting from not wearing a seatbelt and the response is suddenly muted. Likewise, the anti-fluoridates would no doubt hesitate if challenged to cover the cost of all the resulting dental cavities in children affected by their insistence that fluoride is in some way dangerous.

The anti-vaccination voices have been muffled by the measles outbreak that began in Disneyland in recent weeks and the consequent dismantling of many of their shoddy arguments. Still there remains a reference to a shonky and soundly discredited study done many years ago, a dangerous piece of bad science used to create unfounded fears.

A recent mapping of vaccination rates in New South Wales showed that some of the areas with the lowest rates of immunised children were reasonably affluent communities whose parents, by opting out, where putting other children at risk of illness. The strength of immunisation is in its umbrella effect - the more kids sheltering under the vaccination umbrella, the greater its ability to protect all children.

The conspiracy theories around much of the opposition to fluoride and vaccinations are mirrored in the dismissal of science by climate change deniers.

It seems that despite the reams of scientific evidence, there is still political opposition to the notion that human activity is damaging the future of the planet. Some of this is driven by vested interests that profit from ignoring the problem, while some is possibly about misunderstanding the way good science works.

The world of science is always about challenging what can be proven and the soundness of evidence when tested. Good science will always be theorising and arguing - that's what it does best.

Terry Sarten is a Wanganui-based writer, musician, social worker and opinionator - feedback: tgs@inspire.net.nz