California Assembly Bill 733, signed into law by Governor Pete Wilson in 1995, authorized the California Department of Health Services to require water suppliers with 10,000 or more service connections or customers to fluoridate their public water supply. The California Fluoridation Regulations adopted by the California Department of Health Services were added to the California Code of Regulations (CCR – Title 22, Sections 64433 and 64434;pages 81to 87) in April 1998.
Naturally occurring fluoride levels range from 0.1 to 0.4 parts per million, and water in San Diego County averages 0.23 parts per million. In order to reach the optimal range for dental health fluoride must be added to reach 0.7 to 0.8 parts per million.
Any agency relying on the Water Authority for 100 percent of its treated water will receive fully optimized fluoride concentrations. If a water retail system blends Water Authority supplies with other non-fluoridated supplies, fluoride levels will be lower. Systems that receive no treated water from the Water Authority will have only natural levels of fluoride.
San Diego County consumers can obtain information on the levels of fluoride that will be present in their water by contacting their retail water agency.
Additional information on the fluoridation of drinking water is available at:
- Map of Flouridation in San Diego
- American Dental Association – Consumers with questions on whether they should adjust their dental health practices in any way should ask their dentist.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- The California Department of Public Health
