In a unanimous decision, the Lakeland City Commission voted to cease adding fluoride to the city’s water supply, effective immediately on Monday. The fluoridation system was deactivated shortly after the vote.

The decision followed public comments from several residents. Justin Harvey advocated for individual choice, stating, “Let’s keep it simple. Let’s give people a choice and let’s end water fluoridation.” Conversely, nurse Ryan Johnson warned, “We are going to see increased rates of infection.”

City commissioners noted they’ve been researching the issue since it gained national attention last year. Lakeland has fluoridated its drinking water since 1981 to combat tooth decay, maintaining a level of 0.7 mg/L—the recommended amount—until this week. Natural fluoride will still be present in the water supply.

Commissioner Stephanie Madden expressed concerns about fluoride accumulation, saying, “I am most concerned about the buildup in the body, the buildup in the brain, the buildup in the tissue.” Commissioner Sara Roberts McCarley emphasized public choice and protecting vulnerable residents, adding, “I want to have public choice. I think that’s critically important. I also think it’s critically important that our job is to take care of those who may not be able to take care of themselves.”

Though the commissioners recognized fluoride’s dental benefits, they agreed it could no longer be supported. Mayor Bill Mutz explained, “What we can’t have is the concern that we’re adding something to the water that not all residents want and that has potential neurotoxin issues.”

Lakeland now joins Winter Haven, which ended fluoridation earlier this year following Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo’s campaign against the practice. In November, Ladapo called fluoridation “public health malpractice” and urged cities to stop. The Florida Dental Association, however, defends it as a safe, effective way to prevent tooth decay.

Bartow’s city commission will decide on its fluoridation policy March 17.

Community reactions were mixed. Lacy Lain, who brought her daughter Sparrow to speak at the meeting, celebrated the decision: “I’m very excited about it. I think just as far as our own choice in what we put in our body… that’s a core of who we are.” Nurse Ryan LeMonde criticized it as “completely elitist,” arguing, “People don’t have choice when they’re poor. It’s a poverty versus prestige issue and they don’t understand it.”

Fluoridation advocates highlight that dental treatments like fluoride toothpaste or mouthwash are inaccessible to some. Mayor Mutz suggested nonprofits could address this, saying, “We want to be as sensitive as we can to dial in on those people and their needs not necessarily assign to everyone what may not be good for the whole.”

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