Dentistry: Fluorides for Adults

DENTISTRY Fluorides for Adults

Virtually all U.S. dentists now agree that the best way to prevent tooth decay is to fluoridate water supplies so that children get the benefits from the time their tooth buds begin to form—only a few weeks after conception. Failing that, many dentists paint stronger fluoride solutions on children's teeth once or twice a year. Adults, with their fully developed teeth, have seemed beyond fluorides' help—destined to suffer the traditional "find the cavity, then drill and fill."

Now, that adult tradition may be on the way out, largely because the...