Fluoride was one of the topics discussed at Monday night’s regular council meeting.
    Concerns had been brought to council’s attention from social media and CAO Ray Romanetz presented a report on the topic.
    Deputy Mayor Jay Garbutt said, “I think it is something that is out (in) the public for discussion. I don’t know if it is on the same scale as the anti-vaccination campaign, but there is an anti-fluoride campaign. It is important for all of our elected officials to be aware of why we do it, and what the possible health issues are both plus and minus.”
    “The scientific data does not back up the claims of negative health. The provincial government is still convinced in the health benefits of adding fluoride to local drinking water. We continue to make these decisions based on science, not on opinion. It doesn’t hurt us from time to time to re-visit things we’ve been doing for a very long time since the original by-law was passed in 1966,” he explains.
    For the Valley, fluoride exists in the river. In the summer months, the amount of fluoride in the river is 0.2 milligrams and in the winter it is 0.5 milligrams.
    “A certain amount of fluoride naturally exists in our drinking water that comes from the river, so we are only bringing it up by very few milligrams parts per million, to bring it up to the minimal level. Nonetheless, it is important for us to focus on the benefit of doing these things and to understand that there are people who are against it,” Garbutt said.
    Romanetz spoke with Alberta Health Services and they have said they “highly recommend” fluoride in the water. Currently Drumheller puts one millilitre for every litre of water.
    Testing is completed by the Town on a daily basis and is done quarterly by the province.
    Garbutt said, “It is proven that in communities where there are different socio-economic classes that are wide spread apart, generally speaking, the lower socio-economic groups tend to benefit more from water source fluorination that may not have access to all the additional ways that fluoride has become available since it was first introduced into our water systems.”
    He continued by saying, “Anything we can do to benefit all citizens is important, if we can additionally benefit our lower income earners by doing something we’ve always done, well that just makes sense.”

The Man Van is coming to Drumheller.
    The Prostate Cancer Centre Man Van will be rolling into the Royal Tyrrell Museum parking lot on Saturday, June 27 from 12-3 p.m.
    The Van is making stops in various rural communities in Alberta providing Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) tests to men over the age of 40.
    Ken Rabb, Man Van program manager, said the Man Van began in 2009 with a van in the city of Calgary where the focus was on the communities within city.
    “In 2012 we expanded our Man Van program to bring on this van that is more built for rural Alberta, and we travel all across the province offering these tests to the community,” he said.
The test consists of a blood test that will check the PSA level to help with the early detection of prostate cancer. PSA is a protein produced by the prostate and released in small amounts to the bloodstream. The amount of PSA in the bloodstream often predicts a man’s risk of prostate cancer.
    Rabb, said this will be the first year the Van will be in the Museum parking lot.
    “I think it will be a great opportunity because we are not only offering the service to the community. We are offering it to anyone that visits the museum and we could be testing people from all over the country.”
    Rabb said the Prostate Cancer Centre is a privately funded organization, not part of Alberta Health Services, so the results don’t go to the participants doctor, but instead directly to them in about a week.
    “If it is at an elevated level, we encourage them to follow up with their doctor and find out why. It could be a number of reasons,” Rabb said. “It doesn’t necessarily mean prostate cancer, but it is good to know why the level is a bit higher.”
    By completing this test, it measures if the PSA is normal for the man’s age group. Rabb encourages men once they reach their 40’s to get tested every five years and then in their 50’s every year.
    “We say all the time, it is a blood test not a glove test, but we also recommend that men get the digital rectal examination and visit their doctor regularly as well as regular maintenance on their bodies.”
    Prostate cancer is the leading cancer in Albertan men. One man in seven will develop prostate cancer in his lifetime. Approximately 2600 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer and eight men will die from it every week.
    “We try to make it as comfortable and inviting to men as possible. The nurses on the Van, they are there to have fun and to strike up a conversation. It is a lot better than sitting in a doctors office,” Rabb said.
    For more information visit www.getchecked.ca.