I am bewildered as to why the author of the letter 'Who needs fluoride?' (August 10) feels the need to conceal their identity.

Can it be that if their identity were published those who know them would be aware that they do not in fact have "all her own teeth and no fillings"?

I am a lifelong resident of Bolton, and neither I, nor anyone I know, is aware of a single resident over the age of 40 with 32 sound unfilled natural teeth.

We conclude that very few people indeed are in that happy state.

Your correspondent is therefore one of a fortunate small minority. The majority are not so lucky.

Your anonymous and ill-informed correspondent seriously underestimates the extent of tooth decay in Bolton, and trivialises the impact this preventable disease has on the health and well-being of many thousands of children.

Sadly, more than half of all Bolton children have some tooth decay by five years of age, and around one quarter will have several very badly decayed teeth.

By the age of 14, the proportion with decay has risen to 60 per cent.

Your correspondent displays a heartless 'I am all right Jack' attitude towards those less fortunate.

Happily this attitude is uncharacteristic of Boltonians, most of whom are considerably more charitable and much more realistic about the difficulties of preventing what is the most common chronic disease of childhood -- tooth decay.

Most would be only too pleased to see our water supplies fluoridated -- indeed, many think we already have fluoridated water!

It is simply illogical and unacceptable to continue to deprive children the North-west of the benefits of water fluoridation which generations of children brought up in the West Midlands and North-east have enjoyed for almost 40 years.

The Government is apparently committed to reducing health inequalities.

The Alliance for Equity in Dental Health has recently written to Health Secretary Alan Milburn reminding him of the huge inequalities in dental health between the North-west and the West Midlands, and asking him to address the issue urgently.

We urge parents and grandparents in the North-west to do likewise.

Sheila Jones

Co-ordinator

National Alliance for Equity in Dental Health

University of Liverpool School of Dentistry