Acceptability of Salt Fluoridation in a Rural Latino Community in the United States: An Ethnographic Study

Compared to other population groups in the United States, caries (tooth decay) is a disproportionately prevalent disease among Latino populations, especially among low-income and rural sub-groups and children under five years of age. Fluoride is a primary preventive for caries. While water fluoridat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inPloS one Vol. 11; no. 7; p. e0158540
Main Authors Barker, Judith C, Guerra, Claudia, Gonzalez-Vargas, M Judy, Hoeft, Kristin S
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Public Library of Science 08.07.2016
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

Loading…
More Information
Summary:Compared to other population groups in the United States, caries (tooth decay) is a disproportionately prevalent disease among Latino populations, especially among low-income and rural sub-groups and children under five years of age. Fluoride is a primary preventive for caries. While water fluoridation is a major and effective public health means for delivering fluoride on a mass scale, it does not reach many rural areas or population groups such as Latinos who eschew drinking water from municipal sources. This study examines the acceptability to such groups of salt fluoridation, an alternate means of delivering fluoride long used on a global scale. An ethnographic study in California's rural Central Valley was performed. Thirty individual interviews and 5 focus groups (N = 61) were conducted in Spanish to investigate low-income Latino migrant caregivers' experiences, views and understandings of domestic salt, oral health, caries prevention and fluoride. Audio data were transcribed, translated, coded and thematically analyzed. Table salt was readily available and frequently consumed. Both adult and child daily sodium consumption was high. Despite a general feeling that it was good, and present in dentifrices or dietary supplements, most participants had little knowledge about fluoride. Concerns were raised about cardio-vascular and other possibly deleterious effects if an increase in salt consumption occurred because fluoridated salt was viewed as having 'extra' benefits. Once informed about fluoride's safety and role in caries prevention, most participants expressed willingness to use fluoridated salt, especially if it benefitted children. Reassurance about its safety and benefits, and demonstration of its taste, were important aspects of acceptance. Taste was paramount. Participants would not consume more fluoridated salt than their current salt as that would result in unpleasant changes in food flavor and taste. While salt fluoridation is acceptable, the feasibility of producing and distributing fluoridated salt in the United States is, however, complex and challenging.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Conceived and designed the experiments: JCB KSH. Performed the experiments: CG MJG-V KSH. Analyzed the data: JCB CG MJG-V KSH. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: JCB. Wrote the paper: Reviewing drafts, providing feedback and editing: CG MJG-V KSH.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0158540