Health Minister Edwin Poots is considering adding fluoride to water in Northern Ireland

Health Minister Edwin Poots is considering adding fluoride to water in Northern Ireland in a bid to curb the rate of tooth decay in young people.Health Minister Edwin Poots is considering adding fluoride to water in Northern Ireland in a bid to curb the rate of tooth decay in young people.
Northern Ireland has the worst oral health in the UK and young people in the region have the worst rate of dental decay in western Europe.
The DUP MLA said the public should be ashamed of their dental hygiene.
"We've failed miserably," he said, before adding that children were being allowed far too much sugary food and drink from a very early age - in some cases before the age of one year.
Mr Poots said the public needed to get to grips with dental hygiene.

On Wednesday, the first stage of a major dental research trial investigating the problem was completed.

Around 1,200 children aged 2-4 are involved in the trial, which is the first of its kind in western Europe.
Fluoride was painted on the back of the children's teeth to prevent decay and reverse existing damage, and their dental health will be monitored over a four-year period.
Michael Donaldson, Head of Dentistry at the Health Board, said a "generally poor diet" is not the only factor behind poor dental health in the region.
"There are deprivation factors and unemployment issues that make it difficult for those families to eat more healthily, to brush their teeth more frequently.
"They may not be able to afford the fluoride toothpaste frequently enough to give their kids the preventative effect," he added.