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Subject: Very interesting . . . 



Are "Silver" Dental Fillings Safe? 

By Francesca Lyman 
Anyone who has ever had a tooth cavity has probably seen a dentist who 
drilled it and packed it with a "silver" filling. But how many patients know 
what's in that silver? And whether it could have consequences for your health? 
Could silver dental fillings be causing, or contributing to, health problems? 
Holistic health advocates, environmentalists and a growing cadre of 
"mercury-free" dentists fear amalgams emit dangerous levels of mercury, 
stirring up a health controversy that goes back 150 years. 
Scientists agree that when absorbed in high enough doses, mercury, in all its 
chemical forms, can damage the brain, nervous system, kidneys and other 
organs, especially in infants and children. But they differ on not only how 
much mercury must be absorbed to cause adverse health effects, but also just 
how much of the amalgam's mercury is absorbed by the human body to begin with. 
Dental associations pooh-pooh alleged dangers. The ADA considers it "a safe, 
affordable and durable material" that has been used for "more than 150 years 
and during that time has established an extensively reviewed record of safety 
and effectiveness." 
ADA quotes the U.S. Public Health Service's 1993 report stating that amalgam 
has no health consequences other than for a small percentage of people who 
might be allergic to the metals. 
Others, however, like Boyd Haley, a chemist at the University of Kentucky, 
argue that it is harmful to more than just sensitive populations. Most people 
with amalgam fillings get an unsafe dose of the heavy metal because mercury 
vapor leaks continually from the fillings, says Haley, who recently testified 
before Congress on mercury exposure in children. 
Consumer groups argue, meanwhile, that dental patients ought to be told about 
what's going into their mouths. 
In June, a coalition of citizens' health and environmental groups filed suit 
against the American Dental Association for allegedly deceiving consumers 
into thinking amalgam fillings are made of silver, when in fact the major 
component (about 50 percent, according to the suit) is mercury. 
They also claim that the ADA has failed to disclose information regarding the 
significant risk of harm associated with the fillings in order to promote the 
continued use of amalgams, a product in which it has a financial stake as a 
paid endorser. 
"If mercury is so safe, why do they try to hide it?" says Charlie Brown, one 
of the lawyers representing Consumers for Dental Choice (CDC), a plaintiff in 
the suit. Brown notes that CDC has already succeeded in winning a state 
ruling that requires the California state dental board to advise 
participating dentists to tell their patients about the mercury content of 
amalgam fillings as well as discuss with them any sensitivities and the 
potential for adverse reactions, including suspected links to birth defects. 
Although mercury has been known to be poisonous since ancient times, 
dentistry associations claim that the mercury is tightly bound with other 
metals, rendering it safe. Silver fillings usually contain a mix of silver, 
tin and copper as well as zinc and other metals, according to the Journal of 
the American Dental Association. 
Mercury is essential to make the amalgam harden and adhere, says ADA 
spokesman J. Rodney Mackert, professor of dentistry at the Medical College of 
Georgia and an expert in materials science. 
Tracking Mercury's Vapors 
It wasn't commonly known that amalgam released mercury vapor until recently, 
although the issue was raised more than a century ago. In 1985, Fritz 
Lorscheider, a fetal physiologist, and Canadian dentist Murray Vimy showed 
that mercury in amalgam continuously vaporizes; measuring mercury in the 
mouths of 46 people, they also found that the amount of vapor released from 
fillings rose when the subjects chewed gum or brushed their teeth. 
In 1990, the same scientists reported that studies on sheep using 
radioactively tagged mercury revealed that the highly volatile and 
unpredictable element travels to the gastrointestinal tract, kidney, liver 
and brain. 
"Whether those [latter] studies are applicable to humans is a matter of 
serious importance to public health," says Dr. Norman Braveman, a research 
administrator at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research 
(NIDCR), which has two studies underway on the subject. 
At issue, he says, is what dose of mercury a typical patient gets in the 
dentist's office, how much he is exposed to daily and potential health 
effects that might arise from this dose. And there isn't much agreement on 
any of those questions. 
"There's no question that mercury is not healthy for us," says Vasken 
Aposhian, a professor of cellular and molecular biology at the University of 
Arizona who has studied how mercury acts on the body. How many amalgams you 
have makes a big difference in terms of how much mercury your body's 
absorbing, he maintains. 
"Some people are hyper-sensitive to metals and can get very sick" from 
amounts that others can safely handle, he says. "Most are at risk from 
multiple exposures from fish, food and other sources." 
At a Congressional hearing on the use of mercury in medicine last year, 
Aposhian told legislators that Americans' greatest exposure to mercury is 
from fillings - a serious threat, he says, because it can cross the placenta 
and harm the developing nervous system of the fetus. 
ADA, however, maintains that the amount of mercury that vaporizes from the 
amalgam is trivial, and less significant than exposures in food, water and 
air. "Yes," acknowledges ADA's Mackert, "mercury is a poison," and amalgams 
vaporize, "something only recently discovered." But, he argues, "there is no 
convincing evidence that the small amount of mercury vapor from amalgams has 
any effect on humans." 
Further, says Mackert, repeating the mantra of the ADA, "there have been no 
studies conclusively linking mercury from dental amalgams with any diseases." 
But concerns about possible effects "can't be dismissed," as the U.S. Public 
Health Service noted. Studies show that people with more dental amalgam 
fillings have higher levels of mercury in their bodies. And researchers at 
the University of Calgary School of Medicine showed that mercury could be 
found in the blood and tissues of pregnant mothers and their fetuses within a 
few days after mercury fillings were placed. 
Mercury in dental fillings has been linked to other adverse health effects. 
Anne Summers, a microbiologist at the University of Georgia, for example, 
found that mercury from fillings can inhibit the effectiveness of 
antibiotics. 
Scientists at the Battelle Centers for Public Health Research and Evaluation 
in Seattle linked exposure to mercury vapor from dental amalgam fillings to 
central nervous system toxicity among dental personnel. 
The Battelle team also found "convincing new evidence of adverse behavioral 
effects associated with mercury exposures from amalgam fillings within the 
range of that received by the general population." And researchers at the 
Colorado State University, Department of Physiology, in Fort Collins, Colo. 
have linked dental amalgam exposure to mental illness. 
Haley and other scientists, including Vimy and Lorscheider, found in 
experiments on rat brains that chronic inhalation of low-level mercury ã at 
levels that simulate exposure to amalagam fillings ã can inhibit brain 
chemistry, producing lesions similar to those in Alzheimer's diseased brains. 
Mercury inhibits the efficiency of tubulin, a protein vital to brain cells, 
they explain. 
'Safe' For Human Use 
Despite such studies, though, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. 
Public Health Service, and the World Health Organization have all concluded 
that amalgams are safe enough to use. There is "no solid evidence of any harm 
for millions of Americans who have these fillings," wrote the U.S. Public 
Health Service, and "no persuasive reason to believe that avoiding amalgams 
or having them removed will have a beneficial impact on health." 
By contrast, Canada recently restricted the number of amalgams that could be 
placed in children and pregnant women, following similar laws passed in 
Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and other countries. 
But having produced its new guidelines, the U.K. government then qualified 
that it had no evidence that there was a risk from amalgam, complicating the 
issue even further. 
While the battle for reliable science rages, many dentists are switching away 
from mercury. A 1995 survey of dentists found 8.7 percent wanting to ban 
amalgam and 12.3 percent uncertain about its safety, according to a report 
published in the March issue of the Journal of the American Dental 
Association. 
Discussion Board Remembering how he had to dispose of his scrap amalgam as 
hazardous waste, he says, "It's OK to place these in people's mouths yet it's 
considered hazardous when you take it out. Go figure that one out." 

Looking To The Future 
Given amalgam's long track record, however, the government is hesitant to ban 
it without greater evidence of harm to human health. 
"If we ban this material," said NIDCR's Braveman, "what are our alternatives, 
and will they do the job as well?" 
For now, he says, two government-funded studies are tracking 1,000 children 
-- half with mercury amalgams, half with alternative materials -- for such 
traits as behavior, intelligence, antibiotic resistance, immune function and 
memory. The results, he says, will be available in about four years. 
In the meantime, if you're concerned that you have a great many mercury 
fillings, Bronte suggests checking yourself for symptoms of mercury toxicity 
and having your fillings replaced with non-toxic materials. 
"If your regular dentist really isn't familiar with these materials, you are 
better off finding a dentist who is familiar with them," advises Bronte, who 
went on to write "The Mercury in Your Mouth" after her health improved. 
As more patients find out what's in mercury fillings, adds advocate Brown, 
"more dentists will make it their business to know about the alternatives." 
MSNBC July 11, 2001 
DR. MERCOLA'S COMMENT: 
Any long-time reader of this newsletter will be familiar with the mercury 
issue. It is interesting to note that the traditional media such as MSNBC is 
actually carrying these types of stories. 
Yes folks, it is quite clear - the writing is on the wall. 
The ADA can't possibly keep up this charade for much longer. The cat is out 
of the bag, with people finally understand that mercury is a poison and when 
it is placed in their teeth it does escape into their body, quite contrary to 
what the ADA has been stating for many years. 
It may be that litigation is the force that will be used to finally turn this 
issue around. 
Related Articles: 


  Dental Groups Sued Over Mercury in Fillings 
  Leading Mercury Scientist, Dr. Haley, Refutes ADA in Congressional Testimony 

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