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Sid Roberts wrote: > > At 12:25 PM 1/30/98 -0800, you wrote: > >I am new to the list and am interested in any information available, or > >personal experience, regarding links between use of mercury amalgam in > >dental fillings and neurological disease, including PD. I know this is a > >controversial topic, and I am not a proponent of either side's view--just > >someone trying to gather information. There has been some anecdotal > >material on MS and amalgam, and recovery following removal of amalgam. Is > >this a topic with PD, too? > > > >Thanks for any insights directed to me or the list. > > > Rick, hello. I suggest that you browse over to www.quackwatch.com which is > a medical site subtitled "Your Guide To Health Fraud, Quackery ... ." and > refer to the article entitled "Mercury-Amalgam Scam" updated 1/1/98. The > article is most effective in exposing the fraudulent claim that the mercury > used as part of the amalgam in dental "silver" fillings is poisonous and > should be replaced. > > Sid Roberts 68/3 [log in to unmask] Youngstown, Ohio As it happens, I was exposed to a LOT of metallic mercury during my working career, and often wonder if that contributed to my PD. I did a brief search 30-odd years ago, and another this year, but couldn't find a "smoking gun". For any substance to react chemically, it must first be in gaseous (or solute) state so that molecules can get at each other. The vapor pressure and solubility of free mercury is so low in ordinary conditions that it is "relatively" harmless. So the experts tell us that if a child swallows mercury from a broken thermometer, don't worry. If however you work in a room where spilled mercury is constantly present, or in a primitive smelting operation where the ore is heated, there must be some danger. A news story this month about some kids who found and played with a supply of the stuff reported that they got very sick. And with any of the numerous soluble compounds of mercury, be very careful! As for the silver amalgam of dentistry, the mercury is so tightly bound that it cannot react with anything, say the experts. But in use it is mixed first by hand as a paste, and there is always a chance that some might remain unattached. At my own dentist recently, he dismissed my mild objection to a "silver" filling, and I didn't insist on a substitute. Cheers, Joe -- J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694 3527 Cody Road Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013