Mercury Dental Fillings
Understanding the health risks of mercury amalgam fillings and exploring safer alternatives for dental care.
🦷
What Are Mercury Fillings?
Key Fact:
Mercury-amalgam fillings contain 40-55% mercury - the most poisonous, naturally occurring, non-radioactive substance on earth.
Commonly called "silver" or "amalgam" fillings, these dental restorations should more accurately be called mercury fillings due to their high mercury content. The typical adult has ten amalgam fillings containing about 5 grams of mercury.
Composition
⚠️
Mercury Exposure Risks
Conventional Dentistry Claims
"The amalgamation process renders the mercury non-toxic."
Scientific Evidence Shows:
- • People with mercury fillings have higher mercury levels in urine, blood, and brain
- • Toxic gas is emitted from fillings during chewing and teeth grinding
- • Mercury vapor is continuously released into the body
Health Problems Linked to Mercury Fillings
🔬
Scientific Research
University of Calgary Study
Medical school researchers conducted animal studies that proved mercury in dental fillings is absorbed into mammalian bodies.
Study Method:
- • Placed amalgam fillings in sheep and monkeys
- • Used radioactive mercury isotope to track mercury movement
- • Published results in distinguished scientific journals
- • Demonstrated mercury spread to various organs and tissues
Dental Office Exposure
According to the Cecil Textbook of Medicine (21st edition, 2000): "10% of dental offices have excessive mercury vapor levels."
🏛️
Government Interventions
Countries That Have Banned Mercury Amalgams
Industry Response
Degussa AG, the largest producer of dental amalgams in Germany, announced it would no longer offer amalgam fillings due to pending and future lawsuits following a Federal Court ruling that dentists using such fillings face legal liability.
United States Position
Unfortunately, the United States is still in denial about mercury toxicity from dental fillings. It is up to patients to protect themselves.
✅
Safe Alternatives & Recommendations
Recommended Filling Materials
Request fillings made of quartzite and epoxy as safer alternatives to mercury amalgam.
Other Toxic Dental Materials to Avoid
- • Porcelain with radioactive additives: Added for luminescence on X-rays
- • Nickel in braces and crowns: Known carcinogenic material
Modern Dental Technology
Ensure your dental office uses Digital Dental Radiography instead of antiquated film X-ray equipment.
Benefits of Digital X-Rays:
- • Dramatically reduced cancer-causing radiation
- • Superior diagnostic capabilities with zoom function
- • Better resolution and image quality
- • More comfortable for patients and doctors