MERCURY AMALGAM IN DENTISTRY

For over 40 years the tobacco industry denied that tobacco usage caused any health problems. It was obviously difficult to prove the direct link between the product and the cancers and other ailments even though a person would have to have a lot of investment shares not to see the connection.

The Roman empire used lead water pipes and caused generations of retardation and other ailments. According to some historians the Roman Empire fell, in part, because of the effects of this use of lead. Since lead (and alcohol) can cause fetal brain syndrome and brain damage in early childhood, the historians may very well be correct. If the lead pipe manufacturers were around today, I'm sure they would still be denying that there was a link. This is true of most of us when our profit, or our job is threatened.

Today we have a similar problem - mercury poisoning from the industrial use of mercury and dental amalgam. This paper will relate to the 'so called' silver fillings, which are in fact about 50% mercury.

Mercury can come from many sources, and is probably the most hazardous material next to radioactive waste. In amalgam carriers, (i.e. those with amalgam fillings) the mercury level is about 5-10 times higher than in non-amalgam persons - (quoted from one of the 1600 Internet sites dedicated to this subject) The amalgam filling has been proven to be the major contributor to the total bodily uptake.

Now mercury has been around for a long time. All life forms have developed a tolerance level to it that it can cope with. As with most substances, some people have a higher tolerance level than others. This is true with most all substances that we as individuals are exposed to. Some other people have a low threshold level, and this is where the problem comes about.

Why does mercury cause a problem in some?

1. Mercury wears off the fillings from chewing, and is then swallowed. This then oxidizes in the digestive tract and is absorbed though the intestines.

2. Mercury vapor is given off by the fillings. This vapour is inhaled into the lungs and absorbed into the body through the airways.

3. Mercury crosses the placenta. The mercury level in both the brain and the kidneys in a human fetus is approximately doubled compared to amalgam free mothers.

4. It is concentrated in breast milk and passed onto the child.

So what problems have been attributed to minor mercury poisoning? Anxiety, irritability, fatigue, outbursts of temper, stress intolerance, loss of self-confidence, indecision, headache, depression and a metallic taste in the mouth.

One web site suggests that the symptoms are very similar to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

More severe symptoms can occur in those more sensitive or through greater exposure including; mental retardation and dementia, central nervous system disorders, neurological symptoms like tremor, impaired results in psychomotor tests, reduced vision, (particularly colour vision), reduced peripheral nerve conduction velocity, reduced memory function, psychic symptoms like increased irritability and depression, lethargy and tiredness, insomnia and impaired sleep, increased anxiety, resentment of criticism, night sweats and feverish feeling, vertigo, muscle and joint pains, kidney disorders, and a general"lack of well-being".

Is there anything to support this? Yes, there have been innumerable experiments on primates and other animals to establish these findings. The following references are a minor catalogue that was gleaned from several web sites.

1. In studies of monkeys and rats it has been shown that low concentrations of mercury in the brain caused nerve cell disturbances during brain development and resultant persistent behavioral disturbances in the adult animal.

2. In mercury-sensitive rats there was auto-immune antibodies which can cause reduced egg implantation and spontaneous abortion.

3. Experiments on primates have shown that mercury can accumulate and is retained in the retina of the eyes.

4. In animal experiments it has been shown that mercury exposure can depress the defenses against viruses and parasites.

5. Exposure to mercury has also been shown to depress both hormonal and cell-mediated immune response in several animal species.

6. Mercury exposure to rats caused persistent behavioral changes with reduced learning and adaptation capacity.

This subject will be continued next week.