Are You Sensitive To Mercury Amalgams?

By Jondi Gumz

In September 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned about “the potential negative health effects of mercury exposure” for people in high-risk groups who get silver dental fillings, also known as amalgams, which contain about 50% mercury.

Perhaps the announcement did not get your attention, but it’s worth a closer look. The FDA recommends non-mercury materials such as compos- ite resins and glass isonomer cements be used for fillings to treat a cavity for these individuals:

 Children

 Pregnant women and fetuses and women planning to become pregnant

 Nursing women and their newborns and infants

 People with neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s

 People with impaired kidney function

 People allergic to mercury or other components of dental amalgam.

The International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology, a global nonprofit network of dentists, health professionals and scientists who research the biocompatibility of dental products and has sought more protection from dental mercury for more than three decades, commended the FDA and contends all dental patients should be protected.

“This is certainly a step in the right direction,” said Jack Kall, who has a doctorate in dental medicine and is IAOMT executive chairman. “But mercury shouldn’t be placed in anyone’s mouth. All dental patients need to be protected, and dentists and their staff also need to be protected from working with this toxic substance.”

Dr. Kall, a dentist in Louisville, Kentucky, is among the IAOMT member dentists and researchers who have testified to the FDA about the dangers of dental amalgam over several decades. When the IAOMT was founded in 1984, the nonprofit vowed to examine the safety of dental products by relying upon peer-reviewed scientific research.

The FDA statement said, “Elemental mercury used in dental amalgam is known to cause adverse health ef- fects, particularly when the extent of exposure is high, in individuals who have reduced ability to remove mercury from their bodies, and in individuals who are sensitive to mercury. Although the majority of evidence suggests exposure to mercury from dental amalgam does not lead to negative health effects in the general population, little to no information is known about the effect this exposure may have on members of the specific groups listed above who may be at greater risk.”

That led to the recommendation for alternative materials for high-risk individuals. The FDA concluded there is insufficient evidence to support a complete ban of dental amalgam, and said the longevity of fillings with mercury “is better than that of alternatives.”

The IAOMT disagrees. In 1985, after mercury vapor release from fillings was established in scientific literature, the IAOMT declared use of silver/mercury dental amalgam fillings “should cease until evidence of safety could be produced.”

No evidence of safety has been produced, according to the IAOMT, which has collected thousands of peer-reviewed scientific research articles to support its position that dental mercury usage should end. “Because of our advocacy for safer evidence-based dentistry, we have finally convinced the FDA that, at a minimum, some people are at risk,” said David Kennedy, DDS, IAOMT director. “Over 45% of dentists worldwide are still estimated to be using amalgam, including a large majority of dentists for military and welfare agencies. It should not have taken 35 years to get to this point, and FDA now needs to protect everyone.”

The IAOMT compares the delay in safety regulations for mercury fillings to the scenarios for cigarettes and lead-based gasoline and paint.

Members are concerned about increased mercury exposure to patients and dental professionals when amalgam fillings are removed unsafely, as well as the health risks caused by fluoride exposure.

To learn more and find dentists who are members, see: www.iaomt.org