Holistic Dentistry - Is your Dentist really Mercury-Free?

Dr. Paul Rubin, DDS is the best Seattle Holistic Dentist.

Many dentists have taken to using the phrase “mercury free” to describe that their practice does not use mercury amalgam fillings. This is a welcome trend, though the most recent national survey showed that half of all dentists still use this “silver” dental filling material. This article will address the distinction between “mercury free” and “mercury safe.”

First, some background information. All “silver” (amalgam) fillings contain approximately 50% mercury. This is one of the most toxic substances on earth, and even a very small amount of mercury can be harmful to the body. It is a fact that dental amalgam is an inherently unstable compound, and all amalgam fillings “leak” some mercury. This is usually in the form of mercury vapor, which is inhaled or swallowed or absorbed into the soft mouth tissues. Mercury is the only metal that is a liquid at room temperature. It is also volatile, emitting colorless, odorless mercury vapor. Any increase in temperature significantly increases mercury vapor release. The same is true for an amalgam filling. It is easy to demonstrate that mercury vapor escapes from the surface of an amalgam filling, and that this escape is dramatically increased by raising the temperature. Think: hot coffee, friction from chewing food, or friction from getting your teeth polished at a dental office. For a dramatic and graphic demonstration of this mercury release from an amalgam filling, see the “Smoking Teeth” video on the web page www.iaomt.org , the official website of the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT). This has led to a decades-old controversy over whether this filling material should still be used in dentistry. This article won’t address that issue, but rather the potential hazards of unsafely removing old amalgam fillings.

Let’s try and make this a little more real with some numbers. How much mercury exposure is safe? It would be fair to say that no level of exposure can be guaranteed to be safe. Some agencies have looked at what exposure levels have correlated with known mercury toxicity problems. This includes the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). They have set exposure limits to workers with potential exposure to various toxins in the work place. For mercury, it has been determined by WHO and NIOSH that employers must not expose workers to a mercury concentration in the air in excess of 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air (50mcg/m3), averaged over an 8 hour work day. Other agencies have set this limit at 25mcg/m3, and as low as 10mcg/m3 for women of childbearing age. There is also a “ceiling limit”, which means a level of exposure that should never be exceeded even for an instant. The ceiling limit OSHA has set is 100mcg/m3. So, what happens in a dental office? If amalgam fillings are polished by the dentist or dental hygienist, levels can be measured over 200mcg/m3. Grinding into an amalgam filling to remove it, without specific protective protocols, can release mercury levels over 1,000mcg/m3!These levels are generated right at the breathing zone of the patient, the dentist, and the dental assistant! By the way, simple toothbrushing can release mercury vapor at a level over 200mcg/m3. Please don’t take this to mean you should stop brushing your teeth!

That means a potentially hazardous exposure to all three (patient, dentist and assistant), every time an old amalgam filling is removed for any reason. This is an occupational exposure that is often overlooked, even by many dentists who consider themselves “mercury free.” From the standpoint of OSHA regulations, a huge number of dental offices would be in violation with respect to employee exposure. OSHA has no jurisdiction over the patient or the dentist, but both are being unnecessarily exposed also. Does this mean amalgam fillings should never be replaced? Absolutely not. It means amalgam fillings should never be removed and replaced unsafely.

There are a number of protective protocols that have been developed by the IAOMT and others, designed to protect from this unnecessary mercury exposure. A dentist who incorporates these effective protocols is properly protecting his or her patients. Also protected are the dentist and the dental staff. And, if the dentist has taken proper measures to protect the discharged office wastewater from mercury, the environment is also being protected. Such a dentist can be considered “mercury safe.” The aforementioned IAOMT website also has a short video with a brief outline of some of the mercury safe protocols. Any dentist should adopt these procedures as a minimum of appropriate protection. There is a more detailed and extensive training available for dentists on being mercury safe from New Directions Dentistry, now available as a DVD training course for dentists.

So, it can be said that “mercury free” is really a misnomer. All dentists who ever replace an amalgam filling are dealing with mercury in the office. How they deal with that step has a significant impact on the potential for unnecessary, harmful exposure to toxic mercury. A dentist who no longer places amalgam fillings and has learned and is committed to effective protective protocols while replacing old amalgam fillings is mercury safe.

How do you know if your dentist is mercury safe? You could ask a few simple questions. Has the dentist taken extra, specific training in mercury safe protocols from the IAOMT or New Directions Dentistry? Is the patient given an oxygen nosepiece so that their breathing air is separate and clean? Does the dentist use a rubber dam or other protective barrier when removing amalgam fillings? Do the dentist and assistant both wear specific mercury protection masks themselves? There is a lot more to it, of course, which is why training courses are offered, but if a dentist answers “yes” to at least the above questions, they are more likely to be committed to being mercury safe. 

Is your dentist? 

Paul G. Rubin, DDS, MIAOMT Holistic Dentist Seattle, WA

9730 3rd Ave. NE Suite 205 

Seattle, WA 98115 

206-367-4712 

www.drpaulrubin.com