Amalgam Fillings are a Time Bomb Sitting Next to Your Brain

February 1, 2011

" Pediatric neurologist Dr. Suresh

Kotagal of the Mayo Clinic summed it up for the entire panel:

" There is really no place for mercury in children. "

"

(except when injected right into them, I

guess)

read all the way through as there is work we still have to do

Sheri

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/01/28/scientists-urge-fda-to-stop-amalgam-use-in-children-pregnant-women-and-hypersensitive.aspx

The Smoking Time Bomb Sitting Next to Your Brain - Has Its

Moment Finally Arrived? Posted By

Dr. Mercola | January 28 2011 | 42,761 views

At the end of the two-day hearing to evaluate the safety of amalgam,

the FDA's own scientific panel – including neurologists, toxicologists,

epidemiologists, and environmental health specialists – told the agency

to stop amalgam use in children, pregnant women, and hypersensitive

populations.

After reviewing the available scientific studies and the presentations of

researchers, experts, dentists, and injured consumers, the scientists

concluded that – contrary to the claims of the FDA's in-house dentist

Runner – amalgam is not safe for everybody.

According to the panel, the FDA's amalgam risk assessments were not

adequate to protect hypersensitive adults, children, and unborn

babies. Repeatedly, panel members expressed their concern about

amalgam use in children. Pediatric neurologist Dr. Suresh Kotagal

of the Mayo Clinic summed it up for the entire panel:

" There is really no place for mercury in children. "

Other panelists went on to explain that dental mercury is like

lead. The panel urged the FDA to quickly contraindicate amalgam for

these vulnerable populations and insisted that the FDA provide consumers

with labeling containing clear warnings.

Sources:

Reuters.com December 15, 2010

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

Dental " silver " amalgam fillings – or as I like to call them

" mercury fillings " – are actually made from about 50 percent

mercury and the rest of an amalgam is silver, tin, copper, zinc and other

metals, and have been used for more than 150 years. An estimated 100

million mercury fillings are put into your mouths each year in the United

States alone.

But the use of amalgam (mercury fillings), especially in pregnant women

and children, has now been judged unsafe by a panel of scientists

advising the FDA – the same FDA that has always defended the use of

amalgam, and continues to defend its use!

In the words

of Charlie Brown, president of the World Alliance for Mercury-Free

Dentistry, " Amalgam is a primitive, polluting, 19th century product

that began when physicians were sawing off legs. Medicine has since moved

forward. " Unfortunately, this aspect of dentistry has not, at least

not yet in the United States.

Mercury Does NOT Belong in your Mouth - - Period

Mercury is a potent toxin that can damage your brain, central nervous

system and kidneys.Children and fetuses, whose brains are still

developing, are most at risk, but really anyone can be impacted.

I find it quite ironic, not to mention unsettling, that the metallic

mercury used by dentists to manufacture dental amalgam is shipped as a

hazardous material to the dental office. And any amalgam leftover is also

treated as hazardous and requires special precautions to dispose

of.

Yet most dentists will readily implant this hazardous material directly

into your mouth, with continued and emphatic assurance that it's

perfectly safe and harmless. Now, at least the FDA advisory panel has

admitted the obvious: mercury fillings are not safe for everyone. The

truth is, mercury fillings are a hazard to everyone and should be avoided

until the slow moving and stubborn FDA finally bans them.

Just How Much Mercury Do These Fillings Release?

Remember, virtually any kind of stimulation can cause these fillings

to release mercury. Eating, drinking, brushing your teeth, grinding your

teeth,

chewing gum, anything. If you want to see the vapors released for

yourself,

watch this shocking video.

Mercury vapor from the amalgams passes readily through cell membranes,

across the blood-brain barrier, and into your central nervous system,

where it causes psychological, neurological, and immunological

problems.

For an interesting comparison, consider that scientists recently made a

wise warning about

eating mercury-contaminated seafood. Well, eating such seafood will

expose you to about 2.3 micrograms of mercury a day. A single dental

amalgam filling, meanwhile, releases as much as 15 micrograms of

mercury EVERY day.

But that's not all. The average person has eight amalgam fillings

and could absorb up to 120 micrograms of mercury per day. Clearly

this is cause for urgent action to be taken.

Why the FDA is Resistant to Banning Amalgam

FDA remains adamant in protecting mercury fillings, which no doubt

has at least something to do with its commissioner. FDA Commissioner

Margaret Hamburg has an egregious conflict of interest on amalgam, yet

participated in the rulemaking that led to last year's abysmal amalgam

rule. Hamburg entered the FDA through the revolving government/private

industry door after allegedly making millions as the director of Henry

Schein Inc., the largest seller of amalgam (mercury fillings).

The FDA has a history of stacking the deck of its advisory panels so

that the pro-industry, pro-mercury position is upheld.

Why?

In a word: money. Over 100 million fillings are put into mouths in

the United States alone, and each tooth that's filled with toxic mercury

represents a profit source for the amalgam industry – an industry that is

used to having its way with world governments for the past 100

years.

Folks, bringing about change in the health care field has always been

about battling against entrenched profit centers, and this is no

exception.

The dental amalgam industry and their paid shills and former executives

in government simply do NOT want access to your mouth blocked, regardless

of the health implications. The mercury fillings industry is an

entrenched, embattled and a very profitable industry, and they have been

on a war footing against scientists all over the world for decades.

The FDA has been far behind the rest of the world in stepping up to the

plate to reduce mercury in your mouth. The FDA has been standing in the

way of banning this dangerous dental material for 34 years -- since 1976.

But the very good news is that we are starting to win this

battle.

Where Do Other Countries Stand on Mercury Dental Fillings?

Other countries are now beginning to restrict the use of mercury

fillings, much to the dismay of the amalgam industry, which unfortunately

still includes the ADA (American Dental Association):

· Canada advised dentists

to stop placing amalgam in children and pregnant women in 1996 -- 15

years ago!

· Denmark, Norway and

Sweden have essentially banned amalgams.

· Worldwide amalgam

(mercury filling) use is in decline

· One California city,

Costa Mesa, has endorsed a city-wide amalgam ban

·

The World Health Organization supports an amalgam " Phase

Down "

For a country that is supposed to be so scientifically advanced, the

United States is currently lagging behind many nations, and even behind

some third-world countries, when it comes to mercury fillings.

Mercury Fillings and the Environment

The ADA and other pro-mercury proponents have always claimed that

mercury fillings are a low cost and very cost effective way to treat

dental decay. Is this true? Not when you examine the true cost to human

health and the environment caused by mercury fillings!

Mercury from dental offices is actually the largest source of mercury

found in wastewater. According to an article by Bender

(co-founder of the Mercury Policy Project), at least 40 percent of

mercury flowing into municipal water treatment plants comes from dentist

offices! And urban water treatment plants are not set up to remove it, so

eventually this mercury flowing out of dental offices will end up in your

fish on your dinner table.

When someone dies, their amalgam (mercury) fillings actually pose a risk

to the living as well. Emissions from the combustion of mercury fillings

during cremation are a significant contaminator of air, waterways, soil,

wildlife and food.

Seven to nine metric tons of mercury per year escapes into the atmosphere

during cremations, and it is estimated that, left unchecked, crematoria

will be the largest single cause of mercury pollution by 2020. Sweden now

mandates that all mercury fillings be removed prior to cremation for this

very reason.

So when you factor in environmental costs and clean-up costs, amalgam is

actually the MOST EXPENSIVE dental material in the world.

It is also the number one cause of mercury exposure for consumers,

according to the Canadian government and other sources. As it stands

right now, U.S. dentists remain free to offer you any kind of filling

they want, and four out of five dental specialists are still placing

amalgams.

Help for Those Who Already have Mercury Fillings

If your mouth is currently free of mercury fillings, good for you.

Make sure you keep it that way by seeing a biological dentist who can

recommend a truly inert material that will not harm your health in the

event you do need a filling.

For those of you who have mercury fillings, I recommend that you have

them removed … but avoid making the mistake I did 20 years ago by having

it done by a non-biological dentist. When you have these fillings removed

you can be exposed to significant amounts of mercury vapors if the

dentist doesn't know what he or she is doing.

It's also for this reason that I suggest you

get healthy

BEFORE having your fillings removed, as you want your detoxification

mechanisms optimized prior to removal.

Once you're ready to go ahead with it, do your research and seek out a

highly qualified biological dentist. Some things that need to be done to

keep you (and your dentist) safe during the procedure include:

· Providing you with an

alternative air source and instructing you not to breath through your

mouth

· Using a cold-water

spray to minimize mercury vapors

· Putting a rubber dam in

your mouth so you don't swallow or inhale any toxins

· Using a high-volume

evacuator near the tooth at all times to evacuate the mercury

vapor

· Washing your mouth out

immediately after the fillings have been removed (the dentist should also

change gloves after the removal)

· Immediately cleaning

your protective wear and face once the fillings are removed

· Using room air

purifiers

Help to Make the FDA Act on this Important Issue NOW!

FDA operates on its own timetables. The wonder is that the FDA even

agreed to re-consider a rule they wrote just 18 months ago, since they

often appear to consider their infallibility to be at the level of the

Pope.

This time, though, the FDA is under heat to act, and we need your support

to keep the pressure on them to tell the public the truth about mercury

fillings.

The agencies of government who work on mercury issues – the EPA,

Council on Environmental Quality,

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration, along with the FDA – are meeting with the State

Department to hammer out the U.S. position on all the mercury issues.

The FDA is the odd man out, the one favoring a mercury product; the heat

is on FDA to join the rest of the Obama Administration, and join the

modern world. So both because of the scientists' recommendation, and

because the FDA is increasingly alone both in the world and in the US

government, we may have reached the tipping point.

The science is quite clear; the FDA has to date ignored

it.

For 30 years, in violation of federal law, the FDA refused to classify

dental amalgam (that is, develop a rule to regulate it), doing so only

when ordered by a federal judge. In that court case, in 2008, the FDA

agreed, in negotiations with Charlie Brown of Consumers for Dental

Choice, to post strong warnings on its consumer website about amalgam's

toxicity and its particular risk to pregnant women and children.

So What Happened?

In 2009 Margaret Hamburg became the FDA's Commissioner. With

Hamburg's participation in the rulemaking, the FDA withdrew all warnings

from the consumer website, and hid them deep in the rule. The FDA

effectively gave the green light for dentists in the United States to

continue concealing the mercury content of fillings from consumers, and

the green light to continue calling them " silver

fillings. "

Throughout the rulemaking process, Hamburg was corresponding with

Schein's general counsel, who, immediately after the rule was issued,

wrote to Hamburg that the corporation is " indebted to you " for

her work as FDA Commissioner.

What Happened Next?

A consumer groundswell erupted, including many writing the FDA after

reading about this outrage in the Mercola Newsletter. YOU were so

active that FDA Webview, an independent publication, said,

" No final rule in FDA's modern history, or perhaps ever, has

attracted this kind of organized opposition. "

The FDA then came under the microscope because of world treaty

negotiations working to begin phasing out the mercury product, and the

rest of the US government, especially EPA, was supporting efforts to

finally address amalgam.

With four petitions in front of them to reconsider the amalgam rule, the

FDA agreed, convening a panel of distinguished scientists for two days of

hearings on December 14, and 15, 2010. The scientists at the hearings

told the FDA (1) to ban amalgam for pregnant women and children (either

to age six or 12), and (2) put labels on amalgam so every dental patient

and parent is aware of its mercury content and toxicity.

Just three weeks after those hearings came the resignation of FDA Deputy

Commissioner Sharfstein, who approved the 2009 FDA rule on mercury

fillings that flew in the face of science.

Sharfstein dropped to a much lower perch within the government's health

ranks, caused most likely by his resistance at the FDA to facing the

truth about mercury fillings. He is now the health director for

land.

What You Can Do Now to Make a Difference!

We need to get the assent of the rest of the resistant members at the

FDA as well, or send them packing! And we are asking again for your help

to do it! We simply cannot let the FDA get away with ignoring the

scientists as it has done so many times before, we are so close now to

bringing the truth about mercury fillings to the light. I encourage you

to get involved!

Please write the FDA Director of the Division of Dental Devices,

, at:

anthony.watson@...

..

Tell Mr. of the FDA:

· Since the FDA’s own

panel of scientists advises that amalgam should “definitely not” be

implanted in children, pregnant women, and hypersensitive people, how

soon will you take action to protect these vulnerable populations from

this toxin?

· Since the FDA has a

duty to tell consumers that amalgam contains mercury that can damage

the neurological systems of unborn babies, children, and hypersensitive

populations, when does FDA intend to clearly state this warning on its

consumer website and in consumer labeling?

· Since Commissioner

Hamburg claims FDA is committed to transparency, how does FDA plan to

keep the public updated on its progress with regard to the amalgam

issue?

Don't sit this one out. With your help we can get the FDA to finally

admit to the public what scientists have known for a long time – mercury

fillings are a public health and an environmental hazard, and should not

ever be allowed in the bodies of pregnant women or in children!

The time to act is now!

Together we can make a lasting change and help protect pregnant women and

children, along with the health of our next generation!

February 1, 2011