Is mercury in dental amalgam safe?
Mercury in dental amalgam is not poisonous. When mercury is combined with other materials in dental amalgam, its chemical nature changes, so it is essentially harmless. The amount of mercury released in the mouth under the pressure of chewing and grinding is extremely small and no cause for alarm. In fact, it is less than what patients are exposed to in food, air and water.
Ongoing scientific studies conducted over the past 100 years continue to prove that amalgam is not harmful. Claims of diseases caused by mercury in amalgam are anecdotal, as are claims of miraculous cures achieved by removing amalgam. In media reports, individuals who experience dramatic improvements in their health are raised as examples of the danger of amalgam fillings, but the scores of patients who experience no benefit at all are rarely interviewed. These health related claims have not been proven scientifically.
