Mercury free dentistry ... why do we even need such a term? After all, mercury is the most toxic, non-radioactive substance on the planet. Why would we need a special kind of dentist that refuses to install such a horrible toxin in people's mouths?

The History of Mercury Free Dentistry

Mercury has been used as a component in the filling material known as amalgam or more commonly as "silver fillings" since the civil war. Mercury amalgam filling material was originally developed in France in the early 19th century. A standardized formula consisting of 50% liquid mercury and 50% powdered metals (silver, tin, copper, zinc and mercury) was established in 1895. From the beginning of its use in the United States, a battle existed between the pro-amalgam crowd and the mercury free dentistry crowd. Eventually, the pro-amalgam group won and later they organized into what today is known as the American Dental Association.

Modern Day Need for Mercury Free Dentistry

The history is interesting, but the need for mercury free dentistry is no longer an issue, right? Common sense might suggest this statement to be true, but in practice it is very, very false. According to a recent study in the Journal of the American Dental Association (J Am Dent Assoc. 2011;142;622-632), 61% of all fillings placed by contemporary dentists were mercury amalgam. In group practices with at least four dentists, 79% of the fillings placed were amalgam.

Choose Mercury Free Dentistry and Mercury Safe Dentistry

As you can see, the need for mercury free dentistry is alive and well. While seeing a dentist who is mercury free is a good start, you also want a dentist who is mercury safe ... one who takes special precautions to protect you from the mercury vapor released from amalgam fillings when they are removed. Even though you receive daily and significant amounts of mercury from your amalgam fillings, your biggest exposure occurs when you have them removed or replaced in a unsafe manner.

During unsafe amalgam removal, your exposure to toxic mercury vapor can be 10 times the ceiling limit established by OSHA. So, if your mouth was a factory or a gold mine, it would be immediately shut down by OSHA, for exceeding the maximum allowable exposure to mercury during unsafe amalgam removal! You can read more about mercury free dentistry and mercury safe dentistry by clicking on the blue navigation buttons above. In addition, mercury free dentistry information is available in my free report on Choosing a Mercury-Free Dentist, and in this mercury free dentistry blog post.