Rockland County Dentist | Spring Valley NY Dentist | Bergen County NJ dentist Alan F. Pressman, D.M.D.

noAlmost everyday some one asks me about the problems with silver fillings: “Is the mercury in the fillings toxic?” “Should I have them removed?” More than 20 years ago, 60 Minutes aired “Poison in Your Mouth,” a piece on the toxic effects of silver amalgam. The episode claimed that the mercury in silver fillings can somehow cause autoimmune disorders.
Dental amalgam has been used as a dental restorative since the 1800s. It has many advantages: It’s inexpensive, durable, strong, and easy to use. The early amalgams used equal parts of mercury and metal alloy (a combination of silver, tin, copper, and zinc). When mixed properly, it forms a eutectic, or alloy solution with a low melting point—alloy particles floating in a sea of mercury. Today we use a material called composite which is mostly feldspar in a plastic like matrix.  Composite is stronger than amalgam and contains no mercury at all.
60 Minutes explained that once the silver amalgam restorations were removed, patients were reported to have recovered rapidly from a host of maladies, including arthritis and multiple sclerosis. This seems highly unlikely. The mercury in the filling is bound to the alloy, and is not dangerous if mixed and placed properly. When you chew, a tiny amount of mercury escapes the filling. Although this exposure lasts seconds, most of the mercury is exhaled rather than absorbed. In order to create what would be considered borderline toxic levels, a person would need the equivalent of 300 fillings in their mouth. That’s hard to achieve with only 32 teeth!
Removing the silver fillings is far more damaging than just leaving them alone. Removing a silver/mercury amalgam releases mercury into the patient’s mouth (and the environment). I would only replace them if they are failing or cause the tooth to have a prominent, ugly gray appearance.
I haven’t purchased silver amalgam in more than 15 years. I still place them periodically, because the composite fillings require a dry field to be placed; this is not the case with silver amalgam, which can be wet and dried quickly.
Personally, I have a few silver filings in my mouth. There is no real proof that they do any harm whatsoever. Trying to convince people to remove good fillings for health reasons is wrong and a waste of their money.
After 60 Minutes broadcast that segment, a slew of follow-up queries and investigations followed. Consumer Reports, Prevention, and other magazines all reported that amalgam was safe. 60 Minutes never aired that segment again.
Frankly, any doctor recommending that silver fillings be removed for health reasons is probably seeking to make money by removing this “toxic” material and placing a new restoration. The only reason to change a silver filling is if it is failing or just plain ugly. Don’t be fooled by the man selling snake oil to cure your problems.

Last changed: Nov 05 2010 at 8:18 PM