I've thought a lot about this topic and have discussed with my dentist. I have 8 amalgam fillings that are over 40 years old. I was concerned about their age and the "risks" of having the old filings. They're not giving me any issues at all and my dentist has said there's no need to replace them. He's mentioned the only time to replace any filing is if it's failing. Mine are not so in they stay! My siblings have all had theirs removed over the years due to failure and honestly, nothing better came out of it.

When the time comes where those ancient filings do fail, I have a huge challenge. You see, the filings were put in by a dentist who drilled to China. I simply cannot have the filings replaced because there's nothing left to drill out! The affected teeth would have to be extracted. I'm not looking forward to that......

I too have old fillings. I pulled one out a couple of years ago chewing gum. I so seldom chew gum and the one time that I did......

Consequently the tooth broke when I ate something. That tooth was repaired and filled and a crown put on, then it got abscessed last year and had to be pulled completely. At least the new fillings are white, but until something happens, I sure wouldn't get them replaced voluntarily. As Dee said, there could be very little tooth left, from the original filling.

chi83, I've gotten an expert view on this from a close family member. He's very informed, health and fitness conscious, he eats only organic food, mostly fruits and veggies and he avoids processed anything. Oh, and he's a dentist.

There's no controversy. The evidence from repeated studies over many years consistently shows no adverse health consequences of dental amalgam. The "controversy", if you want to call it that, comes from a loud minority of people who are uncomfortable with the use of any form of mercury and who choose to ignore the evidence and the science.

He's said that as far as what's best for him, using methods or materials other than amalgam fillings will produce more fees for him over time because the alternatives can be more expensive and don't last as long. Using amalgam, on the other hand, is better for the patient from a cost and function standpoint. While he'll do anything within reason that the patient wants, he usually recommends amalgam to fill simple cavities.

You're right, the best thing for you to do right now to minimize your exposure is nothing. When some break or come out in the future, that would be the right time to consider alternatives on a tooth by tooth basis. Unless you want to have all your teeth pulled and replaced using implants and prostheces.

I have a friend who was exhibiting all the symptoms of MS. She had so many things going wrong with her and the doctors were befuddled and they hadn't quite given her a definitive diagnosis. One of the doctors suggested that she get all of the amalgam fillings removed which she did. A couple of weeks later all of her symptoms had disappeared.

I have heard many similar stories Flamingo. I am sure some are coincidences or initial misdiagnosis but it sure makes you wonder.

I had a dental assisting certificate in my younger years. :0) I had tons of amalgams in my younger years too. I think being younger made me feel better. :0)

Belief can have real, physical effects.

So far, no one in this forum has said he or she experienced ill health from amalgam fillings or health improvement when they no longer had them.

I didn't necessarily expect a lot of personal experience as most people have fillings and have for decades. I don't think it's an instant illness type thing but I suspect daily accumulation can bring about health problems in certain people.

My world isn't as black and white as others see it. Smoking used to be safe too.

"I suspect daily accumulation can bring about health problems "

The scientists, physicians, and other experts who have studied this question disagree with you. The studies looked for evidence supporting that view and found none.

There's really not much sense in your asking for information here or anywhere else if you prefer to believe in things as you see them yourself and ignore the advice of the experts. (No, I don't mean myself, i shared what I was told by an expert in a conversation some months ago).

Well, that's not really true. If a dentist is, by your definition, an expert, then there are many in my area who disagree that mercury is safe. So taking their advice is taking expert advice, right? The ones I will be consulting with are fully licensed dentists, just like your family member.

Fair enough. Yes, a dentist is an expert, but as individuals in any group there are always outliers who have different views. On this question, I'd worry about one being out of step with the view of the overwhelming majority. .

Just for info purposes, here are a couple of pages from the American Dental Association site discussing its position on the safety of amalgam and the reasons why. Also mentioned are the many US, European and worldwide health organizations and bodies that have come to the same conclusion

Shorter Summary and cites

Longer statement

One of my brothers (60) had his removed years ago, my other brother (64) and I (68) have not...

From an engineer's viewpoint, amalgam is safe as long as the mercury is completely locked up in the alloy. When the amalgam is compounded just before placing in a tooth, the ration of the two metals must be very accurate. Also, amalgam has a very long history of successful use. In my experience, it is on the soft side and eventually fails. My fillings last on the average 7 years. Some failed by cracking or breaking. Over the years, most of my fillings have been replaced by caps as the filing failed. Caps were applied after too much of the tooth was gone. I do have a couple of gold alloy caps left and these have lasted over 30 years. However, I won't buying any gold at today's prices.

There is one caution. It is possible to get into galvanic action when dis-similar metals contact in your mouth. The mild electric current can be painful. Ever bite down on a piece of foil between two fillings? That can send a zinger through the pain cells.

I plan on removing the two that I have. I just have to get the nerve to go to the dentist and do it. I don't know if they contribute to my health problems or not. Seeing that other "unproven" methods helped me considerably I won't rule it out. Mostly, I hate the big dark spot at the back molars that I see because I have pretty good teeth especially since implementing my lifestyle changes and regimens.
I am more concerned of the removal and precautions that have to be taken because you may get a high influx of mercury exposure in the process (another reason why I am putting it off as I feel really good right now and I don't want anything to change). I have seen two different dentists in the past 10 years and they both had differing opinions on the matter - neither were holistic dentists. Funny, the one who suggested I changed them was pro-mercury and obviously pro-money.

I've had a couple replaced, not all. Some of my fillings were done 25-30 years ago and they do tend to loosen over time. One ended up needing a root canal. 1 have 8 total fillings, 6 are mercury. The two that were switched out are on my bottom right side and that is actually the side I tend to chew on, so I think that has something to do with it. My upper on that same side is currently failing and I'll have to end up loosing the tooth at some point, just a wait and see. The tooth broke when I bit down on an olive pit so it has a large filling.

The concern over mercury isn't new. Way back in the 1840's the Association of Dental Surgeons didn't want it being used since mercury was/is a known toxic substance. Mercury does get released from those fillings and you do absorb that into your body. Even Health Canada states that. How much is safe, I don't know. I haven't really looked into it. Health Canada states that the amount of mercury from these fillings are detectable in the blood but not at levels associated to cause illness. Personally, I do know if I had an illness that were related to symptoms of mercury toxicity I would remove them if I could afford to do so.

Chi83 -- I'd have to be seriously and unaccountably ill before embarking on on a long, painful, *expensive* remodeling of my teeth, solely to remove twenty amalgam fillings. I'd investigate all other possible causes first.

Gold was not prohibitively expensive when my amalgam fillings failed during my mid-twenties. I have five beautifully crafted -- and unattractive -- gold inlays that have held up perfectly in my molars for more than forty years. I've lost track of the number of root canals and crowns I've had. I don't know how much I've spent repairing my darn teeth, but it is an ugly-big number. (I just paid $1500 to replace one composite crown that cracked when my dentist tried to re-seat it.) I don't remember all the bills, but I remember the long hours of enduring the procedures.

For most people, gold isn't prohibitively expensive now. You'll probably pay as much or more for time and labor as for the material cost.