Silver Fillings

by: Nirvana Zarabi-Smith, Doctor of Natural Medicine

The term silver fillings gives us the impression that the fillings in the mouth are really made of silver. Unfortunately, it is not the same precious silver that our fancy jewelry is made from and it’s not the same metal that is used by your dentist. The not-so-precious metal that is being used in your mouth is actually a poison.

The Environmental Protection Agency classified dental amalgams as hazardous waste back in 1988. In other words, if a dentist were to dump some mercury in a lake or bury it somewhere underground, he’d be breaking the law. But that same dentist would be following accepted dental practices to implant the same substance in his patients’ mouths. Does this make any sense at all?

Did you also know that when the mercury is shipped to the dentists, it is shipped as hazardous material? And that when the amalgams are removed, it is also treated as hazardous waste and is required to be disposed in accordance with the regulations? And yet it is inconceivable that our mouth could be considered a safe storage container for this poison. This just does not make sense!

The average client comes to us with approximately seven mercury fillings. I began my journey with twelve fillings and have had them all removed. Having that many fillings in the mouth would be like holding seven or twelve leaking mercury thermometers in your mouth 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.

So, what’s the big fuss about? And why is this so bad for your health? Well, the mercury that you absorb finds its way to your brain, heart, liver, gastrointestinal tract, endocrine glands, kidneys and muscles. The mercury is stored in the tissue and then it’s released very slowly into your system. Most people do not notice it’s toxic exposure. One reason is that it’s internal and we inhale small amounts of it without realizing it.

Mercury does not allow the proper amount of oxygen to get to your cells. It reduces the amount of oxygen that you get. The body begins to adjust and adapt to the lack of oxygen and it keeps on getting sicker and sicker. When you reach low oxygenation levels due to mercury poisoning, you’ll notice autoimmune dysfunctions, an inability to deal with infections and an acidic Bioterrain. The body becomes weak and cannot deal with the regular day-to-day detoxification process. The poison and other environmental toxins continue to pollute your terrain, yet your body is not able to keep up with the normal detoxification process. At this point, there are more toxins going in than coming out.

How do you know if you have mercury toxicity? If you have one or more amalgam fillings, then you qualify. The mercury is inserted into your mouth and as you chew your food, the mercury molecules are detached by chewing and are constantly inhaled and swallowed. Once this enters your body, it becomes part of the biochemical process. The mercury atom attaches itself to any substance it comes in contact with that has a receptor site that fits. This is a path, which has now formed from the mouth into the nose and sinuses, to the brain and nervous system, to the throat and larynx and into the lungs, to the heart and then circulated into the other organs. The blood carries the poison to the digestive tract, the arms, legs and skin. Mercury mixed with saliva is carried into the digestive tract tissue and kidneys and other organs.

There are many signs of mercury toxicity: gingivitis, frequent cold sores, amalgam tattoos or even a metallic taste in your mouth; inexplicable recurrence of infections or stuffy sinuses, which become inflamed due to the mercury absorption. This poison can remain in the brain and nervous system longer than in any other type of tissue. Symptoms can also range from fatigue, stress, anxiety, irregular heartbeat and visual disturbances. Hearing loss is a classic symptom of mercury poisoning: the ears are connected to the mouth by the Eustachian tubes; the inhaled mercury can pass directly through the tubes where it is then absorbed into the tissue and blood vessels; the throat, bronchial tube and lungs get exposed and affected; the heart becomes weak; the inhaled mercury vapor that passes into the blood stream may be carried into the breasts and then passed on through the breast milk.

The gastrointestinal tract absorbs the most amount of mercury because the mouth and fillings are constantly bathed in saliva and mercury is swallowed into the stomach with the saliva. Chronic constipation is a classic symptom of mercury poisoning. Candidiasis is also a frequent side effect of this poison. The kidneys provide a major pathway to mercury excretion. Less mercury gets eliminated through the urine once the mercury atoms become trapped in the kidney itself. Ever have the urge to frequently urinate only to find very small amounts of urine in the bladder? Well, this is because the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland, located at the base of the brain, controls the desire to urinate and is vulnerable to the absorption of mercury. When mercury has been absorbed it causes the pituitary to malfunction and send out the signal to urinate despite only small amounts of urine in the bladder. Mercury impacts the reproduction system, the glandular system, the blood, the immune system, and the skin. Even our behavioral mannerisms can be affected - "brain fog", chronic fatigue and Fibromyalgia just to name a few.

Well, now that we know how bad mercury is to our system, should we have it removed? I’m sure you are saying, yes, of course, right away. But what you don’t want to hear is that the process of removing the fillings itself can be a problem, because of the risk of inhaling mercury vapor during the drilling. The drill tip reaches temperatures of up to 800 F. and the mercury fillings will become vaporized at 673.8 F. As a result, when you choose to have them removed, your nose and mouth must be protected with a mask during the drilling and a rubber dam should be used. It is essential that a biological dentist conduct this procedure. If not done properly, some may get worse instead of better. If a group of fillings are removed in a session without proper protection against inhalation, then you may also make the present chronic condition even worse.

Once the amalgam fillings are removed, we move to step two, which is detoxification. We’ve stopped the leaking faucet and now it is time to clean up the mess. Detoxification is pulling the mercury out of the tissues by means of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and chelating agents. The longer the mercury has been in your system, the more time detoxification requires. A variety of substances will help eliminate mercury from the body. Not all are equally effective for every individual, and therefore you should consult with your healthcare practitioner prior to taking these. They are: Glutathione, Vitamin B6, Zinc, Vitamin C, Vitamin B1, Selenium, DMPS, DMSA and Activated Charcoal, just to name a few.

Glutathione is an amino acid, which is centrally to detoxifying mercury. Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) is critical to the metabolism of sulfur amino acids and is important in changing a precursor amino acid into Glutathione. Vitamin C is also very valuable as it supports tissue repair and has the ability to bind with mercury and carry it out of the system. Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) also treats mercury poisoning. Symptoms of those with B1 deficiencies and those with mercury poisoning are almost identical. Selenium has the capacity to bind with mercury to help with excretion. DMPS is a chelating agent, which was manufactured specifically for use with mercury poisoning. It can be taken by mouth or by injections. DMSA is similar to DMPS but it must be taken by mouth. It is said to be less effective than DMPS. Activated Charcoal is quite effective because it is ingested into the gastrointestinal tract where the largest amount of mercury accumulation is found.