Amalgam Poisoning

Who doesn’t love a controversy? Everyone appreciates and is awed by controversies as long as it doesn’t harm the subject himself or herself. Amalgam poisoning is one such controversy. While for some people amalgam poisoning is a myth, for others it is that unfortunate reality of life that they have to live with. Amalgam poisoning is said to occur due to use of mercury alloys for dental fillings and that sparks off another debate or controversies. But what is an amalgam? Amalgam is a solid or semi-solid alloy or mixture of mercury with some other element. Amalgams are extensively used for dental fillings because they are inexpensive and easy to use. However, it has never been scientifically demonstrated that any such thing as 'amalgam poisoning' exists. In extremely rare cases, people show allergic tendencies to one or more components of amalgams, but that cannot be called amalgam poisoning. On the other hand however, mercury poisoning is not all that rare, since amalgams quintessentially contain mercury. As such, amalgam poisoning may actually refer to mercury poisoning. The symptoms of both happen to overlap. Read below to get the symptoms and treatment for mercury poisoning.

 

 

Mercury generally may not be the direct cause of all the aforementioned symptoms and problems, but since it is a well-known that mercury can be the original trigger for all of them, it becomes important and logical to check for the presence of mercury poisoning. The treatment for this poisoning generally revolves around prevention and precautionary measures. Avoid any oral contact with mercury. For e.g., if there is mercury filling in one’s teeth, then he/she should immediately get it replaced. And, in fact, even before getting any filling done, it makes more sense to check your body’s mercury compatibility and then advice your dentist accordingly. There are a few medications also available for this condition, but it is only prevention that works the best.