The Villager
February 22-28, 2006

Filling in mercury details

To The Editor:

In the Jan. 18 issue of The Villager, the article “Heavy metal rocks Eighth St.; Mercury mystery still unsolved” makes the assertion that dentists “used to use mercury to make fillings.” This implies that dentists no longer use mercury, when, in fact, amalgam fillings still in use today contain 50 percent elemental mercury. Although one-third of dentists are now mercury free, many people, especially the working poor, still get these fillings. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls amalgam fillings a “major” source of exposure to mercury. A recent poll by Zogby International, released last week, suggests that most people aren’t aware that many fillings contain mercury, let alone that they are a major source of exposure to this toxic metal. For more information on the problems with mercury fillings, see www.toxicteeth.org.

Amanda Ganong
Ganong was a former director of programs, Consumers for Dental Choice