Composite fillings can be contoured to the exact bite, are readily repairable, and look absolutely fantastic! On the downside, they are much more time consuming to place, and so are more expensive, and some insurance companies do not pay well for them.

Did you know that the silver fillings in your teeth contains more than 50% of the toxic element, Mercury? The argument rages as to whether that mercury is bound, and therefore inert, or actively liberated as mercury vapor which can then be absorbed into body tissues throughout the life of the filling. Amalgam is a material that is over 150 years old, and there are many modern alternatives that can be considered.

The known effects of mercury toxicity include deterioration of the immune system, the neurologic system, and the reproductive system. While I do not profess to be an expert on the scientific evidence which I have become familiar with, I made a choice many years ago, after having read a scientific article which indicated there was suppression in the immune system of monkeys in the experimental group (which had recently undergone amalgam filling placement), while the control group remained normal. The American Dental Association's response was to state that "this research was done on monkeys not humans, and therefore has no relevance. " At that point, I asked myself what the American Dental Associations was trying to cover-up?

Many dentists who have read this page have asked me why I suspected a cover-up? It is incongruous to me that the American Dental Association tells us that mercury-amalgam is safe in our patient's mouths, that once the silver and mercury have hardened, there is no significant mercury vapor liberated from the filling. In the same breath, they ask us to store all unused amalgam in a sealed glass jar, with the scrap metals underwater. So that makes two places amalgam is safe, in your mouth, and underwater... sealed jar! Read the ADA's guidelines for mercury, and ask yourself, aren't they talking out of both sides of their mouth? Is it any wonder that Scandinavia and Germany, and most recently Canada have curtailed or banned the use of amalgam? They provide no scientific research to verify this, other than the Public Health Service study done earlier in this decade. They fail to state that this study on the safety of mercury indicated that further research was necessary before any conclusions could be reached.

New! Dentists around the nation have been blocked and sanctioned by their state boards, and the ADA from explaining the risks of mercury fillings. Several years ago, in an advertisement, I wrote "we do not use the toxic substance mercury in any of the fillings we place. " The NJ State Board of Dentistry fined me $500 for false and misleading advertising.  When I provided them with a copy of the NJ Environmental Protection Agency's treatise on the subject of mercury toxicity, they backed down.

What is the ADA trying to cover up? I can only guess that they have been endorsing the safety of mercury amalgam for so long, that a reversal of position would create widespread fear in the public eye, and reversal of trust with the profession. The inexorable fact remains that many foreign governments' regulatory agencies have banned the use of amalgam all together, or in pregnant women and children under the age of 18.