Removal of mercury amalgam fillings

[Lotus97]

Hi Lotus97,

I would recommend against having your teeth pulled, which could lead to its own set of problems. Instead, given your lack of available funding, I would recommend taking some precautionary measures to reduce your mercury exposure by limiting hot drinks, and foods that require a lot of chewing, two things that can dramatically increase mercury outgassing.

What about drinking sour/acidic liquids or acidic sublinguals? Do those increase my mercury exposure from amalgams also?

 

[Wayne]

What about drinking sour/acidic liquids or acidic sublinguals? Do those increase my mercury exposure from amalgams also?

Hi Lotus,

Your question is getting into areas I know very little about, so I can't really comment. --- I do want to mention however, I've noticed charges for replacing amalgam fillings can vary dramatically. I seem to remember some holistic dentists will charge as much as $1,000 per filling, while others charge a normal fee of $150-$200 or so. So if you do look into amalgam replacement further at some point, you may want to keep this in mind. Also, I think some dentists doing replacements do ceramic instead of plastic composites, because they're more durable. But I believe they cost substantially more as well.

Best, Wayne

 

[Wayne]

If we have bentonite or zeolite or other things like sodium/alginate in our system at all times to absorb metals, won't this also absorb our mineral supplements? Do we need to take higher doses of the mineral supplements?

I've seen this concern in the past, and don't really know how to assess it. But I've tended to believe this could be a very individual thing. I've seen people voice this concern when it comes to ingesting charcoal as well (for detoxification), but the benefits of supplementing with charcoal seems to be consistent.

I myself take lots of "green" tablets, such as kelp, wheatgrass, etc., which have a lot of minerals. I've long thought about doing regular electrolyte drinks as well (there's a thread on this board on electrolyte drinks). But alas, I've not gotten around to it, mostly I believe because my intuition is telling me the bentonite clay I ingest regularly is not depleting my mineral reserves.

Best, Wayne

 

[end]

Hi Athene

I had 18 amalgams replaced with composites just over a year ago by a dentist trained by Huggins. I still have 4 amalgams under crowns though. Probably co-incidentally I then experienced 6 very good months, until last October I came down with my worst relapse ever - I'm still mostly in bed and in have permanent pain, dizziness, nausea and complete weakness.

The literature on mercury and amalgam replacement is huge, and also hugely controversial. Before having my fillings replaced I did a lot of research and concluded that there is no way of knowing who is right about the dangers of amalgams, but since I'd tried almost everything else I'd go ahead and have them removed. There are lots of Yahoo groups - some based on Andy Cutler's work - and people on them seem to have widely different experiences.

Many say that there's no point in getting amalgams removed without doing chelation afterwards. Since I still have some amalgams under crowns I'm not sure of the wisdom of this in my case, but I might try Cutler's 'frequent dose chelation' protocol with low dose alpha lipoic acid and see what happens. My dentist takes the view that this would be OK as the amalgams are in root canal treated teeth, which are dead with no blood vessels and so the mercury can't be chelated out of the tooth. But I know others disagree.

Hope this helps - would be interested to hear others' experiences.

Jenny

Having root canals in your mouth is just as bad as mercury laden fillings. Up to 95% of root canals are infected with-in the tooth. Low grade how ever, still an infection.

 

[Jenny]

Having root canals in your mouth is just as bad as mercury laden fillings. Up to 95% of root canals are infected with-in the tooth. Low grade how ever, still an infection.

I'd like to see some good evidence for this. I've read opinion pieces, one way and another, but nothing very scientific.

 

[Lotus97]

Wayne
So you prefer bentonite? I have heard people say that it's contaminated, but you seem to know a lot about this stuff. Do you know what the difference between bentonite and Zeolite is besides the price? Thanks

 

[Wayne]

Wayne
So you prefer bentonite? I have heard people say that it's contaminated, but you seem to know a lot about this stuff. Do you know what the difference between bentonite and Zeolite is besides the price? Thanks

Hi Lotus,

I've also heard stories of contaminated bentonite. It sounds like a lot depends on how it has been handled. Since it has such a high capacity to adsorb toxicity, apparently it will draw toxicity out of the air if exposed to the air. So you have to be careful about where it came from and how it was stored afterwards.

I've long looked to the online website evenbetternow.com for most of my detoxification education, and bentonite clay purchases. The owner of it once suffered from CFS herself, and appears to have regained virtually all of her functionality using the methods that she advocates for on her website. She feels very confident in the bentonite clay she sells, and even though they can't advertise it as being consumable, she herself ingests it internally. They also have very good customer support, and are happy to answer any questions you may have.

 

[Wayne]

I'd like to see some good evidence for this. I've read opinion pieces, one way and another, but nothing very scientific.

Hi Jenny,

I can't necessarily point you to good evidence, but I can give you a brief anecdotal story. I had a single root-canaled tooth, and had read about the high probability and potential dangers of it being infected. One day, I developed a large blister on my lip, very close to this tooth. It made me think that this was probably not a coincidence.

So I decided to have it removed. My lip blister had already cleared up before the extraction, but lo and behold, by the next day, I could tell that I was able to swallow much better. My swallowing had become more and more problematic in the previous year or two, and I was VERY concerned I was developing ALS. But this swallowing problem cleared up completely within days after the tooth extraction.

Interestingly, I had gone in to have this tooth removed about five years earlier because of all the literature I had read, but the oral surgeon said he it looked very good to him. He then assured me he had the latest and greatest digital x-ray equipment, and if it was a problem tooth, it would show up very clearly. His verdict was that it was in perfect condition, and so I didn't have it extracted at that time. Whether this changed in the ensuing five years is something I'll never know.

To me, it clearly seems many root canals do indeed become infected. There are many stories of the resolution of a myriad of health problems after extraction of some of these teeth. As far as scientific evidence, I believe there was a Canadian dentist back in the1920's or 1930's who did extensive testing on root canaled teeth. He apparently would implant these teeth in laboratory animals, and discovered that most of these animals developed the same health conditions that killed the person the root-canaled tooth came from. Don't know how definitive these studies are considered by today's scientific standards, but I believe it's something well worth considering.

Best Regards, Wayne

 

[Jenny]

Hi Jenny,

I can't necessarily point you to good evidence, but I can give you a brief anecdotal story. I had a single root-canaled tooth, and had read about the high probability and potential dangers of it being infected. One day, I developed a large blister on my lip, very close to this tooth. It made me think that this was probably not a coincidence.

So I decided to have it removed. My lip blister had already cleared up before the extraction, but lo and behold, by the next day, I could tell that I was able to swallow much better. My swallowing had become more and more problematic in the previous year or two, and I was VERY concerned I was developing ALS. But this swallowing problem cleared up completely within days after the tooth extraction.

Interestingly, I had gone in to have this tooth removed about five years earlier because of all the literature I had read, but the oral surgeon said he it looked very good to him. He then assured me he had the latest and greatest digital x-ray equipment, and if it was a problem tooth, it would show up very clearly. His verdict was that it was in perfect condition, and so I didn't have it extracted at that time. Whether this changed in the ensuing five years is something I'll never know.

To me, it clearly seems many root canals do indeed become infected. There are many stories of the resolution of a myriad of health problems after extraction of some of these teeth. As far as scientific evidence, I believe there was a Canadian dentist back in the1920's or 1930's who did extensive testing on root canaled teeth. He apparently would implant these teeth in laboratory animals, and discovered that most of these animals developed the same health conditions that killed the person the root-canaled tooth came from. Don't know how definitive these studies are considered by today's scientific standards, but I believe it's something well worth considering.

Best Regards, Wayne

Hi Wayne

Thanks for this, and I'm glad your swallowing problem improved. I've read about Weston Price's work (I think that is the Canadian you are referring to). One would have thought that by now someone would have done more thorough work on whether root canals can be problematic, but I haven't seen any.

I asked the dentist who replaced my amalgams about this and he said he has extracted root canalled teeth from ME and FM patients in the hope that they would improve. He said one FM patient did, but for the others it made no difference. (He didn't say whether there seemed to be infections in the roots.)

I spent a fortune on replacing amalgams with no improvement in my ME and the sort of evidence I was relying on was the same sort of anecdotal evidence that people cite in favour of extracting root canalled teeth. So I'm not going there unless I find robust scientific studies to support this treatment. (I've got 5 root canals.)

Jenny
Jenny

 

[Wayne]

Hi Jenny,

Here's a thought. Before I had my root-canaled tooth extracted, I had gone to a dentist who did "replacement root canals" using a product called Endocal, or Biocalex, or something like that. This material is apparently used almost exclusively in Europe for root canals, and has apparently been shown to seal better than the gutta perca most often used in the US. The "sealing" action of the material apparently eliminates the "open pockets" left behind by gutta perca, the open pockets apparently being what gives rise to the problematic anaerobic bacteria being able to take hold. The downside for this material is that if too much is inserted into the tooth, it expands too much, can create pressure, and makes the tooth become brittle.

I had to travel over 200 miles to the only dentist in Oregon who did this, and was extremely wiped out and had a terrific headache by the time I arrived. As the dentist began to drill on the tooth, he stopped momentarily and asked whether I smelled something, which he then said was the smell of infection. As he continued, I noticed that even though I was undergoing some very stressful dental work, right after such a long and difficult road trip, I actually began to feel better. My headache went away, and the stress level in my body went way down. And my chronic daily headaches almost went completely away for the next several weeks. After the dentist finished drilling out the tooth, he then disinfected it thoroughly with some kind of laser device.

I ended up not doing the replacement, because I didn't have a lot of tooth left, and it would have taken a fair amount of time and expense to pull down the tooth enough to do a reliable root canal. So getting back to my thought at the beginning, I wonder if my story would indicate it might be worthwhile for somebody concerned about their own root canals to consider doing a replacement. Perhaps if it was done one at a time, it might become discernible as to whether the process of drilling out the inside of old root canals makes a difference. --- Seems like with most everything we deal with, there's no easy answers.

Best Regards, Wayne

 

[maryb]

I agree Jenny, its difficult planning to have work done on anecdotal evidence.
I had 4 amalgams out 2 yrs ago, using a specialist dentist but still had major neurological symptoms for about 4/6months afterwards, this made me very wary, I still do want the remainder out but will be very careful next time. The dentist I had a consult with wanted £4500 for a whole wad of treatment, wouldn't do just the amalgams, 'I don't do piecemeal' he said, the only thing that sways me towards him is that he does vit c infusions at the same time and I have read that this mops up the mercury as soon as its released.
But justifying raising the money for this??

 

[Jenny]

Hi Jenny,

Here's a thought. Before I had my root-canaled tooth extracted, I had gone to a dentist who did "replacement root canals" using a product called Endocal, or Biocalex, or something like that. This material is apparently used almost exclusively in Europe for root canals, and has apparently been shown to seal better than the gutta perca most often used in the US. The "sealing" action of the material apparently eliminates the "open pockets" left behind by gutta perca, the open pockets apparently being what gives rise to the problematic anaerobic bacteria being able to take hold. The downside for this material is that if too much is inserted into the tooth, it expands too much, can create pressure, and makes the tooth become brittle.

I had to travel over 200 miles to the only dentist in Oregon who did this, and was extremely wiped out and had a terrific headache by the time I arrived. As the dentist began to drill on the tooth, he stopped momentarily and asked whether I smelled something, which he then said was the smell of infection. As he continued, I noticed that even though I was undergoing some very stressful dental work, right after such a long and difficult road trip, I actually began to feel better. My headache went away, and the stress level in my body went way down. And my chronic daily headaches almost went completely away for the next several weeks. After the dentist finished drilling out the tooth, he then disinfected it thoroughly with some kind of laser device.

I ended up not doing the replacement, because I didn't have a lot of tooth left, and it would have taken a fair amount of time and expense to pull down the tooth enough to do a reliable root canal. So getting back to my thought at the beginning, I wonder if my story would indicate it might be worthwhile for somebody concerned about their own root canals to consider doing a replacement. Perhaps if it was done one at a time, it might become discernible as to whether the process of drilling out the inside of old root canals makes a difference. --- Seems like with most everything we deal with, there's no easy answers.

Best Regards, Wayne

Some good ideas Wayne, but they would need someone braver than me! I don't think I've got much tooth left in my root canalled teeth and redrilling would probably destroy them. And I probably don't have enough bone for implants.......

But if there was clear evidence from sound studies that getting rid of root canals significantly improved ME, I would do it like a shot.

Jenny

 

[end]

I'd like to see some good evidence for this. I've read opinion pieces, one way and another, but nothing very scientific.

Long before reading Dr Hal A. Huggins views on amalgams and root canals, I had a root canaled tooth extracted and like Wayne... had noticed improvments in health right away.

I beleive lowering the body's infection load helps things move along in non-responders.


Some times the "anecdotal evidence" just seems to add up over time

 

[GcMAF Australia]

Long before reading Dr Hal A. Huggins views on amalgams and root canals, I had a root canaled tooth extracted and like Wayne... had noticed improvments in health right away.

I beleive lowering the body's infection load helps things move along in non-responders.


Some times the "anecdotal evidence" just seems to add up over time

I think Ian here has a story about this canal problem

 

[August59]

Just wondering if anyone has had a dental apico performed on any teeth and if so, did you have good results from the procedure?

 

[Jenny]

Long before reading Dr Hal A. Huggins views on amalgams and root canals, I had a root canaled tooth extracted and like Wayne... had noticed improvments in health right away.

I beleive lowering the body's infection load helps things move along in non-responders.


Some times the "anecdotal evidence" just seems to add up over time

Trouble is that the anecdotes are likely to be skewed towards those that describe how treatments have helped.

 

[end]

It must get interesting for you waiting for scientific validation before implementing protocols.

Takes more self control then I have.

Good luck

 

[Jenny]

It must get interesting for you waiting for scientific validation before implementing protocols.

Takes more self control then I have.

Good luck

Hi end

Like everyone, I've relied on anecdote for all the protocols I've tried previously. Over 30 years I've probably tried about 40 different treatments. Most were fairly cheap and benign, but some were expensive and painful (IV abx), some pretty gross (colonic irrigation) and some took a fair amount of courage (cold baths every morning).

All except one (acupuncture and Chinese herbs) made no difference so I'm getting protocol weary. For me the extraction of five teeth would be pretty traumatic and I'm just not prepared to do it without good evidence that it would help.

 

[Ian]

Bone around root canal teeth often goes bad, and by bad I mean it dies. Simply pulling RC teeth is a waste of time. The bone must be surgically debrided to get the infection cut out. I've seen plenty of people destroyed by root canal teeth and bone infections. And miraculously get better once these infections are removed. But there are very few surgeons in the world that do it. And those that do it normally get forced out of their professions. If dentists were to address the idea of bone infections they would have to give up implants and root canals. The level of debt most dentists take on to get through dental school they would be out of their minds to stick their heads out.

If any of you really interested in this subject there is a book
Beyond Amalgam: The Hidden Health Hazard Posed by Jawbone Cavitations
by the late
Suzan Stockton

 

[end]

Bone around root canal teeth often goes bad, and by bad I mean it dies. Simply pulling RC teeth is a waste of time. The bone must be surgically debrided to get the infection cut out. I've seen plenty of people destroyed by root canal teeth and bone infections. And miraculously get better once these infections are removed. But there are very few surgeons in the world that do it. And those that do it normally get forced out of their professions. If dentists were to address the idea of bone infections they would have to give up implants and root canals. The level of debt most dentists take on to get through dental school they would be out of their minds to stick their heads out.

If any of you really interested in this subject there is a book
Beyond Amalgam: The Hidden Health Hazard Posed by Jawbone Cavitations
by the late
Suzan Stockton

Excellent Excellent post Ian!!

My intuition told me RC teeth are hazardous

So just removing a visually infected(darkened)RC tooth is NOT enough?

Amazon.com - Beyond Amalgam