Amalgam Allergy Symptoms and Treatment

Amalgam is a mercury alloy that has been used as a tooth filling since 1820. Half of such mixtures consist of pure mercury, the other half of different metals. These include above all silver, tin and copper, a little iridium and zinc. Silver amalgam is chemically more resistant than copper amalgam and has therefore been used almost exclusively since the mid-20th century.

contents

• allergy test
• treatment
• mercury poisoning
• Remove amalgam
• Who should pay particular attention?

Amalgam is very durable, easy to work with and superior to any other material as a modeling clay compound.

Amalgam filling: Many patients feel a kind of allergy. Unresolved, this phenomenon is not yet clear. Image: Zsolt Bota Finna - fotolia

Amalgam is suspected to cause infections, skin eczema such as muscle pain as well as chronic fatigue or headache. Hard evidence for it but missing.

Contact allergy to amalgam fillings causes problems with the mucous membrane of the mouth. More specifically, it is a hypersensitive reaction to mercury, to which amalgam consists of 50%. Other ingredients include copper, zinc, silver and tin - all of these metals can also cause allergies.

The amalgam allergy arises when amalgam fillings become porous, the dentist inserts or removes them, and the amalgam gets into the organism. The saliva transports it into the gastrointestinal tract and into the bloodstream, it gets into the liver and kidneys, into the brain, the tissue and the nervous system.

An amalgam allergy manifests as tongue burning, a metallic taste in the mouth and inflamed gums.

allergy test

The prick test shows against which substance an allergy exists. The test subject drops various substances on his skin and punctures with a lancet. Twenty minutes later, the doctor sees if the skin is reddening or forming wheals.

When patch test gets the person affected a plaster with the respective substance glued to the back.

If, with amalgam, an eczema forms within the plaster within three days, there is an amalgam allergy.

Blood and urine tests, which measure the mercury content in the body, show no amalgam allergy, but a possible mercury poisoning. However, these tests are somewhat uncertain because mercury accumulates particularly in the tissue. It is also unclear whether the accumulated mercury comes from amalgam fillings. Many health insurance companies do not recognize amalgam poisoning as a disease, but pay for amalgam allergy.

Those who suffer from amalgam allergy, usually a mercury allergy, should avoid food that is contaminated with mercury, especially fish that is at the top of the food chain such as swordfish and tuna.

treatment

If there is an allergy, the logical consequence is to remove the amalgam fillings and replace them with other materials, such as ceramics. However, the doctor should first check the new fillings if they also trigger allergic reactions.

The art of the dentist is in demand, because the removal of the fillings can release amalgam and thus harm the allergic person additionally.

mercury poisoning

Mercury also accumulates in small amounts in the body during normal nutrition. However, if the amount of mercury becomes too large, it will result in mercury poisoning.

The metal binds to enzymes, nerve cells, neurotransmitters and membranes. The molecules change their structures and therefore do not work anymore. The mercury is deposited in the liver, kidneys, connective tissue, nervous system and brain.

Mercury poisoning adversely affects brain metabolism, formaldehyde metabolism, lipid metabolism, vitamin balance, protein and carbohydrate metabolism.

Remove amalgam

The patient takes medicine powder to protect the mucous membranes and the gastrointestinal tract, then the mouth is "sealed" with rubber so that no amalgam gets into the organism. The amalgam is removed with a marginal cut from the teeth. After removal, the physician uses sodium thiosulfate to bind and neutralize residual amalgam.

Remove the fillings. Picture: Alexander Ruiz - fotolia

The teeth are then filled with a patient-friendly material, usually a provisional filling is used for several months.

Who should pay particular attention?

1) Children with milk teeth, as the growing body reacts sensitively to heavy metals.
2) Pregnant women and nursing mothers should not be allowed to use amalgam fillings.
3) Retrograde root fillings must not be performed with amalgam
4) Trepanated and cast crowns must not be closed with amalgam
5) Anyone who suffers from kidney problems should not use amalgam (Dr. Utz Anhalt)
Specialist supervision: Barbara Schindewolf-Lensch (doctor)

Swell:
Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices: "Amalgams in dental therapy" (PDF, 286 kB)
Dental Fillings Amalgams & Alternatives European Commission, Health and Consumer Protection