Mercury fillings could pose health risks.

• Position: Tooth Decay - Brief article

Around 42% of children and 91% of adults have had cavities. Millions of people have these cavities filled with a "silver" substance, which contains around 50% mercury. The problem is that mercury is a neurotoxin, a substance that is poisonous to nerve tissue.

"Mercury fillings have been a topic worldwide, with Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Germany banning or restricting them, and the European Commission is trying to phase them out," explains Bruno Sharp, a fourth-generation dentist who has been a natural oral care provider the last 10 years. 'The more people learn about the dangers, the less they want them in their mouths or to be working with them in the dental office. Mercury is toxic and has no place going in someone's mouth."

The Food and Drug Administration, Washington, D.C., reports that mercury has been used in fillings for more than 150 years, and that one of the potential risks is that it releases low levels of vapor that can be inhaled and absorbed by the lungs. High levels of vapor exposure are associated with damaging the brain and kidneys...