5 Risks of Mercury & Silver Fillings
When it comes to mercury and silver fillings (also referred to as amalgam fillings), many dental patients find it difficult to separate fact from fiction. On the one hand, hundreds of alarmist articles litter the web stating that these fillings contribute to mercury poisoning, while on the other hand, over 100 years’ worth of studies suggest that they do not cause grievous illness.
In reality, there are valid reasons to avoid amalgam fillings—but they are not what you might expect. Mercury and silver fillings have been linked to the following complications:
1. A significantly increased risk of tooth damage.
While it’s true that amalgam fillings themselves are more durable than resin composite fillings (though modern composite fillings are quite strong), like all metals, silver amalgam expands and contracts, particularly as it corrodes over time. As amalgam fillings expand, they exert pressure on the tooth structure around them, meaning that the tooth usually eventually fractures. If your tooth fractures, you will likely need a far more extensive and costly restoration, such as a crown. Composite fillings are therefore preferable as even if they do chip or break, they can often simply be replaced because the tooth around them typically remains intact.
2. An increase in the patient’s overall exposure to mercury.
Mercury is such a common environmental pollutant today that we are constantly being exposed to it; our food (particularly certain fish) contains it, as does our water and air. Over time, all of this exposure adds up, potentially leading to illness and brain damage. Many health professionals therefore advise that we do as much as we can to limit the amount of mercury we come into contact with—and while amalgam fillings have not been shown to cause mercury poisoning on their own, there is no doubt that they do release mercury vapour into the mouth over time, making them a contributor to mercury toxicity.
3. Aesthetic issues.
Amalgam fillings are notoriously unattractive thanks to their dark colouration, which stands out in stark contrast to the patient’s otherwise pearly white teeth. Amalgam fillings also tend to gradually discolour the tooth structure around them over time. Even if you are personally willing to forgo having all-white teeth in order to save money on your fillings, having unattractive teeth may have profound implications: Research suggests that people who show obvious signs of poor dental health are often judged negatively, particularly during job interviews. As such, depending on your line of work, amalgam fillings may impact your professional life.
4. A loss of tooth structure.
In addition to the risk of breakage outlined above, silver and mercury fillings cause a loss of healthy tooth structure as soon as they are inserted. This is due to how they are placed; amalgam fillings are prepared and then wedged and “glued” into a drilled hole in the tooth, meaning that the metal filling must be a certain size lest it be too weak to withstand the patient’s bite force. Composite fillings, on the other hand, are actually bonded directly to the tooth structure, meaning that they can be more conservatively prepared and necessitate only a small space to fit into.
5. Pain issues.
Metal conducts heat and cold very well, meaning that the temperature of various foods and drinks can much more easily reach the nerve of a tooth, invariably resulting in sharp jolts of pain. Unlike surface sensitivity caused by worn enamel, this kind of tooth sensitivity cannot be treated through the use of special toothpaste, making it permanent unless the amalgam fillings are replaced.