Having amalgam fillings replaced

[NaturalMamma]

I'm having my amalgam fillings replaced by my dentist. (They're unsightly and I'm going to start the Invisalign program to straighten my teeth in 2009.) I'll have to make 2 appointments to have them all done. The dentist will use a dental dam but I'm looking for information on detoxing my system and/or what I can take to bind the mercury and take it out of my system.

I'm 47yo and will not be having any more children and my DD is not nursing.

And advice and links you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

cindi

[sunnysandiegan]

I had mine done and my chiropractor gave me a liquid before the first round, between the two rounds, and the last bottle after the last round. It was a few years ago and I have forgotten the exact product. Sorry. I hope someone else has more details for you.

[MamaMamaMama!]

Start out here:

http://www.livingnetwork.co.za/heali...tal_visit.html

and here:

http://www.livingnetwork.co.za/drcla...ntal_list.html


Make sure you do a lot of looking around here:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group...ose-chelation/

I just had my amalgams replaced this summer. It has been a wild ride so far. The suggestions in these sites sounded a little extreme to me when I first started poking around but to my experience so far they are right on. Amalgam replacement is very serious stuff but SO worth it. Make sure you have a separate breathing apparatus when you get the amalgams out, not just a dam. My dentist didn't have the breathing tube and I went with it anyway and I have regretted it; I got way more mercury exposure during removal than I needed to and I can no longer tolerate dairy and a couple other foods because of it. I am waiting for a root canal extraction to begin chelation but that will be soon.

I feel so much better physically now that my amalgams are out, though. Keep a detailed journal and pay attention to how you feel each day, what you have eaten, what supplements you take, etc.

Good luck to you!

[NaturalMamma]

Thank you for the great links. I'm feeling a little nervous about the whole thing. I knew it was a big deal, but the links did freak me out a bit. I am doing it mainly b/c I'm tired of looking at this metal in my mouth, but also hoping I will feel some health benefit in the end. I have had them in my mouth for...probably 15/20+ yrs now. Do you think it's safer to leave them in (thinking they've pretty much leached out most of the Hg????)

But who knows...perhaps they've been responsible for my horrible PMS symptoms throughout most of my life and now that I'm headed towards menopause (I'm 47) things are really getting hairy.


cindi

[tanyalynn]

Physically, half an amalgam filling is mercury. Unless they look like swiss cheese, they're still leaching (joke--they can't look like swiss cheese, they really don't stop leaching within a person's lifetime--hard to tell if something's funny in writing when I'm this tired).

I think a lot of subtle stuff can be affected by mercury. My health is blatantly messed up, but I think it's more subtle for many people.

The healthier you are, the easier removal is. Some recommendations are really necessary for pretty sick people but are more optional for people who feel better. But I think the PP's rec of finding a doc who takes it seriously--separate airflow for you, mask for the dentist (so you know they are not cavalier about it), stuff like that is really important for everyone. But you will still get a spike of mercury even with precautions.

How much you do with supplements and stuff afterward, if you feel okay, is optional (though I think some focus on supporting your body's detox processes is helpful for everyone).

[MamaMamaMama!]

TanyaLopes is right; take a look at this video of an amalgam that was removed;you can see the mercury vapor still being released after years and years of being in someone's mouth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qvNf4NVZvI.

It IS scary stuff. I'm not terribly sick, either, but I've had a few small positive health changes that were interesting and make me think there are plenty of others that I never connected: facial tics gone, white spots on my nails gone, face clearer, etc. It makes me think there are plenty of other things I never would have guessed are being affected--and hormones are one major thing that mercury messes with so, yes, it's very likely that you could see improvement if remove your amalgams safely.

[NaturalMamma]

Thank you for the great wisdom, ladies! Another thing I was wondering...I'm pretty sure the doc won't be able to take out all my fillings. I think 2 of them are quite extensive and there is too much of a risk of a fractured tooth there. So it seems that I won't be able to do any type of chelating after I'm all done. I read this on one of the links from livingnetwork:

NEVER, NEVER take a chelating agent (DMSA, ALA, or DMPS) while you still have mercury in your mouth, no matter what the circumstances! Do not use 'single-thiol' substances such as glutathione, chlorella, cysteine, garlic, MSM or others in an attempt to chelate. They are not chelating agents in a chemical sense, they will 'stir' mercury up, but not remove it properly and safely. Avoid these substances if you are mercury toxic.



I've read that cilantro has chelating properties in high doses. I guess it means I can't even do that. Is wheatgrass, kelp, etc. as a detoxing agent also a bad idea (I'm thinking it's in the "family" of chlorella???)

So the only thing I think I'm going to do is take some activated charcoal prior to and after the visit, keep my body pure from contaminants. Normally I have very good whole food eating habits, but I'll also completely cut out sugar for a couple of weeks, make sure I get plenty of protein. I'll drink tons of purified water and my German source of mineral water, detox tea, maybe have a massage, etc. I also have the book about Amalgam Illness waiting for me at the library.

: I'll see if I can reach my ND on Monday to see if she has experience w/this topic as well.

Oh so overwhelming...

cindi

[tanyalynn]

That's a good site. Yes, NEVER use anything like dmsa or ala while you have amalgam fillings remaining, or your currently pretty good health will turn nasty bad really fast.

Cilantro does seem to pull out mercury from tissues, I actually don't eat it at all, even in small doses. If I weren't sick, maybe it wouldn't matter, but I think small amounts (think salsa in small quantities) may have caused subtle mood problems after I got my fillings out (thinking now that I had no more fillings, it would be okay in moderation). Non-sick people may not be affected like this, but be mindful of it and pay attention to how you feel.

RE: massages and body work. I'd avoid that for a while--I saw, in both my kids, that cranial-sacral therapy mobilized a lot of toxins for them. I hear that can happen (more likely in really toxic people as opposed to normal people--have you considered a hair test? Non-invasive and gives a decent idea of whether the mercury is a big issue or a smaller issue for you, and then you'd know how hard-core you want/need to be with this). But I'd think massage would have the potential to increase your circulating toxins, and doing it at a different time would probably be better. My 2 cents.