Most U Want Dental Lab Supplies

Government agencies and medical studies have found that the number one source of mercury in people is dental  lab products amalgam fillings. Exposure from fillings amounts to from 50 to 90 percent of exposure, with the average being about 80 per cent of total exposure. The studies found that mercury amalgams are unstable due to mercury’s low vapour pressure and galvanic action, leaking mercury vapour continuously into the lungs and saliva at levels exceeding health standards.

Mercury exposure of most people with fillings was found to exceed government health standards and levels found to cause adverse health effects.

The US EPA mercury health standard1 for elemental mercury exposure (vapour) is 0.3 micrograms per cubic meter of air (0.3 ug/M3). For the average adult breathing 20 m3 of air per day, this amounts to an exposure of 6 micrograms (mg) per day. The corresponding tolerable daily exposure developed in a report for the Canadian Health Agency, Health Canada, is .014 mg/kg body weight or 1 mg/day for an average adult. The U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ASTDR) standard (MRL) for acute inhalation exposure to mercury vapour is 0.02 micrograms Hg/m3, which translates to approx. 1.2 mg/day for the average adult.

The range of mercury exposure levels found in people with amalgam fillings by the World Health Organization Scientific Panel on Mercury was 3 to 70 micrograms per day,with other medical studies finding up to 200 mg/day in gum chewers or people who grind their teeth. The average exposure was above 10 mg/day. The average mercury exposure for a Canadian adult with amalgam fillings was found in the Health Canada study to be 9 mg/day. In a large German study with 20,000 tested subjects at a University Medical Clinic, the average exposure from fillings was over 10 mg/day and over 50% of all those with 6 or more amalgam fillings had daily exposure exceeding the EPA health guideline.

Studies have consistently found modern high copper non gamma-two amalgams have greater release of mercury vapour than conventional silver amalgams.[21],[22],[23] Recent studies have concluded that because of the high mercury release levels of modern amalgams, mercury poisoning from amalgam fillings is widespread throughout the population.

Common levels found in persons with amalgam fillings are over 10 times the Health Canada limit, and more than the EPA health standard for mercury vapour. Thus persons with amalgam fillings have levels of intraoral mercury vapour and body exposure levels higher than the level considered to have significant health risk.

The studies found that total mercury intake is proportional to the number and extent of amalgam surfaces, but other factors such as chewing gum and drinking hot liquids influence the intake significantly increasing exposure as much as 500%.

A World Health Organization Scientific Panel concluded that a safe level of mercury exposure below which no adverse effects occur has never been established.

Introduction

Imagine you’ve just been told that you have to have your wisdom teeth extracted or maybe you have already had them removed. If this applies to you and especially if you suffer from any ill health, please read on.

Wisdom teeth are the last of the adult or permanent dentition to develop. They are the third molars, or grinding teeth, and are situated at the back of the dental products arches.

They are often partially erupted with some of their surface covered by gum. This can lead to infection under the gum flap (pericoronitis) or decay in the crown of the wisdom tooth itself or in the posterior aspect of the tooth in front. Very occasionally they can be associated with other pathology in the jaw, such as cysts.

However the extraction of wisdom teeth for the most trivial reason has been a common phenomenon in dentistry. These teeth are often extracted to prevent the supposed overcrowding of lower anterior teeth later in life. Occasionally they are enucleated (removed) at age 14 before they have fully developed.

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) in Great Britain issued the following guidelines to reduce the extraction of wisdom teeth.[1] The teeth could be extracted for the following exceptional reasons:
•    Cellulitis, abscess and osteomyelitis (severe bony infection);
•    Non-treatable pulpal and/or periapical pathology (nerve abscess);
•    Unrestorable caries (decay);
•    External internal resorption of the tooth or adjacent teeth;
•    Fracture of tooth;
•    Disease of follicle including cyst/ tumour;
•    Tooth within the field of tumour resection;
•    Tooth impeding reconstructive jaw surgery.

In all other cases the wisdom teeth are to be largely left in place, except for ‘recurrent pericoronitis’.

The above reasons for not extracting the teeth were circulated to dentists to save the British National Health Service around an additional £5m a year.

This directive is largely welcome but misses out on some real issues affecting patient health when the extraction of wisdom teeth is contemplated, either within or outside of any governmental contract.

A Disrupted Jaw and Ill Health

The relationship of the extraction of wisdom teeth or any other teeth and the effect this has on health is ill understood, and it is imperative that in the light of new knowledge the extraction of these teeth be severely curtailed.

It is both for the practitioner and the patient to note that our wisdom teeth provide essential support in the back of the mouth, support which is absolutely essential for the health of the Temporo mandibular joint (See figure this page).

This joint is located just in front of the ears where the jaw hinges with your skull. The word Temporo refers to the temporalis bone of your skull, which also houses the ear. The mandible is your lower jaw.

Occasionally on opening and closing you may feel and hear a click. The disc (Meniscus as above) housed between the skull and the lower jaw slipping in and out of its position causes this click. This click is often associated with the existence of other health problems.

Your mouth, jaws and indeed the entire head are served by the Trigeminal nerve, which provides 60% of the input to the brain. The slightest disturbance in this input, which comes from irregular teeth, jaw position or the space required by the jaw joint, results in a severe chain reaction throughout the body. It affects the ability to breathe, effectively giving rise to tiredness, breathing problems and often asthma. It also causes a distortion of the neck vertebrae resulting in neck pain. This distortion is compensated by an opposite distortion of the lower back, which results in a rotation of the pelvis on the affected side. Hip and lower back pains will not be uncommon. A clinical short leg on one side is also often a result, as you might have heard your chiropractor or osteopath mention.

Many patients have some or many of the above symptoms. Conventionally you could go to a whole range of medical consultants and have an exhaustive array of pathological tests and at the end of it you may be as perplexed about your condition as your medical practitioner. In the normal course of events you will be finally referred to the psychiatric community. You start challenging this and embark on a complete circle of alternative therapies.

Many in the dental and medical field will question what is hypothesized here. However in the light of my experience I feel it incumbent upon me to bring to their attention, as well as to that of the patient who is on the receiving end, some important issues. Extreme caution is better than blatant interference with no turning back.

The whole of the dental profession has to re-evaluate the necessity of extracting wisdom teeth. It is incumbent upon the profession to take the following points into consideration:

•    Where the patient already suffers from any of the related disease processes listed above, as it would often not only exacerbate those conditions but also potentially bring on additional symptoms;
•    Where a patient has had any extraction orthodontics, worn a headgear, elastics or any appliance to retract the upper jaw backwards;
•    Where a patient has genetically inherited small teeth or has some missing teeth;
•    Where a patient has jaw size discrepancies.

The extraction of these teeth must be avoided before the age of 22 even if all the above criteria are not applicable. Generally however the jaws are fully developed. Often the jaws do not fully develop and this will be evidenced by the concomitant existence of ill health. At this point orthodontic intervention becomes necessary.

Case History

Please note the changes in this patient’s profile. The patient led a healthy life until the extraction of her wisdom teeth. The first photograph below shows her appearance before the extraction of her wisdom teeth.

The next photograph shows the appearance after 18 months of the extraction event. Please note how the chin has receded and a flattening of the cheekbones has taken place resulting in an inadequate support for the eyes. At this stage the patient had been diagnosed as suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome with a myriad of some 40 symptoms.

The pictorial evidence of a deterioration of her profile shows what a dramatic change in the appearance and health of the patient can take place.

In the next photograph the patient is shown in the recovery phase after intervention to correct the jaw abnormality. She has completely recovered from the symptoms from which she was suffering. The photographs are a testimony to what is being postulated here. Would you take the risk of having your wisdom teeth or any teeth extracted?

Conclusion

The role of Wisdom teeth is a very small aspect in the evolving field of Cranio-Mandibular and Skeletal Symmetry( and its relationship to health. This challenging field offers prospects beyond anyone’s imagination. Dentists are in a unique position to bring about a great deal of relief where medicine has been nothing more than palliative to the millions of sufferers with chronic ailments. It calls for them to rise up to the challenges that lie ahead. It gives you as the patient a hope and an answer that may have been elusive until now.

The interventions required to correct the jaw abnormalities requires a sea change in the dental philosophies, which have been put forth over decades. The concept of “too many teeth and not enough bone to house them” (Standard text book on orthodontics by Professor Leighton of Kings College hospital Dental School used in most universities) has to be passed to the history books where it belongs. The effects of pollution, the artificial ingredients in our diet, the lack of trace elements in our vegetables, radiation, dioxin poison, the oestrogen like chemicals in the plastic bottles that we drink from are all having a devastating effect on the development of the face, teeth, jaws and the cranium and subsequently or concomitantly the rest of the body. In fact, evolution is following a downward retrograde path. The incidence of abnormalities and illnesses like fatigue, asthma and autism are having an exponential leap in reported statistics in western society. This has been calculated after allowing for improvements in diagnosis. In these circumstances one can do very little without prolonged intervention. This is the subject of another article but suffice it to say that it is very important that we err towards caution and non-extraction rather than blatant and gross interference with what nature has provided for us.

Around ten years ago I decided that there was sufficient evidence available to confirm my decision to become a mercury free dentist. This article does not concern itself with the ongoing controversy as to whether amalgam is a safe filling dental supplies material, but discusses the general nutritional advice we give to our patients and the specific substances that we would like them to take during and after amalgam removal.

In order to prevent dental disease, dental treatment must operate to a very high standard. Much care needs to be taken to ensure patient comfort

There is continued emphasis upon preventative care to try to eradicate dental decay and gum disease

An enormous source of help in my research on this subject has been the work of Dr Hal Huggins, a dentist working in the USA. He has worked in the field of detoxification for over twenty years and produced many articles on the subject. Much of what we suggest to patients is based on his recommendation, particularly from his booklet entitled simply Detoxification. Experience over the last ten years confirms everything that he suggests.

When patients arrive at our practice they are usually feeling very poorly. We endeavour to boost their immune system initially by suggesting that they take colloidal vitamin and mineral supplements and a strong antioxidant if they are not already doing so. The natural chemical pycnogenol, which is found in pine bark has received very good press recently, and is said to be twenty times more powerful than vitamin C.

We recently had a patient (Diane), a lady of around 45, who was very resistant to the concept of any supplementation. She felt that the whole area was, as she put it, ‘a con’. However, as she had committed herself to amalgam removal, she reluctantly agreed. To use her own words, she was ‘astounded by the results’ when she came in again three weeks later, saying that she hadn’t felt so well for years. This was before we removed the fillings! Now totally converted, she has finished her ‘detox’ and is well again, but continues to take anti-oxidants.

The body produces its own substances to fight heavy metals and toxins, namely glutamine synthetase and metallothionine. Unfortunately, when an excess of mercury is present, these systems may be overpowered. The obvious course of action is to remove the source of the poisoning by replacing the offending fillings and to rid the body of any remaining mercury by careful detoxification.

Sulphur combines readily with mercury, enabling the body to excrete the resultant combination. We use an organic form of sulphur called MSM (methylsulphonylmethane) which is helpful to the patient’s general health as well as binding with the mercury. It is also cheap, unlike some of the other chelators (DMSA, DMPS). One route of excretion will be through the kidneys, but as mercury can accumulate in the kidneys, we need an active week and a kidney clearance week, i.e. a two-week cycle. A quarter teaspoon of MSM crystals dissolved in a cup of warm water half an hour before breakfast each day for seven days, along with around eight glasses of filtered water a day is all that is required during an active week. During a kidney clearance week we suggest one capsule of multi-vitamins twice daily half an hour before food and once capsule of potassium citrate three times daily with food, each for seven days. Potassium citrate is an excellent ‘flusher’. Do not take the MSM during the kidney clearance week.

We advise patients to take chlorella continuously during both weeks, as it is very effective at clearing toxic metals through the bowel. Slowly increase the dose until taking four tablets three times a day continuously. Two months should be the minimum time for this regime.

Many patients become very sensitive to tiny amounts of mercury following detoxification, a problem known as the ‘secondary immune response’. We recently had a young man of 30 who successfully completed a course of detoxification, but reported being violently ill on two occasions following restaurant meals. It subsequently transpired that on both occasions he had eaten seafood, never a problem before, but which contain quite high levels of mercury. The body was simply remembering the awful poison and trying to get rid of it as quickly as possible. We had another lady who for some strange reason reacted against chlorella following ‘detox’. It may be that the chlorella was raised in a watery mercury environment. Another explanation may be that it was causing the body to ‘detox’ faster than it was able to excrete. Hal Huggins has noted a similar reaction to blue-green algae and spirulina in a few people.

There are a few other things to be avoided at this time if at all possible. The obvious ones are the ‘terrible trio’, sugar, caffeine and alcohol. Caffeine seems to be the worst offender for ‘detoxers’ by some margin, but as always, we advise moderation and common sense. We don’t want to make life intolerable, just take it easy on these substances for a while. Pork is surprisingly unhelpful in detox procedures. When blood samples were taken from people thirty minutes after eating pork, ‘ghost’ cells were evident. These are red blood cells which have lost their haemoglobin, and the result is a feeling of fatigue. The spleen works overtime to pump out more red blood cells so that the tiredness doesn’t last long, but overproduction of red blood cells may strain the system.

I am a great fan of homeopathy, but homeopathic mercury should be avoided as a remedy against mercury poisoning as it seems to trigger a secondary immune response in some people. Similarly, try and avoid fruit and fruit juices. They are a little harsh on the system at this time, particularly oranges and grapefruit.

Dietary protein provides another detoxifying agent by binding with heavy metals. Surprisingly, experience by Huggins has shown that vegetable protein is less effective in its ability to detoxify. The three dimensional forms of vegetable and animal protein molecules are slightly different, both doing similar, but not identical jobs. Huggins states that he has never been able to completely cure a vegetarian. The natural anti-oxidant vitamins, namely A, C and E, as well as the micro-nutrient selenium, all play a vital role. Selenium is a very effective detoxifier of heavy metals and adequate levels must be maintained. A word here about vitamin B12. It has been found to be a ‘methylator’, instantly converting the mercury ions into methyl mercury. Avoid vitamin B12 when detoxifying, although the other B supplements are not a problem.

Vitamin C is probably the most effective of this group. Its primary use is to activate our own detoxification chemicals. Glutamine synthetase activates two glutamine molecules to join on either side of a mercury atom, binds tightly to it and allows its excretion. Research in the 30s showed that vitamin C combines with lead for excretion in the urine and the same thing probably happens with cadmium and mercury. A good method of finding your personal needs for vitamin C is to increase your intake by one gram a day until you get diarrhoea. One or two grams below this will be your optimum dose. Another effective use of vitamin C is known as the ‘C flush’. Again, using it to create diarrhoea, the effect is to flush the intestinal tract, ridding it of heavy metals and bacteria. After cleansing of the bowel, an environment can be created which can improve digestion. Four grams of vitamin C dissolved in two ounces of fruit juices is taken every twenty minutes until diarrhoea occurs. It usually lasts about seven hours, so weekends are best. If the diarrhoea is too heavy, activated charcoal will stop it fairly quickly. Take water to avoid dehydration and when finished use a bacteria replacement supplement with each meal for two weeks. Do a ‘C flush’ once a week for three weeks, then leave for three weeks and do it one more time.

Patients coming to our practice usually have several problems, not just mercury poisoning. Increasingly, I am using a form of Applied Kinesiology to provide whole food supplements to these patients as an ongoing process during and following detoxification. I am using a technique called ‘Contact reflex analysis’, which is a simple, non-invasive, safe and natural method of analysing the body’s structural and nutritional needs. This technique was introduced to this country by Don Warren, an American dentist who is himself a disciple of Dick Versendaal. Using his techniques I am able to use nutrition as an excellent support system, not only in detoxification, but in correcting structural imbalances, particularly in the head and neck region. I also find Cranio-Sacral therapy to be very helpful in this area.