Beverly Hills cosmetic dental patients are a smart bunch. They know that dental amalgam is a type of filling material that has been used for over 150 years and like lots of things invented long ago there are problems. A key ingredient in dental amalgam is mercury. Mercury is a neurotoxin and can leach into the environment where it finally ends up in our food supply. Rising mercury levels in tuna and other fish is a good example of what can happen.
The European Union (EU) is thinking about phasing out the use of mercury dental amalgam over a five year period because of these environmental risks. It is estimated that about 45 tons of mercury from EU dental offices end up in chairside drains every year. Only a small portion of this is captured and treated as hazardous waste. The rest ends up in the environment.
There are plenty of alternative restoration materials available for dentists to use. Sweden has already banned mercury filling material and Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and Italy have reduced its use. Other countries have placed strict rules in place if dentists continue using this material. In our office we consider all of our patients fillings to be cosmetic restorations – after all who wants to look at any ugly black filling? Tooth colored, lifelike filling materials that reflect the light allow your smile to remain beautiful and natural looking.
Why do some dentists continue to use mercury based fillings? Most of the time it is because dental amalgam is cheap and easy to use that is why it is common in dental chain clinics – restoring a tooth using modern composite materials requires a higher level of skill and takes a little more time. Avoiding exposure to mercury for our Beverly Hills patients, staff and the environment is worth a little extra effort!
