Is Mercury Toxicity an Autoimmune Disorder?
Is Mercury Toxicity an Autoimmune Disorder?
by Keith W. Sehnert, M.D., Gary Jacobson, D.D.S., Kip Sullivan, J.D.
Autoimmune Disorders
The diagnostic arena now occupied by autoimmune disorders provides us with terms
that could be best described as "alphabet soup." Such problems include
RA (rheumatoid arthritis), HT (Hashimoto's thyroiditis), HAD (human adjuvant
disease), MS (multiple sclerosis), ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or, more
commonly, Lou Gehrig's disease) and MCTD (mixed connective tissue disease).
Should we now add MT (mercury toxicity)?
These conditions plus others, such as Crohn's disease, Raynaud's disease,
systemic candidiasis, diabetes, and even Alzheimer's disease are now believed by
many to be autoimmune disorders.
When patients are afflicted with such disorders, they come into their
physician's office with all, or some, of these symptoms:
· generalized morning stiffness,
· skin rashes,
· dry eyes and mouth,
· joint pain,
· immune dysfunction,
· axillary lymph node swelling,
· subcutaneous nodules
(skin bumps),
· neurological symptoms
(ringing in ears, burning and numbness sensations),
· chronic fatigue,
· depression and/or environmental sensitivities.
The clinical assessment usually shows a connective tissue disorder, the result
of the immune system attacking the tissues of the body. The immune elements of
T-lymphocytes, B-cells and "PAC-man" cells, instead of attacking
bacterial, viral and yeast fungal invaders, attack the cells of the thyroid
(HT), joint surfaces (RA), peripheral vascular bed (Raynaud's) or the skin cells
with patches across the nose and cheeks (lupus erythematosus).
There are no simple answers for this perplexing group of problems, yet insights
are beginning to arrive on the clinical horizon that may indicate why T-cell
mediated lesions are developed and a screening questionnaire has been developed
to help assess this problem (see Mercury/Toxic Metal Sensitivity Questionnaire).
Patients who score more than five "yeses" should be referred to a
dentist familiar with "silver" amalgam removal.
Any filling in the mouth that looked silver when it was new and is gray or black
now is probably 50% mercury, the rest being copper, silver, tin, and zinc. There
are numerous amalgam mixes on the market. They have names like Dispersalloy®,
Spheraloy®, Sybralloy®, and Tytin®. The mercury content ranges from 43 to
54%.1 Although these fillings are commonly called silver fillings because they
look silver for the first few days of the eight to twelve years they survive in
the average human head, mercury fillings would be a more accurate label. (And
speaking of accurate labels, the origins of the word mercury are both
interesting and provocative. Mercury was the God of Commerce in the Roman Empire
and meant fabrication, trickery, thieving and slight of-hand.) In this article
the more formal term "amalgam" is used. The name "amalgam"
reflects the ability of mercury to bind or amalgamate powdered silver and other
metals into a hard filling.
Evidence that these fillings give systemic pathology as well as periodontal
disease exists. In one study it was observed that when 50 subjects without
amalgams were compared to 51 subjects with amalgams, there was a greater
incidence of problems in the latter group. They experienced greater incidence of
chest pains, tachycardia, anemia, fatigue and tendency to tire easily. They also
had significantly higher blood pressure, lower heart rate and lower hemoglobin.2
A study in Canada has shown that pregnant sheep with new silver amalgams have
elevated levels of mercury in their fetuses within two weeks of placement of the
fillings. Further studies on monkeys showed the same findings. These studies
were done by Vimy, Takahasi and Lorscheider at the University of Calgary,
Faculty of Medicine.3
In addition to the reports from the United States, Canada and Japan, European
researchers have observed many adverse reports concerning amalgams. On February
18, 1994, mercury fillings were banned in Sweden for children and youth 19 years
of age because evidence showed them to be a trigger of autoimmune disorder.
Although mercury fillings have been widely used in the decades since, research
demonstrating that such fillings are safe has yet to be done. Research that has
been done and reported in scientific literature demonstrates that:
1. Mercury escapes from fillings in the form of vapor created by chewing. It
then enters the bloodstream and is delivered to all parts of the body, including
the brain. (A recent autopsy of an 82-year old woman from St. Paul with
confirmed Alzheimer's disease had studies done by the Mayo Heavy Metals Lab.
Brain tissue examination showed 5.3 UGIG mercury (53 times normal levels). The
pathologist reported "neurofibrillary tangle" in the brain sections
that are common in such patients. She had multiple amalgams.)
2. People with mercury fillings have higher levels of mercury in their urine,
blood and brain than people without fillings.
Another significant European development about mercury amalgams was reported
when Degussa AG, the largest producer of dental amalgams in Germany announced it
would no longer provide such amalgams because of pending and future lawsuits.
This was based on a Federal Court ruling that dentists who use such amalgams
face legal liability.4
Next came a series of studies by Dr. Catherine Kousmine of France, who reported
that illnesses like MS and chronic polyarthritis, both autoimmune diseases, are
triggered by silver amalgams. This is outlined in her book, La Sclerosa and
Plaques Est Guerissable (Multiple Sclerosis is Curable).
One more European study on MS comes from Great Britain. It reports that the
highest incidence of MS is found in Northern Ireland and the Scottish Island of
Orkeny and Shetland. They also have the highest incidence of dental cavities and
dental fillings. This provides more suspicion that mercury is a possible link to
autoimmune dysfunction.
History of the debate about mercury
French dentists were the first to mix mercury with various other metals and plug
the mixture into cavities in teeth. The first mixtures, developed in the early
1800s, had relatively little mercury in them and had to be heated to get the
metals to bind. In 1819, a man named Bell in England developed an amalgam mix
with much more mercury in it that bound the metals at room temperature. Taveau
in France developed a similar mixture in 1826.5
When amalgams were introduced to the US in 1833 by two French entrepreneurs, the
Crawcour brothers, amalgam use was denounced by a substantial number of American
dentists. So strong was the opposition to amalgams that the American Society of
Dental Surgeons, formed in 1840, required its members to sign pledges promising
not to use them.6 It is an intriguing historical note that the common term for
mercury in Germany in those years was "quick silver." The German
pronunciation for "quick" is "quack." Thus, those dentists
who used mercury were called "quacks." This term has now come to mean
anyone who is an "ignorant pretender to medical skill" (The Random
House Dictionary of The English Language). In 1848, the Society found 11 of its
New York members guilty of "malpractice for using amalgam" and
suspended them. Internal debate over this issue led to the demise of the Society
in 1856. Its successor organization, the American Dental Association, sought to
unite dentists and, in its early days, did not take a stand on the issue of
amalgam safety. The Encyclopedia Britannica reports that "amalgams were not
altogether in good repute until after 1895," which suggests that the ADA
was supporting the use of amalgams by then. Despite the efforts of a few
researchers in this country and Europe to call attention to the dangers of
mercury fillings, most notably a German chemist named Dr. Alfred Stock who
published numerous articles prior to World War II,7 and Hal Huggins, a Colorado
dentist who has spoken out against amalgams for the last 20 years,8 debate about
the safety of mercury fillings remained muffled until recently.
The amalgam safety debate was revived in this country first by a 1989
Environmental Protection Agency declaration that amalgams are a hazardous
substance under the Superfund law,9 and then a December 1990 broadcast of a
program by "60 Minutes" that presented a devastating critique of
amalgams. The program created a stir throughout the country. "Switchboards
lit up at the state dental societies, dental schools, and the American Dental
Association," said Consumer Reports.10 The American Dental Association got
calls from two dozen reporters. The publicity was the apparent cause of the
following activity in 1991: an FDA hearing; a conference sponsored by the
National Institute of Dental Research; and a call for a review of the research
by the US Public Health Service.
The dental establishment was furious with CBS. The ADA attacked CBS in the
January 7, 1991 edition of its newspaper for "the irresponsible ways in
which viewers were led to the conclusion that amalgam fillings are unsafe."
To the contrary, said the ADA, "scientific evidencesuggests mercury amalgam
is safe to use." The ADA newspaper published statements by Dr. Harold Loe,
director of National Institute of Dental Research, criticizing CBS for having
"an obvious bias" against amalgams. Dentists all over the country
received information packets from the ADA, including copies of the ADA newspaper
and a 1986 article from Consumer Reports. The ADA also promoted its message in a
two-minutes video news release sent to 700 TV stations on December 17, 1990, on
its weekly radio show on December 18, 1990, and in its journal, the Journal of
the American Dental Association.
The 1986 article by Consumer Reports pooh-poohed those who criticize the use of
mercury in fillings. The article concluded: "Dentists who purport to treat
health problems by ripping out fillings are putting their own economic welfare
ahead of their patients' welfare. Except for a few people with a genuine allergy
to mercury we know of no one who's been harmed by them.''11 Consumer Reports
published a similar article in May of 1991 which the ADA and the MN Dental
Association have also distributed widely. This article criticized research
showing that silver-mercury fillings are unsafe and concluded that "amalgam
fillings are still your best bet.''12
"60 Minutes" and the anti-amalgam movement have other critics besides
the ADA and Consumer Reports p; they include the Arthritis Foundation, the
Multiple Sclerosis Society, and the ultra-right Accuracy in Media13 p; but no
one has more credibility on this issue than the ADA and Consumer Reports. For
that reason, it is important for anyone trying to understand this issue to
understand the arguments of these two organizations and why their arguments
fail. The positions of the ADA and Consumer Reports are strikingly similar. They
cite the same sources to reach the same conclusion p; that critics have not
shown conclusively that mercury amalgams are unsafe.
Some Other Facts About Mercury
1. Mercury is the most toxic non-radioactive element on earth.
2. A silver colored mercury amalgam filling normally contains 52% mercury.
3. On average, amalgam filling weighs 1 gram and contains 1/2 gram of mercury.
4. The typical adult carries ten amalgam fillings containing about 5 grams of
mercury.
5. 1/2 gram of mercury in a ten acre lake would warrant issuance of a fish
advisory for the lake.
6. Running shoes with mercury lights in their heels were banned by the Minnesota
Legislature in 1994 because they contained a 1/2 gram of mercury in them and
this was considered dangerous to public health.
7. The use of mercury amalgams has been banned and are on a scheduled phaseout
in Germany, Austria, Denmark and Sweden.
8. A proposition passed in California in 1994 requires a warning in dental
offices using mercury amalgam stating that "the people of the state of
California have determined that the use of mercury in dental amalgam causes
birth defects and other health problems." The proposition also requires
that permission must be obtained from a patient before placing hazardous
material in the mouth. (The new law is being contested by the ADA and California
Dental Association, and is tied up in Federal Court).
9. Legislation is now being proposed in Minnesota for a similar "Informed
Consent" legislation for all dental patients.
Conclusion
It is our conclusion that mercury toxicity is an autoimmune
disorder. This was summarized recently in an article in Advance magazine.l4 Its
wide range of symptoms can only be accounted for by multiple adverse effects on
the immune system, nerve tissue and connective tissue in general. The
Mercury/Toxic Metal Sensitivity Questionnaire has now been tested on over 200
patients and will serve as a warning/alert to clinicians when patients have
scores of "yes" in five or more of the questions. Such patients should
then be referred to dentists with special knowledge of mercury amalgam removal
and replacement with nontoxic composites and dental materials.
Correspondence:
Keith W. Sehnert, M.D.
6200 Excelsior Blvd., Suite 101
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55416 USA
References
1. Public Health Service, US Department of Health and Human Services, Dental
Amalgams: A Scientific Review and Recommended Public Health Service Strategy for
Research, Education and Regulation, January 1993, Washington, DC, p. 1.
2. Ziff, M. F. "Documented clinical side effect to dental amalgams."
Adv. Dent. Res. 1992;1(6):131-134.
3. Vimy, J.D. Takahasi, Y., Lorscheider, F. L. "Maternal-fetal distribution
of mercury released from dental amalgam fillings." Am. J. Physiol.
1990;258:939-945.
4. Brake, M. "Sweden bans amalgams." The international DAMS
newsletter; Spring 1994: 1.
5. Mackert, Jr., J. Rodway, "Dental Amalgam and Mercury," Journal of
the American Dental Association 122: 54-61 (1991) p. 54.
6. "Dentistry," Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica,
Inc., Chicago, 1960, Vol. 7, p. 225. The US Public Health Service states:
"Questions regarding its [i.e., amalgam's] safety has been raised virtually
from the time of its first use."
7. Hanson, M. and Pelva, J., "The Dental Amalgam Issue: A Review,"
Experientia 47: 9-22 (1991).
8. Huggins, Hal H., It's All in Your Head: Diseases Caused by Silver-Mercury
Fillings, 4th Ed., Life Sciences Press, 1990.
9. "Amalgam declared hazardous," Dentistry Today, February 1989, p. 1.
10. "Mercury in your mouth," Consumer Reports, May 1991, p. 316.
11. "The mercury scare" Consumer Reports, March 1986, 150-152, p. 152.
12. "The mercury in your mouth," Consumer Reports, May 1991, 316-319,
p. 319.
13. "MS, arthritis groups get amalgam calls," ADA News, January 7,
1991; "CBS spurs false hopes, false fears," Accuracy in Media press
release, January-B, 1991.
14. Sehnert, K. W. "Autoimmune Disorders, "Advance, January 1995, p.
47-48.
If you missed it, you can go to either a SHORT explanation of the whole story, or a detailed explanation on ONE PAGE.
On this page you are getting more detail on one part of the story, but on either of those pages you can get the broad picture.
Don't miss reading one of them.
You can actually spend many hours on this web site, depending on the depth of research and reading you want to do.
There are an amazing 4,000 pages here -- more information on these general subjects than almost all other web sites combined! At some point along the way you will probably say, "Karl's crazy," and leave never to return to this site, or you will say "I want to try some of that oral chelation formula he writes about!"
SUBSCRIBE:
The Wednesday Letter is a free electronic monthly newsletter written and published by Karl Loren.
You can view more than 50 back issues of this publication by clicking here.
The Wednesday Letter subscription list is maintained on a secure server, no name is ever given or sold to anyone, and it is never used except for this Newsletter.
It is automatically published on the Tuesday night just before the first Wednesday of every month.
You can subscribe to this free monthly electronic letter by entering your eMail address and name below.
You will then automatically receive a request for confirmation, sent to whatever address you have entered.
If you do NOT receive this confirmation request, then you will not be subscribed.
There may have been an error with your address and you should resubmit.
The letter is never sent twice to the same address -- so you do not have to worry about a duplicate subscription.
When you receive this confirmation request you must reply to it, or your subscription will not become active.
No one can subscribe your name, and address, without you being notified, and if you get an unwanted notice of subscription you only need to DO NOTHING and the subscription will NOT be active.
REMOVAL:
You can remove yourself from the subscription list in several different ways.
Click here to read about this entire newsletter system.
Every edition of The Wednesday Letter is delivered to your address with YOUR name and address in view on the letter, with a link that allows you to remove THAT name from the subscription list.
If you try to send this removal message from an address different from the one you used to send in your original confirmation, then you will get a warning notice first, sent to the subscription address, asking you to confirm that you want to be removed from the list -- by replying to THAT request for confirmation, you will then be automatically removed.
Thus, no one else can unsubscribe you, from some other computer, without your knowledge.
But, if you send in the unsubscribe notice from the same machine used to receive the Letter, then the removal from the subscription list is automatic.
Personal Message:
When you send a personal message to Karl Loren, you will receive a personal reply as per his instructions.
Karl pledges that every personal message will get a personal answer. When you provide your mail address, we will send you free information including our free catalog and a cassette tape lecture by Karl Loren about heart disease, no charge, by mail, even if outside the US.
You can select particular information you would like to receive, along with the free cassette tape and catalog.
You can reach Vibrant Life in many ways, including by mail to
Vibrant Life, 2808 N. Naomi St., Burbank, CA 91504.
Within the US and Canada, use
the toll free number: (800) 523-4521,
the local number: (818) 558-1799,
the FAX: (818) 558-7299,
eMail to kimberly@oralchelation.com
or any one of the hundreds of message forms throughout the 50 web sites.
Vibrant Life normally ships the same day we get an order.
There are message forms on each of the 100,000+ pages on this and other sites where you can communicate with Vibrant Life.
Check out our companion site, at: http://www.oralchelation.net
where Karl's 2000 page book is published. Karl Loren is the author and
webmaster for this BOOK, as well as
for another web site about ORAL CHELATION.
His personal philosophical articles are at PHILOSOPHY.
Copyright © May 20, 2008 6:25 AM by Karl Loren on behalf of Vibrant Life, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Permission is granted for non-commercial downloading, copying, distribution or redistribution on two conditions:
One, that some form of copyright notice is included in every copy distributed or copied,
showing the copyright belonging to Vibrant Life, Burbank, CA, at
www.oralchelation.com .
The second condition is that the material is not to be used for any purpose contrary to
the purposes and objectives of this site.
This permission does not extend to materials on this site which are copyrighted by others.
