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Are
Amalgam Fillings Safe for Lead-poisoned People?
By Elizabeth O’Brien, Project Coordinator,
NSW Community Lead Advisory Service (CLAS).
Alarming information about the synergistic effects of lead and mercury,
recently brought to the attention of CLAS by ASOMAT members, will be the basis of an
enquiry by CLAS to the NSW and Federal Health Ministers. ASOMAT is the Australasian
Society of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (ph 02 9867 1111), a non-profit organisation
founded by concerned doctors and dentists. Amalgam fillings contain 50% mercury.
The original evidence cited for the synergistic effects of lead and
mercury (and cadmium) comes from a 1978 paper by Schubert et al published in
Michigan:
"...the administration of an
essentially no-response level (LD1) of a mercury salt together with 1/20 of the LD1 of a
lead salt killed all of the animals [rats]."
Dr Michael Godfrey and dentist Noel Campbell write:
"...a lethal dose (LD1 [enough to kill 1% of the rats]) was
combined with a 1/20th LD1 of lead, resulting in a LD 100 [100% death rate] in the test
animals.
"We have recently found that considerable amounts of lead may be excreted with the
mercury following DMPS provocation. Our preliminary investigations appear to indicate that
a synergistic effect could be identified by multiplying the lead and mercury
concentrations together, after adjusting to IG of urine creatinine. We have termed this
the Campbell-Godfrey factor (C-G factor). Chronic-ally affected patients may have high
levels of either metal or a high total C-G factor. Those with the highest C-G factor
appear to be the worst affected, thus indicating that the synergism in animals is
replicated in man."
The questions raised are: is it safe for lead poisoned people to have
mercury fillings? Should CLAS advise parents of lead-poisoned kids never to allow these
fillings in their kid’s mouths? Should CLAS advise lead-poisoned people who are
planning to conceive for instance, to have their amalgam fillings replaced, along with
DMSA chelation therapy and nutrient replenishment therapy, well in advance of trying to
conceive? Is it acceptable for anyone to be exposed to lead and mercury (and cadmium) as
they are in mining and smelting communities? Why aren’t the DMPS provocation test,
DMSA chelation therapy or amalgam removal procedures claimable under Medicare? When will
Australia phase out amalgams?
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