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From the international Amalgam Mailing list :
This is from the ALS web site recently posted
Effects of Mercury Toxicity

Several scientific reports have suggested a possible relationship
between certain chronic or unexplained illnesses and the presence of mercury
in the body.
It appears that toxic substances, such as mercury, may accumulate in the
body and have the potential to damage the brain, heart, lungs, liver,
kidney, bloodcells, hormones and suppress the body's immune system. 
Some researchers are looking at the possibility that mercury toxicity 
may play a role in the development of multiple sclerosis, 
Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

A human autopsy study comparing the brain tissue of people with Alzheimer's
disease, with an aged matched group of brains from people without
Alzheimer's Disease, showed the Alzheimer's group to have a significant
higher concentration of mercury in all the areas of the brains involved in
memory function. Mercury poisoning in people exposed to large amounts of
industrial or environmental mercury has been studied. Its relationship to severe
symptoms and illness has been well documented. High levels of mercury have
been linked to a weakened immune system and candidiasis.

Now there is accumulative evidence that long term exposure and
absorption of smaller amounts of mercury can result in some of the same
symptoms and problems seen in individuals that have had significant 
exposure to mercury. Possible symptoms related to mercury are vast 
and include: neurologic and psychological problems, fine tremors 
(as in handwriting), depression, chronic fatigue, increased irritability, 
moodiness, nervousness,excitability, difficulties
with concentrating, loss of memory, sleep difficulties, nausea,
diarrhea, loss of appetite, birth defects in offspring, kidney 
disease, lung disease, swollen glands, tongue ulcerations, 
dark pigmentation in the gum, headaches,paralysis, numbness in arms, 
legs, hands and feet, poor resistance to infection, pain
(especially facial pain), vertigo, ringing in the ears and many other
symptoms. Improvement has occurred in some individuals after the removal of
mercury and mercury detoxification. Improvements have been reported in kidney
function, reversal of some mental and neurologic symptoms, thought and
memory disturbances, chronic fatigue and the reversal of other symptoms as
mentioned above, which have been thought to be due to chronic and
untreatable illness.

The sources of mercury contamination have been very controversial.
However, a growing number of research scientists feel that a major source is
the mercury found in dental amalgams, with lesser amounts from fish,
seafood, other foods, contaminated water and air pollutants. For more than
150 years, dentistry has used silver mercury amalgam (commonly referred to as
"silver" fillings), which contains approximately 50% mercury metal as the
preferred tooth filling material. Medical research has demonstrated that this
mercury can be released as a vapor into the mouth. It is then inhaled and
absorbed into the body tissues where it eventually becomes tightly bound to cell
protein. A review of studies on mercury toxicity and dental amalgam, by
Lorscheider, Vimy and Summers, concludes that the animal and human experiments to
date, demonstrate that the uptake, tissue distribution and excretion of
amalgam mercury is significant and that dental amalgam is the major contributing
source to the mercury body burden in humans. It has been felt that mercury
in dental amalgam is safely bound. However, growing evidence again suggests that
mercury can enter the body through the vapors. Chewing, grinding the teeth,
hot food or drink and even the corrosive action by our saliva may cause
these vapors to be released. Sheep exposed to mercury dental fillings, after
30 days of  chewing, showed significant loss of kidney function.
    

+++++++++  AMALGAM: http://www.listserv.gmd.de/archives/amalgam.html  +++++++++






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