Are My Fillings Too Big For Safe Amalgam Removal

Can your mercury fillings be too big for safe amalgam removal?

I hear and get asked this a lot “my dentist told me my fillings are too big to take out because my teeth will crumble is this true”. Well, your fillings are never too big to have safe amalgam removal. In fact, the bigger your filling is the more mercury it contains and the more likely your tooth is to crack and fracture the longer the filling is left in place.

Silver amalgam fillings are 50% mercury, that mercury leaks as a vapour from the filling which accumulates in your cells and organs. Mercury is a toxic heavy metal. Plus the amalgam fillings weaken your teeth by expanding and contracting due to changes in mouth temperature and under pressure, this creates cracks and splits in the tooth.

My amalgam fillings are very large… can they still be removed?

Even if you have very large amalgams they can still be removed as with modern dentistry we can more easily rebuild your tooth than we could in the past.

Actually, if your fillings are very large they contain a bigger volume of mercury and also more likely to cause cracking and fracture of your tooth structure which may mean what is left can’t be fixed.

What issues are likely to be under the amalgam?

Often teeth with old amalgams even though things may ok from the outside and on x-ray do have decay under the filling or there can be cracks in the tooth structure.

Amalgam fillings expand and contract more than your tooth does and that movement plus the fact that the tooth had to be weakened beyond where it had decayed by extra drilling to make the amalgam stay in your tooth means that the surrounding tooth structure cracks and large portions of your tooth can fracture away. Or worse still your tooth can split which means it needs to be removed. Many non-holistic dentists don’t like amalgam because of the structural damage that they do to your teeth.

My amalgam fillings are very old… will they still have mercury in them?

No matter how old your amalgam filling is it will be leaking mercury from the day it is placed to the day it is removed. The mercury release goes on for decades and increases as the filling ages due to breakdown and corrosion and increased surface area exposure.

The only way to know for certain what can or can’t be done with your mercury amalgam filled teeth is to have a full assessment with a SMART certified holistic dentist. That way you will be fully informed and know exactly what will be involved for you and your teeth.

Call us today for your safe amalgam removal assessment 07 3720 1811