Mercury-Safe Dentistry

What is Mercury? Mercury-safe dentistry relates to the chemical element, Mercury (Hg). This is a heavy metal that naturally occurs within the Earth’s crust. It can take three forms: elemental, inorganic, and organic.1 Within the natural world, mercury is generally not found in a liquid form. Mercury in Dentistry When discussing mercury within the dental industry, it is most commonly referred to as amalgam. Dental amalgam is a liquid metal alloy mixture, the largest component of which is mercury (50% elemental mercury by weight).[2-4] Dental amalgam is also commonly referred to as a silver filling, metal filling, or mercury filling. It is often visibly detectable in the mouth based on its metallic display. However, even if the exterior of a crown or bridge presents as “white”, it is sometimes the case that mercury amalgam is encased underneath the restoration. The potential impact to human health ...