US House Committee Holds Hearing on Dental Mercury

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US House Committee Holds Hearing on Dental Mercury

Testimony covers both health and environmental issue

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 -/E-Wire/-- The US House Government Reform Committee held a November 14, hearing on "Mercury in Dental Amalgams: An Examination of the Science," which covered both health and environmental concerns of dental mercury. It also discussed H.R.4163, the "Mercury in Dental Filling Disclosure and Prohibition Act," cosponsored by Committee Chair Dan Burton (R-Ind.) and Congresswomen Diane Watson (D-CA).

"I applaud the cosponsors of H.R. 4163 for their interest in hearing about the health and environmental concerns related to use and release of dental mercury," said Michael Bender, Director of the Mercury Policy Project, who testified before the Committee. "US dentists are among the top mercury usersâon average consuming over 30 tons of toxic mercury each yearâand are the largest polluter of mercury to the Nation's wastewater."

Mercury is a persistent, bioaccumulative neurotoxin that can affect the brain, spinal cord, kidneys and liver. Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control indicate that one in 8 women of reproductive age in the US have blood mercury levels that pose a risk to the developing fetus. The Food and Drug Administration issued new advisories in 2001 warning pregnant women and children not to eat certain seafood due to high mercury.

"The American Dental Association should stop deceiving the public and instead let them know that amalgams are 50% mercury, one of the most toxic elements on earth," said Charles Brown, Esq., of Consumers for Dental Choice. "We strongly support H.R.4163 and efforts to ban placement of this deadly toxinâespecially in the mouths of pregnant women and children."

The Mercury Policy Project recently co-released a report highlighting the pathways by which dental mercury is released. Amalgam materials are dumped down the drain or disposed in waste landfills or incinerators. The Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies determined dental uses as "by far" the greatest contributors to waste water treatment plants, accounting, on average, for 40% of the mercury load.

Yet the report also presents examples where dental mercury pollution has been significantly reduced. Mercury pollution has been reduced in Toronto by 50% to 60% over the past year due solely to installation of amalgam separators and employment of best management practices. A 2001 study conducted cooperatively between the Minnesota Dental Association and Metropolitan Council Environmental Services found significant reductions of between 29 and 44 percent in mercury loadings from dental clinics at the two municipal wastewater treatment plants after separators were installed. In addition, the ADA recently tested 12 amalgam separators in the US, and found that all exceeded standards and that a majority exhibited removal efficiencies in excess of 99%.

"Based on conservative estimates, the costs for dental clinics in the US to operate amalgam separators would average approximately $600 dollars per year," said Bender. "This is a cost effective solution and I applaud the proactive approach taken by the American Dental Association in evaluating amalgam separators for their members." ###

On the web: Michael Bender's November 14, 2002 testimony to the Government Reform Committee: http://www.mercurypolicy.org/new/documents/MPPtestimony111402.pdf.

Consumers for Dental Choice: http://www.toxicteeth.net

Bender, M., "Dentist the Menace? The Uncontrolled Release of Dental Mercury," June 2002: http://www.mercurypolicy.org/new/documents/DentistTheMenace.pdf.

Fan,P.L., Batchu,H.,Chou,H-N., Gasparac,W., Sandrik,J. Meyer,D.M., "Laboratory Evalution of Amalgam Separators," The Journal of the American Dental Association, May, 2002. http://www.ada.org/prof/pubs/daily/0205/0508jada.html.

Mercury Policy Project

Michael Bender, [REDACTED-PHONE],

Mercury Policy Project,

Montpelier, VT 05602,

Charles Brown, Esq.,

Consumers for Dental Choice,

http://www.mercurypolicy.org

http://http://www.ada.org/prof/pubs/daily/0205/0508jada.html

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