Help me think this through (re. mercury fillings)

[mommylove]

I am a very healthy 31-year old. I am currently nursing my 15-month old DS. We both love breastfeeding & I don't see an end in sight.

In the past few months, I've become very concerned about my 7 :blush mercury fillings. I want them out of my mouth. I don't care the cost -- I want them gone. The timeframe is where I'm unsure.

Because the mercury is reabsorbed during the detox period, removal isn't recommended for nursing or pregnant women. It is further recommended to delay pregnancy for at least 6 months to allow the body to detox.

DH & I planned to be pregnant within the next few months. Since we only have 1 child, I expect this pregnant/nursing stage to continue uninterrupted for several years.

So when do I have the fillings removed? Should I begin to wean DS now & get the mercury out of my mouth asap? Now that I understand the dangers of amalgam fillings, I can't justify keeping them in until my body is done with the kids. I guess premature weaning is the lesser of all the evils? :cry My heart breaks at the thought of weaning my little boy. I love that time with him so much.

What do I do?



(BTW, if anyone has been through the removal process, I'd love to hear stories.)

[hink4687]

I really want mine out too but I think I'm going to have to wait until we are done with children or have a gap between kids and nursing. Personally, I would not wean for that reason. I really don't feel that its the "lesser" of two evils. There's so much more to nursing than just the nutritional value. And around 15-20 months were such an important age for nursing with Cooper. That's when he seemed to need it the most because so much change was happening in his life with learning to walk and run and the new world he was exploring. I would like to hear other peoples experience on removing them though since I haven't done this yet I can't tell you a whole lot about it. :hug2

[SansSouci]

Hmmm... I think tha'ts a tough call, and a very personal decision.

I recently went to the dentist, and they found 2 cavities. One was right next to a tooth with a mercury filling, so they just removed it and replaced it with the white stuff. It was just as easy as having the other cavities filled. They found that the mercury filling was actually leaking AND there was decay underneath it! ACK! So, I'm glad to have had it removed and replaced.

I still have one more tooth in there that has a mercury filling. I'm not sure that I want to go in and have it removed now (I'm not a fan of shots) or just wait a few more years. But if I had seven, then yeah I'd be much more inclined to act quicker. :think :shrug

[PurpleButterfly]

I had a very large mercury filling removed when ds was about 3 yo (and still nursing). It is EXTREMELY important to only use a dentist who is not only familiar with but follows exact IAOMT protocol for mercury removal. I had a dam placed in my mouth to prevent mercury from going down my throat (this is standard in most dentists offices, tho), wore a special nasal oxygen mask, two special portable filtration systems were placed near my head and near the dental teams heads. The dental team looked like a hazmat team in all their gear, too. There are special vitamins and homeopathic remedies to take both before and after the procedure. It is VERY expensive but obviously your health it worth every cent. :hug

My ds was given mercury fillings against our wishes (and despite our presence in the treatment room; I was too busy w/nursing baby :( ) when he was six. The dentist placed porcelain over the mercury/amalgam and you can imagine my fury and sickness when I realized there was something silvery underneath after closer inspection that night. :mad :sick I filed formal complaints against the dentist, warned everyone locally that I could, wrote online reviews about him, and reported him to our insurance company (he withdrew his charges). I also found a holistic, mercury-free family dentist through the IAOMT website while doing heavy research, and two days later, brought ds for removal of the two large mercury fillings.

The dentist was *amazing* and her methods were even more thorough than the former dentist I had visited years earlier. She had trained specifically under the dentist who founded the IAOMT and was incredibly careful about everything, also describing in detail all the things she was going to do. Dh and I had to leave the room for treatment because of the nature of mercury vapors. This dentist does not even allow carpet or cloth material furniture in her office because she knows that mercury vapors can settle and reside there! She does not use mercury, but it is present in her office due to removal of others mercury fillings. Her filtration systems were much more advanced and she has a list of things she wanted me to have ds do both before and after removal, including an infrared sauna treatment in her office immediately following removal (which we declined since it was scary to him and together we felt doing everything else combined with only 2 days of the fillings being in was a safe treatment for him). She also used a cold water removal method, where most dentists use a hot drill (which exacerbates vaporization). We drive two hours each way to see her and it is WELL worth the drive.

I had a lengthy talk with her about the rest of my mercury fillings. I have like nine of them, most of them rather large. :sick Oh how I wish I had been informed back then - these things have been in my mouth for 20 years, through pg and bf'ing. :bheart She adamently told me not to do ANYTHING until after I am finished bf'ng and never during pg or while ttc. The risk of vaporization or even a small piece of mercury being ingested during removal is much greater than the overall risk of outgassing/leaving them undisturbed until the right time. When Meadow weans one of these faraway days, assuming the Good Lord doesn't decide to make me a mama again at 50, I will finally have my mercury safely removed. Until then, I trust the dentists strong warnings and my own heavy research to know not to move any mercury in/out of my mouth, even in the most stringent conditions, until my body is done nourishing babies.

http://www.iaomt.org/

:hug :pray :heart

[Soliloquy]

I am having mine removed TOMORROW!

I am nursing Simon, 17 months. I am not pregnant, though, and can wait 6 months to TTC.

My DH had his removed a month ago. Very similar procedure outlined in PP.

I am off to call my dentist NOW to find out if I can do this while BFing a toddler.

[Soliloquy]

:phew

Just got off the phone w/ the receptionist at my dentist. Tomorrow is my CONSULTATION to go over a treatment plan for me--I will tell her I am BFing, get her opinion, do my own research, and come to a decision.

I had an appt. a few weeks ago for an exam and x-rays and I thought tomorrow was the big day but I guess it's not--a good thing, too.

I will post her advice.

Also, ITA w/ the advice to ONLY go to a dentist that is properly trained to removed mercury. Having them removed by a dentist who isn't trained will expose you to a large amount of mercury all at once.

[Soliloquy]

here is some info

http://www.kellymom.com/health/chemical/mercury.html

[mommylove]

Thank you, everyone, for your great replies.

I've scheduled a consultation with a dentist (the only one in the state trained by Dr. Huggins & also a member of IAOMT!) I'm told that she follows protocol to a T, including working with a naturopath before & after removal. :rockon She's got one in her office complex, but of course, I have one as my primary care physician, so she's happy to work with mine.

At this time, I think I'll have the consult & plan to wean DS by the time he's 2, then delay pregnancy for another 6 months (or whatever is recommended.) I reserve the right to change my mind, though. :giggle

Anyway, THANK YOU for the replies.

[Soliloquy]

I had my 2nd consultation today. My dentist was trained by Huggins, as well and won an award from the Toxicology something or other (saw the plaque on the wall, but can't remember the whole name of the organization :doh).

Anyway, she said I will NOT be exposed to mercury during the removal. There will be a rubber dam in my mouth which is primarily to catch a large particle that may fall into my mouth (that rarely happens, though she said). Mercury vapor can pass through it, though. There will be an air ionizer/filter behine my head as well as in front of me. I can also wear a mask if I wish. I will be given an oral chelator prior to the procedure. The chelator binds to mercury, prevents it from being absorbed into the bloodstream, and it will come out in my urine. After the procedure, I will rinse my mouth w/ the chelator, and then swallow another dose. She said that with all the new protocols there really is no risk of mercury exposure. She has consulted w/ other specialists about having it done while BFing and everyone has agreed it is safe.

The risks associated w/ pregnancy after the removal are affected by whether you pursue a detoxofication program or just let it happen in its own time. Your mercury levels after the procedure will not be any higher after the removal than before--in will become less over time since you'll have less exposure to mercury.

My DH is going to undergo an intense detox in a few months but I am not planning on it, so our TTC plans will not be affected, except that our out-of-pocket cost for my detal work will be $2800, so that will postpone our TTC plans. :sigh

Does all of this make sense?