Current and future directions for amalgam management

Dental amalgam offers low cost, ease of use, and durability, which accounts for its popularity as a restorative material for more than 165 years. Its use is dropping based on its mercury content, which contributes to environmental pollution when the waste amalgam is discharged into wastewater. The elemental mercury can be transformed by bacteria into methyl mercury, which can be deposited in the flesh of fish, eventually being consumed by and causing toxic effects in humans. In 2013 the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) facilitated the passage of the Minamata treaty, which initiated a globally binding agreement to phase down (but not phase out) the use of dental amalgam.
Source: Dental Abstracts - Category: Dentistry Tags: The Big Picture Source Type: research