Nineteen members of the US Congress signed a bipartisan letter authored by Congresswoman Diane Watson (D-Calif) and Congressman Dan Burton (R-Ind.), urging FDA to require clear warnings about mercury toxicity to every dental patient and establish specific protections for children and young women.br /br /a href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_CpmH6pmUk9A/SiGfN6rs50I/AAAAAAAAADg/2l6t1fiiPV8/s1600-h/mercuryfilling.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 143px; height: 117px;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_CpmH6pmUk9A/SiGfN6rs50I/AAAAAAAAADg/2l6t1fiiPV8/s400/mercuryfilling.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341725694477788994″ //aThe letter asks the FDA Acting Commissioner to insist that FDA br /(1) “require the industry to correctly label ‘silver’ fillings to reflect their predominate component, mercury”, br /(2) “require all parents of children under the age of 18 years old to sign a written consent form indicating that they are fully aware of the potential negative effects of mercury”, and br /(3) “require a verbal warning given by dentists to patients over 18 years noting the high toxicity of mercury and the potential of neurological problems.”br /br /The Watson-Burton letter follows on the heels of a similar letter by the State and Local Public Officials Mercury-Free Caucus, who advised the Senate and FDA that “the time is past for the use of mercury-based dental fillings … a pre-Civil War era device.” br /br /strongDr. Grout’s Comment:/strongbr /br /For years, the FDA has marched arm in arm with the American Dental Association and unflinchingly maintained the joint position that mercury fillings are perfectly safe, despite increasing evidence to the contrary. But last June, the FDA broke ranks and posted a website warning that mercury-based amalgam fillings “may” pose a safety risk for pregnant women and young children. The change came as a result of the settlement of a lawsuit brought by consumer groups including the Mercury Policy Project, Mom’s Against Mercury, and Consumers for Dental Choice.br /br /That lawsuit also requires that the FDA make a ruling by July 28, 2009. The FDA could simply reclassify amalgam as a Class 2 material, adding special controls to its use, such as a mandatory brochure or even limited warnings. Or the FDA could classify amalgam as a Class 3 material, which could result in a ban.br /br /Mercury is one of the most toxic metals known. There is strong evidence that mercury lowers T-cell (white blood cells) counts. A number of studies have shown removing amalgam fillings can cause T-cell counts to rise anywhere from 50 to 300 percent. This, alone, implicates amalgam fillings in cancer, a href=”http://www.arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/autoimmune_diseases.html”autoimmune diseases/a, a href=”http://www.arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/allergies.html”allergies/a, Candida overgrowth, and multiple sclerosis (mercury levels in MS patients are, on average, 7.5 times higher than normal). There have been several studies showing that white blood cell abnormalities, such as found in leukemia patients, tend to normalize when amalgam fillings are removed.br /br /It has also been shown that mercury interferes with the ability of the blood to carry oxygen — actually cutting its oxygen-carrying capabilities by half. This would account for many instances of chronic fatigue syndrome. Mercury also has an affinity for our brains and, as already mentioned, is implicated in brain tumors and dementia. The famous “mad hatters” of England were hat makers who worked with mercury and eventually went insane. Mercury has an affinity for fetal tissue — reaching higher levels in the fetus than in the mother herself — which accounts for mercury’s implication in birth defects. And of course, mercury from a href=”http://www.arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/vaccinations.html”vaccines/a has been implicated in a href=”http://www.arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/autism.html”autism/a.br /br /The letters from Congress are pressuring the FDA to at least issue warning about the hazards of mercury, and that would be a good thing. There are other, safer options available.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/4769404502414351890-7148606099057469501?l=arizonaadvancedmedicine.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

April 10, 2009br /br /Although compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) are heralded as “green” because they use less energy, they are also a new source of mercury in the environment. The New York Times reports a Seattle company plans to introduce a fully dimmable, mercury-free, instant-on bulb for recessed ceiling fixtures by the end of this year. The company says it last about 6,000 hours – or six times the lifespan of an incandescent – and have a price tag similar to high-end C.F.L. reflector bulbs: about $18 to $22.br /br /a href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_CpmH6pmUk9A/SeiWD65l-rI/AAAAAAAAAC4/nwvK_W2BrGE/s1600-h/lightbulb.gif”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 162px;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_CpmH6pmUk9A/SeiWD65l-rI/AAAAAAAAAC4/nwvK_W2BrGE/s200/lightbulb.gif” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325671553460206258″ //aThe company, Vu1, describes its technology as “electron stimulated luminescence” (ESL) and it shares some of the same basic science on which cathode ray tubes in older televisions are based. Electrons are sprayed uniformly over a broad area inside the bulb, which is coated with a phosphor mixture. This causes the entire surface of the bulb to glow and create light. No filament, plasma, coils or mercury vapor.br /br /The company says it plans to have a demo that will operate in household sockets ready by June, and to begin high-volume mass production by the end of the year.br /br /”I’m very excited to see a technology that has all the promise of CFLs without the mercury,” said Sean Gray, a senior analyst with the Environmental Working Group, which has been critical of mercury standards for Energy Star CFLs. “It’s an incredible chance to move forward.”br /br /strongDr. Grout’s Comment:/strongbr /br /Good news and a timely reminder that the ingenuity of the private sector can create a cleaner, less toxic environment when the public creates the demand.br /br /Environmental Working Group (EWG) has been trying to get the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency to address the risks of mercury in CFL bulbs. EWG recommends lowering the maximum mercury content in each CFL bulb to 3 miligrams (mg). This measure would save 225 pounds of mercury for every 100 million bulbs. Energy Star labels can be found on the most efficient bulbs available, as well as on some of the worst, misleading the consumer and giving manufacturers zero incentive to make a greener bulb.br /br /If we can reduce the amount of mercury in a href=”http://www.arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/vaccinations.html”vaccines/a, it makes little sense to add to the mercury in our environment with light bulbs.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/4769404502414351890-3944629482300485100?l=arizonaadvancedmedicine.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div