We have phased out the use of mercury in thermometers, thermostats, paint and mercurochrome, to name a few. Gov. Gregroire has signed ESSB 5305 into law, placing restrictions on the mercury in vaccines for expectant mothers and children under 3, and most recently appointed a mercury-free dentist to the Washington Dental Board.
We are concerned as a nation about the amount of mercury in the environment and in the fish. It only makes sense not to place a toxic substance like silver dental amalgam, which is 50 percent mercury, into the human body.
A study led by Diana Echeveria at Battelle Centers for Public Health Research in Seattle on the neurobehavioral effects from exposure to dental amalgam is posted in the FASEB Journal on the Internet for all to see.
You can also order a 600-page book from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the Toxicological Profile for Mercury.
Staffers at the insurance commissioners office stated in person that they will continue to use the most cost effective substance that is considered legal to use, that being mercury. As this continues to be the case, we are left with educating the public about safer alternatives.
Doreen Randal
Mercury Awareness Alliance
Everett
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