Mercury Fillings Made Me Sick
- I nearly quit dentistry due to chronic illness
- I discovered that I had mercury poisoning from removing silver fillings
- This changed my view on dentistry and what our profession was missing
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By Dr. Michelle Jorgensen
I come from a family of dentists…
That’s just what we do.
My father has been practicing for nearly 40 years, and because he loves dentistry—it has been his hobby as well as his profession! Three of my younger brothers and I watched this passion and decided to follow in his footsteps.
I was trained to perform traditional dental procedures in school and continued my education over nights and weekends after graduating. I couldn’t get enough!
I too grew to love this profession and thought I would work for forty years, just like my dad. Then my health issues started…
My Symptoms Started Small
It was nothing big at first… just some digestive issues.
I though it probably had something to do with what we were eating. As a busy mom of four young kids, I realized our entire family could benefit from some changes.
I started reading and researching, and we started slow. We started having a green smoothie for breakfast. I had to pay my kids to drink them for the first month—but the habit stuck.
I was blown away at this whole new way of eating and looking at food. It wasn’t just about calories or yumminess…
…it was about how we wanted to fuel our bodies. Again, I couldn’t get enough!
My Natural Health Journey Began
I continued to learn and implement things over time and started to see changes. All of us noticed a difference in our health.
The kids didn’t get sick anymore, my husband dropped 10 pounds, and most of my digestive issues went away. Things were looking up, but it wasn’t all better…
I continued having some nagging digestive issues, and more concerning—I was having numbness in my right arm and hand.
Many doctors and chiropractors later, no one had any answers for me…
Then my memory started to slip.
I’ve always had an excellent memory, and I felt like my brain was filled with fog. What was going on??
I Was Ready to Quit Dentistry
I needed to find the answer, so I continued to learn about nutrition, and eventually ventured into alternative health. I became a Therapeutic Nutritional Counselor to learn more.
I tried everything including…
- Muscle testing
- Energy work
- Biofeedback
- Acupuncture
- Infrared saunas
- Supplements
- Homeopathy
- Essential oils
- Massage
- Super foods…
…and on and on. No changes.
It was tough to get out of bed each morning, let alone put on a happy face for 20-30 patients each day. I was depressed, couldn’t remember things, had no energy and was ready to quit dentistry.
I Discovered I Had Mercury Poisoning
As a last effort, I decided to look into holistic dentistry.
Perhaps I could slow down and do nutritional counseling instead of dental procedures. It would be easier on my body.
I found a successful holistic dentist and shared my story with him. He sighed and said, “You sound just like me ten years ago. Have you looked into mercury poisoning?”
I didn’t know what he was talking about…
I hadn’t placed a mercury filling in over 10 years! (The dental profession calls them “amalgam” or “silver”, but any non-gold metal filling is 50% mercury).
He told me the problem isn’t when you place the filling, it’s when you remove it.
Removing Mercury Fillings Can Be Worse Than Placing Them
When a dentist removes an old mercury filling, it sends mercury vapors into the air. I had been removing multiple mercury fillings every day for the last 10 years, without any sort of protection. I had a very probably case of mercury poisoning.
After a heavy metal test, I found I did indeed have very high levels of mercury. Finally, an answer!
I started a lengthy detox program, and slowly felt my energy and my memory return. I wondered what other harmful things were going on in my dental practice every day.
I realized I had come a long way in my understanding about nutrition. Now it was time for me to transition my dental practice into a place where I could restore health, not just fix teeth.
Biological Dentistry – What the Profession Has Been Missing
True to form, I couldn’t get my hands on information quickly enough.
I bought every Holistic dental book on Amazon and tried to read them all in a week!
I studied programs and bought videos. I searched research articles and started trying things in my practice. Most of my patients liked this change in focus, and it felt good. I started to enjoy dentistry again!
Through all this study, I learned two things…
There Aren’t Enough People In the Middle
There are a lot of myths and controversial subjects in dentistry, and most people are either far on the alternative side or far on the traditional side.
I couldn’t find many that ventured toward the middle.
You might ask why I want to be in the middle. Well, what I found through years and mountains of research was that some dentists were too strident, too enraged, too frustrated to be objective…
They have a “they are out to get us” mentality that I don’t relate to, ignoring all that is good in the traditional dental model.
Others in traditional dentistry blissfully ignored strong evidence that practices we accept as “standard of care” are outdated, proven to be harmful, or even potentially toxic or dangerous.
The Information Available Needs to Be Easier to Read
The second thing I learned is that the information is too technical and way too lengthy for most people to read…
Some of the books are over an inch thick!
I didn’t even want to read them—and I’m a dentist!
I decided I wanted to provide information in an easy to read, easy to follow, honest guide to dentistry format, which is why I wrote my book “Health Mouth, Healthy You!”
These are not the results of research studies in an isolated lab…
…these are my results from day to day practice with people just like you!
Your Dental Self-Health Check Quiz
To get started, take this quiz to determine if your dentistry might be making you sick.
- Do you have any “silver” mercury fillings?
- Do you have any root canals?
- Did you have your wisdom teeth removed?
- Do you have any crowns that have metal in them (may be under the porcelain – you will see a dark line around the gum line if you do)?
- Do you have less energy than you want?
- Do you have any autoimmune diseases?
- Have you been to many doctors, trying to find answers for your health problems?
- Have you tried supplements and diets without large changes in the way you feel?
- Do you wake up with a dry mouth or sore muscles in your head, neck or face?
- Do you sleep poorly?
If you answered “yes” to more than 5 of the above questions, there is an 80% chance your dentistry is related to your health.
It’s time for you to see a biologic or holistic dentist.
If you’re like I was and searching for a way to improve your health, let me help you get some answers.
I want to help you get better too!
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Dr. Michelle Jorgensen is an author, speaker, teacher, biologic/holistic dentist, and health and wellness provider.
For the last 10 years she has been paving the way in Biologic/Holistic dentistry, learning from pioneers all over the world.
Patients from around the world seek out her care, and come to Total Care Dental to have their health restored.
