ingested mercury during pregnancy

[madness]

from a filling, baby doomed???

i asked if i would be ok to have mercury fillings knowing that we are preparing tc and if it would be ok and he said even if it leaked baby if there was one would be ok. How do you know that it has been ingested ? or are you worrying about a filling you have that is leaking?

\link{http://www.badscience.net/?p=237\This on mercury fillings.}
But not related to ingestion during pg.

Isn't the mercury in fillings inert? Not sure it can be digested, if you've swallowed it - can't think stomach acids would have much effect. Would guess it will just come out the other end. The mercury would have to get into your bloodstream to be any problem - and I can't see how that would happen.

But I'm not a dentist, or biochemist, so may be talking rubbish!

As a possibly comforting comparison, one of my friends was exposed to depleted uranium during very early pregancy (working for Red Cross in Kosovo) which is known to be potentially very nasty. She's fine and her little girl is fine too.

From babycentre.co.uk:

Although there is no evidence of health risks associated with mercury amalgam fillings, they are not recommended during pregnancy. Your dentist can suggest alternatives.

THanks, a bit less panicky now. It happened last week and didn't think much of it although I knew the dentist would only put a tempor. filling in for now.Last night I suddenly thought it would be somewhere in my system getting slowly absorbed in the bloodstream...
I was eating something and thought something got stuck between my teeth afterwards I realised there was a big gap in my tooth and had lost the filling.

The only time when there is loos mercury is when the filling is first put in. Once it is set the mercury is tightly bound into the structure and doesn't leak out. Some mercury vapour can be released when drilling out an old filling but with suction and adequate water to cool the drill bit none of this should be ingested. A lump of filling swallowed will not release any mercury and will pass straight through. Anyone who is concerned can take charcoal tablets before having treatment (avaliable from health food shops) as these absorb any mercury ingested and carry it harmlessly out the digestive system. HTH