Toxin Exposure from Dentistry

This article does not comprehensively review potential toxins exposure in dental offices. The goal simply is to expose dental professionals to the potential for toxin exposure, which may contribute to complex symptoms you are currently facing.

A toxin to be aware of in the office is glutaraldehyde.

Glutaraldehyde has been used widely as a cold sterilant to disinfect various heat-sensitive instruments.

A documented adverse health effect of dental office staff exposed to glutaraldehyde vapor is occupational asthma, a chronic condition characterized by bronchial hyperresponsiveness.

Another danger is bacterial growth among common tools such as bib holders, compressed air receivers and filters.

Moreover, even dentures can be infected with MRSA (methicillin-resistent staphylococcus aureus).

Studies show that clinics using mercury have elevated levels of mercury vapor in the dental office.

Dental practitioners are routinely exposed to and carry a higher burden of mercury than the general population.

Liquid elemental mercury, also called metallic mercury, is used in dental amalgams. Elemental mercury toxicity is usually a result of exposure to vaporized mercury that enters the body through inhalation. Brief exposures at concentrated levels can result in toxicity to the lungs, resulting in chest pain, bronchitis, and pneumonitis.

Three signs of exposure to high concentrations are excitability (erethism), tremors, and gingivitis. Poisoning from inhaled mercury can also result from chronic exposure at lower air concentrations.

The nervous system is very sensitive to mercury, and permanent damage can occur from chronic exposure to inhaled metallic mercury, which is transported in the blood and crosses into the brain, where it can cause permanent damage.

Health effects may include personality changes, tremors, vision changes, muscle incoordination, loss of sensation, difficulty with memory, and deafness.

To determine if you have toxins at levels that are dangerous to your health, it’s vital you work with a physician trained in functional medicine.

Functional medicine seeks to examine underlying mechanisms causing the symptoms you are experiencing today.

Traditional medicine’s focus on coding symptoms into a condition and treating them often with prescription drugs may not address your symptoms with the success you are looking for.

Tiger Medical physicians are naturopathic physicians who are trained and board-certified in functional medicine or are integrative, meaning they are MDs or DOs classically trained but also have board certification in functional medicine.

If you work with Tiger Medical staff, you will establish an extensive medical data baseline to establish the truth about your health. Testing will show the level of toxins in your body when you begin working with the clinical team at Tiger.

From this mosaic of health data, Tiger clinicians connect the dots from all testing and imaging to create a personalized medical treatment plan for you to reduce your toxin load and oxidative stress.

Tiger clinicians understand the identification and treatment of toxin load and have successfully helped individuals reduce toxin load and improve a myriad of biomarkers as a result.

If, based on the information you have reviewed here on our website, you feel Tiger is a good fit, then the next best step is to book a call with a Tiger Professional.

In this first call, the meeting is about learning your history, struggles, and goals. We want to ensure that you are a good fit for our program and that our Tiger team can help you resolve your challenges.

Another good step is to consider Tiger’s Health Assessment for $497. This is a way to learn where you are today to fully inform your decision to work with Tiger or not.

Do something today to begin your journey to optimal health!