Dental amalgam controversy as cod liver oil may contain significant levels of mercury. There is little evidence to suggest that amalgam fillings have any negative direct effects on pregnancy outcomes or on an infant post-pregnancy. A study, consisting of 72 pregnant women, was conducted to determine the effects of dental amalgam on babies in utero. Results indicated that although the amount of amalgam the mother had was directly related to the amount of mercury in the amniotic fluid, no negative effects on the fetus were found. A larger study, consisting of 5,585 women who had recently given birth, was used to determine if
Dental amalgam controversy condoned the use of dental amalgam. In 1855, Dr. J. Foster Flagg, a professor of dental pathology in Philadelphia, experimented with new mixtures of amalgam. In 1861, he presented his findings to the Pennsylvania Association of Dental Surgeons and, in 1881, he published his book, Plastic and Plastic Fillings (Figure 4). (Amalgam fillings were often called "plastic fillings" at the time.) The inevitable result of this affair was that silver amalgam was proven to be, "an excellent filling material," and expanded dentistry's, "ability to save teeth." Around the same time, John and Charles Tomes in England conducted research on the