Amalgam (dentistry) shown any adverse effects for the mother or fetus. However, research is inadequate to determine the chance of harm occurring and therefore placement and removal should be avoided during pregnancy if possible. In response to The Minamata Convention on Mercury, the European Commission has confirmed its position that individual nations should work to gradually scale down the use of dental amalgam. Dental amalgam is thought to be relatively safe to be used as a restorative material as it is used in low doses. Amalgam vapour can be released through chewing but this is minimal. However, there is an increased release
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