Interview with Holistic Dentist Rachel Hall

Hey all

This week’s interview is with Dr Rachel Hall of Evolve Dental Healing in Queensland, Australia. After finding out about the dangers of mercury fillings I blogged about it and have since had countless emails, facebook messages and tweets from others who are concerned, have questions or have been told by their dentist that they don’t need to worry!

Rachel was the saviour who removed my mercury amalgams and I think she is awesome and to prove it she agreed to be interviewed for the Energise Blog!

And here it is! The Energise Interview with Dr Rachel Hall:

Your philosophy to dentistry is more than just fixing teeth, removing teeth and filling them! Can you explain how dentistry, nutrition and body chemistry all fit together?

Mainstream dentistry focuses on alleviating pain, restoring function and to some extent preventative care. It is understood that plaque bacteria present in our mouth feed off sugar in the diet and cause decay and that gum disease is caused by poor and inadequate oral hygiene that is not enough flossing and brushing.

However, I see many patients who have impeccably clean teeth and a diet low in sugars and acid yet they still get cavities and gum problems. I wanted to know why that happens as it is frustrating to see someone who is doing everything right so to speak getting dental disease.

Natural medicine approaches illness from the angle of treating the body systems and biochemistry rather than the symptoms so it made sense to me that we could apply this to the mouth and teeth. If a person has insufficient minerals, vitamins, proteins etc or suffers from emotional stresses or chronic illness then the body is out of balance, the liver has to work very hard to clear toxins and the system becomes acidic which also lowers the immune response.

Then acid builds up in the blood, urine and saliva drawing more minerals from an already depleted body. So essentially the teeth become more prone to decay as minerals such as calcium are required to balance the acidity in the body. Also acidic saliva dissolves the enamel from the teeth instead of protecting it and aiding remineralisation after eating sugars or acid in foods. Thus balancing the acidity in the body via nutritional support helps to prevent decay. With gum disease the key factors to address are the reduction of inflammation and the boosting of the immune response and this too can be done with nutrition and supplements such as vitamin C, zinc and co-enzyme Q10.

You’d been a dentist for nearly ten years before you started to develop more of an interest in holistic health - what set you on this path? When was the a-ha moment?

When I trained as a dentist some years ago we had no training in nutrition or in the safety of materials. In fact we were told once mercury is mixed into the alloy to make amalgam it is perfectly safe.

However, not long after working in general practice (NHS dentistry in the UK) I realised that the suction unit has a filtration device that captures the chunks of amalgam drilled out of a tooth and that the dental nurses would empty this into a jar containing x-ray fixative chemicals at the end of the day so that it could not gas out mercury.

Once the jar was full it would be collected to go away as a hazardous waste material as we are legally not allowed to dispose of it down the sink or in the garbage. That material is identical to what I was drilling and placing in teeth yet once out of the mouth was a toxic waste product. How could that be?

I started asking questions but back then there was little information and working for the NHS we were not allowed to use anything other amalgam unless filling a front tooth. My hands were tied! A few years into my career the BBC Panorama program ran an expose asking how safe is amalgam? The dental board wrote to all dentists with lots of scientific information telling us how safe amalgam was. However a few moths later we were told not to drill out or place amalgam for pregnant women as there was “a theoretical risk to the foetus”. Curious when it is such a safe material.

I moved to Australia for health reasons and a lifestyle change as 8 years on the NHS had me completely worn out, however looking back I do wonder how much my own exposure to mercury day after day played a part in this as now I only handle amalgam following strict protocols I feel healthier at 40 than I did in my 20s.

By pure chance (no such thing as coincidence) I got a job in an amalgam free practice where at first I was still sceptical to the merits of what we were doing but it was a great practice so I wanted to work there. Shortly, I started noticing how patients’ health, mood and energy levels improved after only having a few amalgams replaced and the same started to happen for me as I was no longer breathing in mercury vapour all day long. That was the final piece of the puzzle that confirmed holistic dentistry is the approach I wanted to take with my work.

Why is it so important to have mercury amalgam fillings removed?

Mercury especially in vapour form is the third most toxic non-radioactive substance known to man. It is up there with lead and arsenic and causes many nasty symptoms in the body.

The World Health Org. say there is no safe exposure level for mercury. When an amalgam filling is drilled friction is created which vaporises mercury from the filling which under normal circumstances the patient and the dental team would inhale. The methyl-mercury passes from the lungs into the blood where it can enter cells disrupting their normal biochemistry thus adding to a person’s toxic load increasing the risk that the individual will go on to develop mercury toxicity and symptoms of illness and disease. By following safe removal protocol where by everyone breathes clean air from a separate air supply exposure to mercury vapour inhalation is massively reduced.

What is the process for safely removing mercury amalgams?

The teeth to be worked on are isolated by using rubber dam (see www.evolvedentalhealing.com.au/biocompatible.htm) so the amalgam debris does not splatter over the mouth tissues of the patient, the use of sterile medical air via nose pieces, special amalgam drill bits, lots of water spray and suction, air purification / filtration in the surgery and the use of supplements to support the immune system and elimination of mercury.

And what do you replace these fillings with?

Amalgam is replaced with non-metallic restorations either composite resin filling or a porcelain restoration or crown. The composite resin we use is very biocompatible and non-allergenic and consists of an ocemer resin with quartz, silica and porcelain particles so is very hard wearing.

A mutual friend first made me aware of the danger of mercury fillings and showed me this video. Why don’t more people know about this?

I guess as a profession many dentists still consider amalgam very safe. Doctors are not trained to look for mercury or many toxins just to treat symptoms so until the way healthcare looks at illness the smoking tooth video will only be known about by the minority within that field.

For anyone who still has mercury fillings what is your recommendation? How can they find a dentist like you near them and what sort of questions should they ask to make sure that the dentist will be using safe procedures?

Do lots of research but be sensible in your approach there are a lot of fanatics out there who will go to the extremes. Find a dentist who will use rubber dam and a separate air supply and understands the need to handle the amalgam safely and provide information regarding nutritional and supplements to support you through the process. The web is the best resource for finding a holistic amalgam free dentist the IAOMT site will have a list of practitioners as does ACNEM in Australia.

Having recently just had all four of my mercury fillings removed by you (thank you!) - I know that you promote proper supplementation to support the removal of any mercury that may be in our system. What are your biggest nutrition tips for anyone going through this process?

Lots of protein, water, green leafy vegetables, coriander, garlic and onions. Supplement with vitamin C and B6 and minerals such as magnesium and zinc. Good probiotics and mercury scavengers like selenium, glutathione and chlorella.

And finally, aside from toxin removal, what are your top five diet and nutrition tips?

Avoid dairy, gluten, alcohol, sugars including complex carbs, and caffeine. Eat garlic and chilli and drink plenty of water. Oh and get to bed early!

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Wowsers! What an interview! I take no credit of course - Rachel’s answers were fantastic, detailed and incredibly useful!

Thanks to Rachel and all the crew at Evolve - they’ve made me mercury free and were an absolute delight!

Note: This blog is only my opinion. It is not medical advice or diagnosis. Only opinions based upon our own personal experiences or information detailed in medical/academic journals or other publications is cited. WE DO NOT OFFER MEDICAL ADVICE or prescribe any treatments. Please consult with a medical professional before making any diet or nutrition changes. Refer to our full disclaimer for more information.