More than one billion amalgam fillings are placed each year.
Dental amalgam is a mixture of mercury, and an alloy of silver, tin and copper.
Mercury makes up 45-50 percent of the compound. Combining mercury with other metals changes the chemical composition so that it becomes a fine restorative material easily worked with. Mercury in dental amalgam has not been proven poisonous. The amount released in the mouth under the pressure of chewing and grinding is extremely small and no cause for alarm. In fact, it is less than the amount patients are exposed to through food, air and water.