Dr. Hal Huggins claims that a vegetarian/vegan diet is counterproductive to recovering from mercury toxicity as a result of poisoning from dental amalgams. Specifically, he says:

"For those who are strict vegetarians, I must let you know that your progress may be extremely slow, if you progress at all. I strongly reccommend that you discontinue vegetarianism during your treatment period in order to allow the protein fractions in the blood serum to reach a good level. This can be done with eggs and turkey if you prefer to avoid red meats. In nineteen years of treating mercury-toxic patients, I have never been able to help anyone on a vegetarian diet. When people are in good health, they can maintain it on this diet, but for some reason unknown to me they cannot heal from mercury toxicity." (p.140, "It's All in Your Head").

I have two questions:

1. Does anyone know of any scientific studies to verify that Huggins' claim is true.
2. Has anyone personally either failed or succeeded in recovering from mercury toxicity on a veg*n diet?

Thanks very much for any input.

Hello, im very interested in what you have been saying in the last month. You have had some really difficult times. Not to be rude or to intrude your privacy, but how many fillings and crowns do you have? I am thinking about getting some of mine removed, and i was wondering the amount of money you have spent, and how much i would have to spend for about 4 or 5. Thankyou and I'm very sorry if this is a too personal question...thankyou <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I have/had a total of 12 silver fillings and a gold crown with a silver filling under it. I've had the gold crown, the filling under it, and the big filling next to it removed, which was about $1500 (this was the major trouble spot - gold next to amalgam=bad). The total is going to run me around $5000. I highly suggest you check around, as I have had drastically different estimates from different dentists. My dentist is a mercury-free dentist and has removed amalgams from hundreds of patients, although he does not follow the Huggins protocol (this will cost you big bucks, from my estimates). I'm not suggesting one method or the other - do your own digging - but I simply couldn't afford it and I had my doubts about some of the Huggins protocol elements.

The price will depend on the size of the filling, whether or not you need overlays or crowns, and the dentist you go to. I highly suggest at least finding a dentist who practices mercury-free and who will take the proper precautions when removing your fillings. Shop around. Good luck. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Thanks so much...the cost I was told was around $1,500 and defiantely didn't seem reasonable. I checked out some other dentists and one in my area turned out to be a mercury free dentist. I asked him about how long it would take and if it was necessary being as I hadn't had them a long time. He insisted that I had them removed. I was wondering if you went through any pain regarding your removal of the crown and fillings. I'm sort of scared because the dentist for me is a center of novicane and pain.
I thank you for the help and also wanted to know if although expenisve, if you would rather get the amalgam out or live with the mercury poison. I'll keep you updated and I think I will stick with this dentist...seems like a nice/fair guy. Catch you later!

I would think they could knock out 4 fillings in one visit. I had 5 removed today in one sitting - not bad at all.

In regards to pain, the whole procedure is quite painless (in my case anyway). These days, they even numb the area with a topical numbing agent before giving you the novocaine shot, which makes the injection barely noticeable. Honestly, the procedure was mildly uncomfortable, but certainly not painful.

Oh hell no, there's no way I'd live with the mercury poisoning. This is serious business; I take my health very seriously and am very careful about how I treat my body (If only the ADA were even a fraction as concerned). On the one hand, I'm mighty pi#$ed about what has been done to me; on the other, I'm relieved to finally have discovered the source of my problems.

Are experiencing symptoms, or is this just a precautionary measure? Good luck to you.

My dentist in the UK also told me that vegetarians have a hard time recovering from mercury poisoning and that a good balanced diet should include meat - something to do with the quality of protein. fortunately I am not a vegetarian.

I had my amalgams removed six months ago and am still struggling with chelation. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Congratulations on having them removed.

Being six-months post-removal, you've barely started. Don't be discouraged that you're "still" struggling with chelation. Your fillings have likely been in for decades, to get all the mercury out in less than a few years would be impossible and dangerous.

I'm four years post removal (July, 2000) and still see improvement month to month. Was just talking about this with my business partner this morning.

Protein also serves so many other functions that indirectly counter the effects of mercury that I believe it's a real good idea to supplement. I have a protein/green drink every morning. I can feel the difference within minutes.

Hope this helps.


About Protein...

Proteins contain a sulphur-bearing amino acid called cystine that helps detox.

Cystine


Mercury detox is a game of endurance, not speed.

I believe I started eating a high protein diet (say about 4-5 years ago) to actually help against mercury... Without meat every day I get pretty sick... just now I realize why...

Probably Atkins himself was mercury poisoned and felt all the benefits of high protein diet.

I discovered about 2 months ago the source of my 10 years of uncomfortable life (I'm 22). Really terrible to know it was avoidable...

On top of havin' many of the mercury tox symptoms (anxiety, poor attention, tachycardia, weakness, nausea, bowel problems...), what really convinced me to getting them removed is the "toothbrush test", i.e. you start brushing your amalgams and swallow your saliva... after about 30 seconds I get nausea (I could not continue even if I wanted), then after a few minutes anxiety and unwell-being... It's really crazy... now I understand also why I hated to brush my teeth... The same happens when I chew gum (of course I do it only as a test), and unfortunately every time I eat crunchy food...

Now I removed two amalgams without side effects, I'm going to remove 4 10 days after.

I'm actually lucky I'm in Italy, and I found a GREAT dentist that follows almost the huggins protocol, (except the vitamin C IV) and also takes care to touch the amalgam very little, while working on the edge, more on the tooth side, in order to avoid pulverizing the amalgam. He does l almost exclusively amalgam remova from 5 years, so he has a deal of experience. Teeth are then filled of "diamond" resin, one of the world's best, and it just costs you 130? (=150$) one, no matter how big... I'm lucky :-)

Argh... you mean I'll have to chelate for 4 years after removal? Terrible... but it's cool to know I'l be getting better for 4 years :-)

Good to hear of your progress. Please keep us posted and consider writing your entire story for others to see. I want to build a collection of testimonials at Mercury Talk .

Fortunately, I didn't do DMPS except for 3 times within the first 3 weeks after removal. If you consider drinking protein drinks "chelation" (which technically it is?in this context), then technically?"Yes"?I have been chelating for 4 years, but fortunately, it's not bad at all. As an "O" blood type, protein is particularly good for me anyway.

There has been some new concern about soy-based products in general. I have a link somewhere and I'll post it here if I can find it.

Best of luck and keep us posted.

Removed 4 today! Only one left!

Wow! I didn't think the effects could be so immediate! This really is a big difference!

Bah, it's so strange... I have some doubts something might be from suggestion (the placebo effect), but if I think how desperate I was one month ago this really is a big difference! I remember I even started having panic attacks where I thought I would die... Now I'm quite relaxed... :-)

Now maybe I should settle down a bit, and wait a week before saying too much, but still I'm pretty happy.

What I noticed from the start is the difference in energy! I am usually very sluggish, totally unreactive, despite having some good muscular tone... but after 4 hours from removal muscles started twitching, I was walking much faster than usual... quite "nervous", but in the good sense!

I'll wait a few weeks to get my final impression then I'll post my story...

Good to hear you're doing ok with a "soft" chelation, I don't want to spend my next years on drugs...

Cheers!

Matteo

Very glad to hear your results are promising.

My business partner and I both had the same experience; That is?we had a feeling of euphoria for a few days after the removal. After that, we entered what I call the rollar coaster zone. This is where there are "ups" and "downs" from day-to-day or week-to-week.

Many people get discouraged during this time (the rollar coaster zone) but there is no reason to. It's just part of the process. True detox takes years but is life changing and well worth it (for me and Laura?my business partner).

If you haven't already, you can read more about our experiences with mercury and detox here:

My Mercury Story

Best of luck and keep us posted.

Endurance; Not Speed

Took off the last one... ooh... the dentist said that they were all very deep and got down to the gum... so I must have had about 5 g of mercury...

By the way I'm ok with roller costers, since recently I was just getting down that would be a good improvement ;-)

Ok so following your suggestions I won't bee too optimistic: by the way I think the roller coster effect is due to the fact that after a while you get accustomed to staying better, so you still want to stay "better and better", and you are surprised if you're not. But if I think how desperate I was before ("on the edge"), I think there is a stable improvement. For the first time in years I woke up feeling happy inside... mornings before were terrible: you could not do anything to counteract, you would just have mercury entering our body for 8 hours... I'll tell you more in the long run...

Although I have no experience with the issues of amalgam fillings and mercury toxicity in general, I feel it reasonable to point out with regard to the issue of protein and vegetarianism/veganism, that animal products don't have a monopoly on protein. Your body breaks proteins down into amino acids, regardless of the source. The sulphurous side chains are also not exclusive to animal products. A combination of legumes and whole grains provides all the necessary amino acids. As far as any particular practitioner's anecdotal experience with the recovery of vegetarians and vegans, I cannot comment, but I would be interested in the sample size of vegetarians and/or vegans in that practitioner's experience, and a larger picture of the patents' health before treatment.

That was a good post and nicely sums it all up - except for the fact that protein might not be the issue. It might be a vitamin or EF acid that is lacking in a vegan's diet - or at least the vegetarians or vegans who that particular dentist saw. It is not good enough to say that a veg/vegan has no chance of recovery. The specific problem has to be pinned down through proper scientific study of the matter. Finding a rough correlation is not good enough in science; you have to prove cause and effect, which the practitioners - is it Huggins or Joyal - did not.

I don't think he was making a claim, he was just pointing out his own anecdotal experiences in treating vegetarians for mercury poisoning (that being: he wasn't ever able to). I think there's a trend amongst some of the posters in this forum whom have qualms with Huggin's observations to think he's some anti-vegetarian trying to persuade people out of their beliefs. He's not doing anything of the sort. He's simply pointing out the fact that none of his vegetarian patients were able to fully recover. He's not making a scientific claim, nor even proposing a theory. He's just saying "Look, here's something which seems to be the case. Do what you want with that information."

I too felt immediately better after removals but after a few days starting experiencing the "ups" and "downs".

Well, this vegetarian will be staying a vegetarian. Mercury has taken so much from me since I was 10 years old that it will not take this from me too.

I am eating eggs at the moment and the occasional dairy, but I draw the line at eating animal flesh.

I can hope for improvement, and that's all anyone can do. Not getting mercury every day from the fillings has got help in some way.

Excellent points.

The AOR Company makes a supplement called Vegetarian Booster. www.aor.ca