Mercury has been used in the production of seals for many years. Now that is about to change. The European Union intends to introduce a complete ban on the use of products with its admixture. Unfortunately, the act will not come into force until July 2018, which is why non-governmental organizations are appealing to dentists now to give up using such fillings as soon as possible. Why?
The EU has already officially recognized mercury as a substance that is highly harmful to human health (it can damage the kidneys, for example) and the environment, and wants to limit its use in the Member States.
At the end of April, the EU Council adopted regulations that tighten the existing regulations and introduce even greater restrictions on the import of this substance. The EU also intends to introduce restrictions on the method of storing mercury, waste containing this element, and a complete ban on the use of this substance, including in artisanal production and in the mining of silver or gold.
In light of the new regulations, dentistry, where mercury is still used for the production of fillings, is also to withdraw from the use of mercury. From the entry into force of the new regulations, it will not be possible to use mercury in fillings for children under 15 years of age, in pregnant women and nursing mothers, and by 2030 it is to disappear from dental offices for good.
– This shows that EU lawmakers have realized how dangerous mercury is, also in dentistry. It is good news that it is also being abandoned in this area, believes Elena Lymberidi-Settimo from the European Environment Bureau (EBB).
The problem is that the new regulations will officially enter into force on July 1, 2018. That is why EU NGOs have already urged dentists in EU countries to stop using mercury-containing products at least to treat children and pregnant women.
– These rules should also alert European parents. From now on, every parent of a child under the age of 15 should ask the dentist for mercury-free treatment. The same applies to pregnant women and women who breastfeed their babies, adds Philippe Vandendaele from Health Care Without Harm Europe.
– Member states should instruct dentists not to wait until July next year, but to immediately stop using amalgam with mercury. Dentistry is one of the main sources when it comes to mercury pollution, says Genon K. Jensen of HEAL.
The new regulations adopted by the EU will close the existing legal gap between EU legislation and the provisions of the UN mercury convention of 2013, the so-called The Minamata Convention. The Convention aims to protect human health and the environment from the harmful effects of mercury. Its provisions regulate, inter alia, issues related to the extraction of mercury, trade in products containing it, emission of mercury to the atmosphere, its use in production processes or issues of mercury-containing waste management.