I think you are a little too woried about mercury. Once you get used to something, it is not so scary. I used to work with mercury while doing research in college. It is a really cool metal! A small 4 oz bottle of it weighs over 2 lbs and it is liquid metal (cool). Anyways, mercury is only harmful to those that are preganant of for children. Once you are an adult, it doesn't really matter unless you basically drink the stuff. I am in medical school so trust me on this one. Twenty years ago they used to give mercury drugs to adults for their diuretic properties. Plus, many studies have show that adults with mercury fillings have extremely low levels of mercury. I bet that if you run a mercury blood screen on yourself, you would have very low levels.
And you claim to be in medical school? That's scary. Next thing you tell us is that drinking flouridated water is healthy. As a practitioner of Western medicine, it is best if you adopt an attitude of respectful skepticism, because, as you will find out, or have already found it, there are more questions than answers regarding human physiology and health. In medical school they will teach you only two things: to give drugs, or to perform surgery (cut a part of the anatomy). That's it. After graduating and appending M.D. to your name, you will be tempted to think of yourself as a world-class expert in medicine. Don't.
Ok, I exaggerated a little about the mercury thing but I am serious that if you take a mercury screen you will have an extrmely negligable amount of mercury in your system due to the tiny amt. of mercury in the fillings (If you eat a few cans of tuna you'll also have a negligable amt. of mercury). Plus, I was serious about mercury causing the most harm to developing children and fetuses. And yes, florinated water is very healthy for your teeth and prevents tooth decay. I also learn osteopathic manipulative therapy in my medical school that can alleviate many physical problems and aid several illnesses without giving drugs or surgery so I am not a drug pusher as you call me. After I graduate I will not be an expert but definitely know more than you. No offense here, but why are you so jealous? Most people prefer to believe in scientifically proven tried and true medical science and not conspiracy theories on the internet as some do.
It's not jealousy, it's skepticism. My field is math---an exact field. If you want to pretend that medicine is also exact---be my guest. Whatever makes you happy. Western medicine really shines when it comes to dealing with emergency situations, but when it comes to maintenance of health, preventing problems---it fails miserably because it does not have a holistic view of the human body; it breaks the body into separate systems.
As for the "health" of fluoridated water, is Harvard a credible-enough source for you, or are you going to find excuses for this article as well? Google fluoridation of water. You will not like the results. Don't be a gullible fool and swallow whatever they feed you in medical school. It's always about the money, as well (Big Pharma).
http://www.ewg.org/issues/fluoride/20060405/index.phpHarvard Study: Strong Link Between Fluoridated Water and Bone Cancer in BoysDepartment Chair With Industry Ties Misrepresented Results to Federal Authorities(WASHINGTON, April 5) — Boys who drink water with levels of fluoride considered safe by federal guidelines are five times more likely to have a rare bone cancer than boys who drink unfluoridated water, according to a study by Harvard University scientists published in a peer-reviewed journal.
The study, led by Dr. Elise Bassin and published online today in Cancer Causes and Control, the official journal of the Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention, found a strong link between fluoridated drinking water and osteocarcoma, a rare and often fatal bone cancer, in boys. The study confirms studies by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the New Jersey health department that also found increased rates of bone cancer in boys who drank fluoridated tap water.
Bassin's study comes on the heels of a National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report that found the federal "safe" limit for fluoride in tap water did not protect children from dental fluorosis or increased bone fractures. The NAS recommended that the allowable limit for fluoride in tap water be lowered immediately.
"This study raises very serious concerns about fluoride's safety and its potential to cause bone cancer in teenage boys," said Richard Wiles, EWG's senior vice president. "The findings raise fundamental questions about the wisdom of adding fluoride to tap water."
The Bassin study is also at the center of a joint federal and Harvard ethics investigation into whether Dr. Chester Douglass—the chairman of Oral Health Policy and epidemiology at Harvard Dental School and Bassin's doctoral thesis advisor—lied about the results of her work when reporting the results of his federally funded research to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).
Last year, Environmental Working Group (EWG) obtained documents strongly suggesting that Douglass may have misrepresented Bassin's findings. Douglass has received large federal grants to study the relationship between fluoridated drinking water and bone cancer, and is on the payroll of Colgate, the toothpaste giant, where he has edited their dentists' newsletter for more than a decade.
When pressed recently by an investigative reporter from Fox News in Boston as to the quality of Bassin's findings, Douglass had nothing but praise for the work. "She did a good job. She had a good group of people advising her. And it's a nice—it's a nice analysis. There's nothing wrong with that analysis," he said.
"It's nice to see that Dr. Douglass has finally come clean on the quality of Dr. Bassin's work. It's just a shame that he was not so forthcoming when reporting on his work to the NIH," Wiles said.
Fox filmed Dr. Douglass waving a draft copy of Harvard's investigation of his conduct, and saying the university's report will be coming out soon. Last year, EWG asked the NIEHS, which funded Douglass' research, to investigate whether he misrepresented his findings.
EWG urges communities not to add fluoride to tap water, and advises parents to avoid fluoridated water for their children, particularly bottle fed infants. "Fluoride is fine in toothpaste, where it is directly applied to the teeth, but provides almost no dental benefit in water, while presenting serious health risks, particularly for boys," Wiles said.
Other news items that should be of interest to you:
Many infections tied to medical settingshttp://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20061014/note17ref.aspAutism Epidemic: Medical Controversy
Evidence of Harm. Mercury in Vaccines and thehttp://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/reprint/330/7500/1154.pdfPeople will refer to you when it's already too late (something has already gone wrong, when it could have been prevented) and most of them will not accept constructive, alternative, natural advice, even if you gave it to them---they will expect the quick fix, the miracle drug that a Merck rep just "happened" to inform a full auditorium in medical school. You and other medical students will frequently be sitting and listening to a sales pitch from a Merck or Eli Lily rep---that's what pays for med school's new facilities and lower tuition fees. How else do you think you will learn about new drugs? By doing research and comparison "shopping"? Who has the time for that?! You will give John Smith drug ABC, which causes in the long-term side effects XYZ, for which there is another drug that a Merck or Eli Lily rep just "happened" to inform you when he dropped by your office the other day. That's the business of medicine. Exciting things to look forward to...