by Bob Hoffmann - September 1996
During the month of August, I was approached by several professionals that had been cured of seemingly "incurable" diseases through the removal of their amalgam fillings, and resulting detoxification of mercury from their systems. They have since become advocates for this treatment and have established a network with others that have been cured or are in the process of recovery. I was impressed with the list of names and types of diseases that have seemed to be helped with this procedure. I am convinced that it is a solution for some showing symptoms of neurological based disorders that should be considered within the medical community.
I was contacted because of my posting on various Alzheimer's bulletin boards and commentary written on my family home page. After an exchange of messages, it seemed that Shirley fit the profile for someone that could benefit from the treatment. She was diagnosed with a thyroid condition called Hashimoto's disease at the first meeting with her doctor to investigate the headaches, depression, and memory loss that she was experiencing. She has had poor teeth all her life, so has had many fillings (amalgam) over that period, as well as crowns and other dental work. She has chewed gum frequently over the recent years, and during the early stages of her dementia, almost continually until we discontinued it to prevent her from choking. She has had headaches most of the years that I have known her, increasing in intensity later in life which could have been an early symptom. These conditions according to the research made Shirley vulnerable to leakage of Mercury vapor into her body and brain. What we do not know, is what her susceptibility to such conditions might be which may be related to genetics. In any case, all this information left me in a bit of quandary, trying to decide what action if any I should take.
I should mention that the professionals that contacted me were evangelistic about this subject based on their own experiences and those of others that they have known and helped. I received a large package of information from one in New York that included several books and papers on the subject of thyroid function as related to mercury poisoning, and the causation of symptoms found in many neurological disorders. One book, "Beating Alzheimer's" by Tom Warren, describes his symptoms and diagnosis of Alzheimer's and then "cure" through the removal of his amalgam fillings and detoxification. He had before and after MRIs showing atrophy at the time of diagnosis, and normal after the "cure". This book is widely disputed by many medical professionals, but largely on the basis of lack of "scientific" evidence linking Mercury poisoning to Alzheimer's and a question as to the accuracy of the original diagnosis. Kip Sullivan's memo attempts to provide the scientific underpinnings, and is currently being presented to AD Research professionals in Minneapolis.
Kip contacted me, as we live in the same vicinity, and described his recovery from an "incurable" condition through the removal of his amalgams, and the skepticism that it was met with from his attending physician. He also shared with me the names of others that he knows (and discusses in his memo) that have been "cured" from Alzheimer's symptoms as a result of the procedure. He also sent me a copy of his memo documenting the scientific basis for the theory. All this evidence and the lengthy chain of references (others having or being cured) weighed heavily on me, as I had finally accepted that there was nothing that could be done for Shirley.
I posted the question on the Alzheimer's List (forum) and received a universal negative response from the "regulars". Many were familiar with the issue and had discounted it as akin to quackery. After some probing though, I could find little basis for that dismissal. I did get a fairly objective response from a Medical Professional on the West Coast that did explain the concern, largely being the scant availability of any scientific evidence leading to the conclusion being drawn. Also, he mentioned two people that had been brought into the emergency room to be treated for Mercury poisoning caused by the improper removal of their amalgam fillings. A dentist that is experienced with the procedure and takes all of the necessary precautionary measures must be used or it can be a disaster. The testimonials of people being "cured" of various symptoms of neurological disorders with this treatment are many, but we are lacking the list of people that tried it and found it unsuccessful for their particular problem, and may have even been made worse as a result of the procedure. In any case, I believe it something worth investigation, in particular since the majority of the disease (symptoms) that it can help are those of diseases that have no cure, and in the case of most dementia, cannot even be diagnosed with certainty until autopsy. Until the medical profession can offer us better information on prevention or cure, it is reasonable in my mind to look at all other alternatives.
For Shirley, I have made the decision to not proceed further with this. Her rate of decline has been rapid, and she could no longer participate freely in the procedure, but would need to be sedated for the sessions to replace the fillings. Also, in discussing this with the specialist that sees Shirley, we reviewed previous tests that had included a 24 hour urine collection looking for metals that showed nothing abnormal for Mercury. I know based on a line of thinking that this test does not preclude Mercury being stored in the brain. Given some level of success and her current state, the degree of recovery is questionable. We have recently been testing the thyroid theory through the application of high levels of steroids (Prednisone) and after a month have not seen any improvement and are currently phasing it out. Shirley is currently in a very happy state, and I am reluctant to risk her current quality of life with additional experiments. Having said all this, I would have to say that given what I have learned, if I had known about this one or two years ago, it is something that I would have strongly considered. In presenting his research memo, Kip has found Medical professionals that have already taken this step (replaced their fillings) in recent years. This should tell us something.
Along with the decision goes a certain amount of guilt that is always there when dealing with a disease that cannot be precisely diagnosed and for which there is no known prevention or cure. For which there is little known about cause except the genetic relationships within certain groups. I read somewhere that Alzheimer's (and other dementia) may be better classified as a syndrome rather than a disease, as there may be many causes (triggers) that eventually lead to the pathological outcome that has been identified.
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