No more amalgam, Norway's government tells its dentists
The following edited article is from Maryanne Rygg, Norway

A long-awaited breakthrough in the war against amalgam was announced
on 31 May.

The director for the Norwegian Directorate of Health and Social
Welfare said on Norwegian radio that the health authorities now
recommend that dentists no longer use amalgam on their patients. He
said that the new guidelines are based on newer research that has
revealed how mercury leaks from amalgam in the mouth of patients.

The Norwegian Directorate of Health and Social Welfare has announced
that it will be sending its new guidelines for use of dental
materials out for hearing in a couple of weeks, and expects them to
take effect from 1 January 2003.

The announcement was called a "U-turn" by the Norwegian radio. The
current president of the Norwegian Dental Association was also
interviewed, and said that the Norwegian Dental Association was
satisfied that the guidelines stop short of a full ban on amalgam,
and that freedom of choice is still possible. He also said that there
has been controversy around the use of amalgam for 100 years, and
that the Dental Association would not defend amalgam "at any price".
The current president of the Norwegian Dental Association works in an
amalgam-free dental practice, and has not used amalgam for many years.

The ten-page document is still labeled as confidential, until it is
sent out for hearing in a couple of weeks. We have been told that it
will be published (in Norwegian) on the website of the Norwegian
Dental Materials Adverse Reaction Unit
(www.uib.no/bivirkningsgruppen/), but it has not appeared there as
yet. It is expected to be published on the website of the Norwegian
Dental Patient Association (www.tenneroghelse.no).

It appears that this document contains many statements that the anti-
amalgam movement has claimed for years. Now they have publicly
endorsed the claims, although there are still a few sentences in the
ten-page document that will continue to be disputed. Although the
document states that the overall aim is to phase out the use of
amalgam, the guidelines do stop short of a complete ban. It is
advice, rather than instruction. It will still be possible for adult
patients who insist on amalgam to receive it. However, when the
statements about amalgam which are contained in this document are
made public, it would be a strong disincentive for anyone to choose
to have amalgam installed in their mouth.


http://www.melisa.org/hottopics/newnorway.html