Removing several old silver filings. Any Dentists out there?!

Removing several old silver filings. Any Dentists out there?

I have many silver fillings from when I was younger, and I would like to have them replaced with the new tooth colored "safer" fillings. However, I have heard conflicting rumors that disturbing the old silver fillings is actually more harmful than having them. Can someone (a Dentist perhaps) shed some light on this for me.

i'm a dentist. amalgam (silver) fillings are made from elemental mercury, and are clinically proven to be very safe. The marine fish you eat contains much more "organic" mercury and those are 10x more toxic! Any dentist(s) who tells you amalgams are not safe and need to be replaced by composite (tooth colored) are just lying and out to make some extra money! That being said, if "esthetics" is a concern and you want to replace your old silver fillings with composite fillings, you can certainly do that. There's nothing unsafe about it. The only concern is, composite fillings are very "technique" sensitive. They require a dry working field and fail much more frequently. They are also more fragile. Therefore, depending on your situation, if composite is contraindicated it might not be the best solution for you.