Ridding your body of mercury

The obvious way to reduce the mercury in your body is to avoid amalgam fillings, or remove the fillings already in your mouth. Specialist dentists who offer this service can be found through the British Society for Mercury-Free Dentistry, 69 Coningham Road, London SW12 8BS (tel: 020 8746 1177).

However, filling removal may not be necessary for everyone as mercury detox varies from person to person. A urine excretion assay called the Kelmer test can tell you what mercury ‘load’ you’re carrying (£40 at Biolab Medical Unit, London; tel: 020 7636 5959).

If your mercury levels are too high, Dr Rajendra Sharma at The Diagnostic Clinic in London (tel: 020 7009 4650) prescribes a cocktail of nutritional supplements, including garlic, NAC (N-acetylcysteine), amino acids such as methionine, antioxidants such as vitamin C and selenium, and a homoeopathic combination remedy called Amalex.

A more powerful method is oral chelation therapy, using DMSA (dimercaptosuccinic acid) to chemically bind lead and mercury to remove them from the body.