Human Exposure to Mercury — Effect of Amalgam Fillings

According to a WHO task group on environmental health criteria for methylmercury the average daily intake of mercury in the general population not occupationally exposed to mercury can be described as shown in Table 1. Taking into account the low mercury concentration in air the fraction of mercury absorbed by inhalation is very small. Mercury in non-fish foodstuffs normally occurs in the form of inorganic mercury compounds. The average daily intake is estimated to be 3,6 µg per day in industrialized countries. Mercury in fish mainly consists of methylmercury (mean intake: 2,4 µg per day). Therefore, fish consumption represents the main source of exposure to methylmercury.