that is it exactly. people do not realize they are sick. then, even if they do, they don't know it is mercury. if they find out it could be, the doctors disagree and give them drug. sometimes they lock them up in a psyche ward. this has happened to people i have spoken to. most often, mercury poisoned people are offered anti-depressants. doctors don't even know what tests to run even if they wanted to look for mercury. they run simple blood tests and a fractionated porphyrin test is what will show the amount of mercury actually in the body. on my FAQs page i speak of all the different tests done ad their effectiveness. #62806 was also right in that most people find out about mercury fillings when they are in their mid to late 30s. most are quite ill by that time. i am speaking from experience of 5 years as a dental consultant, talking to thousands of people. and, i also agree that we are not a well society. if you took mercury fillings out of the mix, i believe you'd see a vast improvement in the nation's overall health. then, we could focus on how eating gluten and MSG is affecting health. those are the other top factors in illness besides mercury and root canals, in my opinion.