Think of Mercury as the human thermometer: complaints change or aggravate with the slightest change of weather. People needing Merc. show their low resistance to temperature change by their difficulty adjusting to variations in temperature and their low resistance to colds and flus. They lack normal defense mechanism and lose energy suddenly when suffering from colds.

The controversy about mercury in dental fillings has been around for some time, with several European countries forbidding mercury dental fillings. In the U.S. no such stand has been taken, but many people concerned with their poor health or compromised immune system have undergone the painful and expensive process of having their mercury fillings removed. Fortunately, from homeopathy we know that some people will benefit from this while others will not: and we know the symptoms of mercury toxicity (which are the same as the symptoms experienced in a proving of homeopathic Mercurius). Thus it is possible to predict in an individual case whether removing mercury fillings will improve overall health. These symptoms include:

• Increased salivation with intense thirst, especially at night; one would find saliva on the pillow in the morning. This symptom is so specific for Merc. that we can almost prescribe on this symptom alone.
• A tendency to heavy sweating especially at night; the increased perspiration does not relieve the complaints or make the person feel better. It can be looked at as a source of energy loss.
• Foul-smelling breath, bleeding gums, a metallic taste in the mouth, a mapped toungue (with patches of different colors), the imprint of the teeth along the side of the tongue, trembling tongue when the tongue is protruded.
• A tendency to abcessed teeth and sore throats with enlarging lymph nodes, and pus on the tonsils (the typical strep throat).
• Canker sores and herpes sores in the mouth.

As one can see, many Merc. symptoms are located in the mouth, making it the worst place in our bodies to introduce mercury in the form of dental fillings.

There are many uses for Mercurius. The most common include sore throats (whole throat) with swollen glands and constant inclination to swallow; mumps (although Jaborandi is the #1 remedy); and ear infections with green-yellowish thick discharge.