Sir, has not the time come for us dentists to be a little bit greener?
We are all well aware of COSHH regulations and the Health and Safety at Work Act. These are all set up to look at the local effects of our industry, safeguarding staff and patients alike. However, few people in our profession are aware of the impact (small though it may be) that our industry has on people in other parts of the world.
I can assure all of your readers that none of the gold miners being poisoned in Ghana have had the opportunity to read our COSHH leaflet Arsenic and you.1,2,3
Some information has been published on the global impact of dental materials, such as the greenhouse effect of nitrous oxide.4,5
Consumers can choose electrical goods, vehicles and other products based on environmental considerations. Since dentistry is an industry based on improving people's health, is it not about time we followed suit?
References
A project funded by UK-DFID was undertaken between 1992 and 1995 (DFID Project R5552) in collaboration between BGS and the Water Resources Research Institute, (WRRI), Accra, Ghana.
Health and Safety Executive. Guidance Note EH73 Arsenic and its compounds; health hazards and precautionary measures. 1997.
COSHH regulations 0.1 mg per cubic metre over 8hr TWA. Britain.
Logan M, Farmer J G . Anesthesia and the ozone layer. Br J Anesth 1989; 63: 645–647.
Sherman S J, Cullen B F . Nitrous oxide and the greenhouse effect. Anesthesiol 1988; 68: 816–817.
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Carter, W. Green up your act. Br Dent J 201, 741 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.4814357
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.4814357