4. Are Other Materials Safe? The Patient Asks "Are these other materials safe?" The ADA Answers "The ADA has approved a number of them as 'safe and effective,' and I have confidence in that seal of approval. The profession has been using amalgam for more than 150 years, and some of these newer materials have been around for only a decade or less, so we don't have the long-standing history of safety with them that we have with amalgam." IAOMT Response The ADA answer is misleading. There is no ADA certification for the mixed amalgam as, "safe and effective." The ADA has maintained that mixed dental amalgam is a reaction product manufactured by the individual dentist and therefore cannot be certified and it is the responsibility of the individual dentist to determine the efficacy of the materials and their appropriateness for each patient. 38 One reading this paragraph is given the distinct impression that dental amalgam has the ADA seal of approval as, "safe and effective" and has been certified. What has been certified is the purity of the mercury and the composition of the silver alloy.