Denture Cream Zinc Poisoning: It's Only Human Nature

Miami, FLWhen Fixodent denture adhesive and similar denture creams containing zinc were approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about 15 years ago, all seemed to be well. When used as directed the products were deemed safe without concern for denture cream zinc poisoning .

However, when concern emerged recently about the issue of too much zinc in the system (which depletes copper) and Fixodent zinc poisoning (as well as other brands), questions began to fly. Did the manufacturers know that overuse of denture creams could foster zinc poisoning? And was there any allowance made for human nature?

Ron Beaver is a classic example of this. As profiled in the September 22nd edition of the Lewiston Morning Tribune, the 61-year-old denture wearer found himself in need of treatment for a serious blood disorder triggered by a lack of copper in his body. Maintaining an optimum level of copper and zinc for good health is a delicate balance; an overabundance of one is just as bad as the lack of the other.

In this case Beaver required supplements to restore the level of copper in his system, the loss of which had Beaver and his doctor trying to figure out what might have caused the levels of copper in his system to drop and if zinc was the culprit.

Beaver finally traced the problem to his denture cream and his chronically loose-fitting dentures.

Denture Adhesive Zinc Poisoning Furthest from Anyone's Mind

Manufacturers maintain that the amount of zinc found in the recommended application of denture cream is akin to that found in a 6 oz. hamburger. However, recommended applications involve small dabs of cream, allowing a single tube of cream to last several weeks. Beaver—and others like him—were going through several tubes a week to compensate for poor-fitting dentures.

For many, lathering up with denture cream was cheaper than getting new dentures. Those without dental insurance could ill afford a properly fitting set.

They were not aware of any danger. And Beaver, who has not fully recovered, is suing the manufacturer of his denture cream. There are many like him. The Tribune reports that at least 25 lawsuits from 11 states naming Proctor & Gamble Co. and GlaxoSmithKline (makers of Fixodent and Poligrip respectively) as defendants have been consolidated for pretrial hearings before a judge in Miami.

In 2008 a study appearing in the medical journal Neurology first suggested a possible link between zinc found in denture cream and nerve damage.

The FDA has never issued a warning.