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THE MISERY OF MERCURY POISONING
In an essay on “A hundred and fifty years of misuse of mercury and dental amalgam—still a lesson to learn,” Mats
Hanson discusses the case of Alfred Stock (1876-1946), a well-known German professor of inorganic chemistry who
conducted experiments with mercury and other substances.
12
After becoming seriously mercury-poisoned, Stock wrote roughly fifty papers about mercury and tried to warn
scientists and dentists about mercury’s risks. Stock described his experience with mercury poisoning as utterly miser-
able—physically, intellectually and emotionally:

Intellectual exhaustion and depression, lack of energy and ability for work, especially intellectual work, increased
need for sleep. . . most severe for a person with intellectual work was the loss of memory. . . . Especially the abil-
ity to calculate, to do mathematical thinking, also to play chess, was severely affected. The depressed ability to
remember and the difficulties in calculating seem to be a special sign of insidious mercury vapor poisoning. The
intellectual capacity was also in other ways depressed although not as severely as memory.

In addition there was psychic depression, a painful inner unrest, with time also causing disturbed sleep. By nature
fond of company and full of enjoyment of life, I withdrew in misery into myself, avoided public relations, people
and social contacts, lost the love for art and nature. Humor rusted in. Difficulties which I earlier had managed
with ease (and today again can manage with ease) appeared insurmountable.

The scientific work required considerable efforts. I forced myself into my laboratory but could not produce anything
of value despite all efforts. My thoughts were heavy and pedantic. I had to give up participating in matters which
were not of immediate importance. The lectures, previously something I liked, became tormenting. The preparation
of a lecture, the writing of a paper, even a simple letter, required immense efforts in handling the contents and
language. Not seldom it happened that I wrote words wrongly or forgot letters. To be aware of these shortcomings,
not to know their cause, to know no way of getting rid of them, to expect further deterioration—that was not nice!

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