Denture Cream: Too Much of a Bad Thing

Philadelphia, PADenture adhesive zinc poisoning is usually associated with senior citizens, but in reality, anyone who wears dentures at any age can suffer from complications linked to overuse of Fixodent and other denture adhesives.

On 3/10/10 the Philadelphia Daily News shared the story of Lee Russo, who was 39 when she first noticed an on-and-off tingling and numbness in her feet. She ignored it until she started falling down—eventually she required leg braces.

Another woman, Diann Jones, now 44, has used denture cream for eight years. She lost her teeth due to pregnancy complications. Five years ago, her health declined. Jones now uses a walker and is confined to her house.

Russo and Jones believe their problem was caused by denture cream poisoning. They and many others have filed lawsuits against the makers of two denture creams, GlaxoSmithKline and Procter & Gamble, alleging that the pharmaceutical giants knew their products were potentially dangerous but did not adequately warn consumers about the risks.

Those risks include an increased risk of zinc poisoning, which causes copper deficiency, anemia and nerve damage, resulting in paralysis.

Both GlaxoSmithKline and Procter & Gamble say their products are safe when used as directed. Plaintiffs, however, say directions were unclear as to how much denture cream was safe to use. Some say they went through a tube or more in a week in order to hold loose-fitting dentures in place.

One tube of denture cream is meant to last up to two months.

Warnings have been included with some denture creams in the past year regarding safe amounts for use. Some patients report a lessening of their symptoms of zinc poisoning when they stop using the zinc adhesive and take a copper supplement. Others, however, say the warnings came too late for them.

Russo says although her blood is back to normal, she still has mobility problems.

In February 2010 GlaxoSmithKline said it would stop using zinc in denture-adhesive products. So far, Procter & Gamble has not followed suit.