Can You Recover Gold Teeth After Cremation?

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Cremation is becoming increasingly popular because of the lower costs associated with it compared to burial.

Cremation is more environmentally friendly too.

Another advantage to cremation that many have not heard of is recycling non-biological materials that may be in your body such as pacemakers.

With a little over half of the population choosing cremation for their funeral choice, more people are familiar with it. However, there are always a few questions that are often before they make a decision.

How Does Cremation Work?

Cremation is a process in which the body is disintegrated at the time of death. A furnace with extremely high temperatures is used to essentially evaporate the body. Thereafter, the ashes and any requested items are returned to the family of the deceased. Usually, the family chooses to have a funeral service before the cremating, but services can also be held afterward depending on the wishes of the family.

What About Implants?

During the cremating process, the body is dissolved, leaving behind any implants or other metal objects in the body at the time of death. After the process is completed, a magnet is used to collect implants such as knee implants, hip replacements, and even dental implants.

These implants used to be discarded at landfills, but today most are recycled in some fashion.

Any implants or items that are left behind can be recycled, and many can be sterilized and refurbished.

There are many businesses that recycle these items and donate the proceedings to charities and other donate clothes calgary organizations.

Gold Teeth and Cremation

Another popular question is regarding gold teeth and cremation. Many people wonder if it’s possible to collect a gold tooth after cremation.

While it’s possible to retrieve gold teeth after cremation, it’s extremely difficult due to its small size. Unlike larger implants, like knee or hip replacements, dental implants are very small and can sink into smaller holes in the processor. This leads to difficulty in identifying and collecting the gold tooth that belonged to the deceased, and can ultimately lead to legal problems as it may not be possible to know if that particular piece of gold or metal actually belonged to the deceased.

If a family wishes to retrieve a gold tooth, they must contact a dentist to remove it before the cremation process begins.

Otherwise, the gold will be collected after cremation and sold to a scrap metal company for recycling.

Published on June 25, 2018

About The Author

Francis Burns

Francis Burns is an avid writer from Louisiana. With a Bachelor's in English and a background in journalism, Francis has been writing for a variety of media outlets for the last five years. He specializes in stories about the local culture and loves to fill his work with inspiring words. When not writing, Francis enjoys exploring the outdoors of Louisiana and photographing nature.

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