This article is for everyone interested in better circulation, better health for your heart and blood vessels and even better overall general hearth. Using chelation (pronounced key-lay-shun) therapy patients are experiencing all of the above benefits on a regular basis. The process of chelation therapy is very safe when given by a competent experienced Physician and consistently results in improving your circulation and having you feel better. Make sure you receive chelation from a physician who is a member and Diplomate or Diplomate Candidate of the American College for the Advancement of Medicina (ACAM). I am a Diplomate Candidate of ACAM and have been since 1993.

Here you will find answers to the most common questions concerning EDTA chelation such as: What is chelation therapy? How does chelation therapy work? How are EDTA treatments given? How is the proper dosage determined? What are the main risks of EDTA treatments? How many treatments do I need and how often will I get them? What is ACAM?

What is chelation therapy?

Chelation therapy is an intravenous administration of a very safe and non-toxic chemical called EDTA (ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid). EDTA is in the category of amino acids, which is one reason why it is so safe. EDTA is an FDA-approved medical compound and is commonly found in packaged foods as a preservative agent. EDTA is regularly used by the traditional medical establishment for cases of acute heavy metal poisoning. In this fashion, it is given to patients who present to the hospital after acute poisoning from a heavy metal, most commonly lead. EDTA is used safely and effectively to remove the toxic heavy metal from the poisoned patient. It is also used in children who accumulate lead over a prolonged period of time by eating paint chips containing lead. Once again, EDTA is used safely and effectively to remove the lead.

How does chelation therapy help circulation, blood vessels, heart and overall general health?

Chelation therapy benefits circulation, heart, blood vessels and overall general health through several mechanisms. First of all, just as in acute heavy metal poisoning described above, EDTA removes toxic heavy metals from the body. This mechanism is easily demonstrated by analyzing a patient’s urine after an EDTA treatment. This analysis will show which toxic heavy metal, and how much of each, is being removed. EDTA has the ability to remove lead, cadmium, arsenic, tin and nickel. Removing toxic heavy metals is a tremendous relief for the body and results in a significant health benefit.

Toxic heavy metals are destructive to the body in many ways. One basic destructive mechanism if that toxic heavy metals promote free radical oxidative damage. By promoting free radical oxidative damage, toxic heavy metals actually play a role in damaging blood vessels and contribute to the process of atherosclerosis. By removing toxic heavy metals, EDTA therapy serves a powerful anti-oxidant therapy and actually protects blood vessels from oxidative damage, therefore slowing and even reversing the destructive process of atherosclerosis. In addition, toxic heavy metals are particularly damaging to the immune system, including the bone marrow, as well as the nervous system. EDTA, by removing toxic heavy metals, is directly protective to the immune system, as well as the nervous system. By protecting the immune system, ESTA enhances overall healing capacity. By protecting the nervous system, EDTA preserves the ability of the nervous system, which includes the brain, spinal cord and nerves, to generate and deliver the messages which orchestrate virtually all activities of the body.

In addition to removing toxic heavy metals and its anti-oxidant affect, EDTA, when used as sodium EDTA, has the ability to help dissolve and remove the plaque which causes atherosclerosis and clogs up blood vessels. Sodium EDTA does this by having a greater affinity for calcium. That is, when sodium EDTA is given, it losses its sodium and instead, grabs hold of calcium. This is one reason why one can only receive the proper amount of EDTA, and it must be given over an adequate amount of time. When EDTA grabs hold of calcium, it actually lowers the level of calcium in the blood, but only temporarily, and causes the calcium plaque inside the blood vessels to dissolve. This results in a significant improvement in blood flow and circulation throughout the entire body, including vital organs such as the brain and heart, as well as extremities. This process of clearing plaque by removing calcium, occurs throughout the entire body, it is not specific to a particular site, and is one reason why chelation using EDTA is a slow, gradual process.

EDTA chelation has the ability to slow the development of plaque formation in the blood vessels, as well as remove existing plaque. The net result is a significant improvement in blood flow. While improvement in blood flow and overall well-being is consistently noticed by people who receive EDTA treatments, the improvement is not easily demonstrated by medical testing. The most accurate way to test blood flow to the coronary arteries, for example, is by an arteriogram, whereby dye is injected into the arteries and observed flowing through the arteries. There is a 10% margin of error when radiologists interpret this test. In other words, the opening within the artery may improve by 10% and will commonly be reported as the same. For instance, a radiologist may report a 60%-70% blockage in a particular artery. Using EDTA, this blockage may improve 10% but will still be reported as a 60%-70% blockage. The most valuable point to understand is that a 10% improvement in the opening of an artery results in a 90% improvement in blood flow. That’s right, 90%, almost double the blood flow with only a 10% improvement in the opening.

How are EDTA chelation treatments given?

The chemical EDTA is a liquid which is administered as an intravenous solution. EDTA is added to an IV bag with a small amount of other proper ingredients, primarily vitamins and a buffering agent. Some of the vitamins are added to the bag at the very end of the treatment. When the proper dosage is determined and the bag is ready, out nurses start an IV using a very small catheter which feels like a small “stick,” and the treatmtne begins.

How is the dosage determined?

The proper dosage is very important. It is primarily based on two factors. One, a persons size and two, a persons kidney function. The kidney function is determined by common laboratory tests known as BUN, which stands for blood uera nitrogen, and creatinine. Both of these tests measure waste products in the blood which need to be filtered out by the kidneys. The higher these levels are, BUN and creatinine, the higher the waste products in the blood are indicating a decline or compromise in kidney function. As kidney function declines, the dosage of EDTA must be reduced because, even though EDTA is extremely non-toxic, it pulls out toxic heavy metals through the kidneys and into the urine. Toxic heavy metals can be very destructive to compromised or weak kidneys. If the creatinine level is at or near the upper limit of normal, then a 24-your creatinine clearance needs to be done to more accurately determine the filtering ability of the kidneys.

I am very experienced at determining your proper dose of EDTA for treatments.

What are the main risks of EDTA chelation therapy?

The chemical EDTA is extremely safe and is actually considered less toxic than aspirin. EDTA is commonly added to many packaged foods as a preservative and is considered to be completely non-toxic as a food additive. The main risk occurs as EDTA does its job and removes toxic heavy metals via the kidneys and into the urine. The kidneys must be able to handle the load of the toxic heavy metals, and EDTA must be used in the proper dose determined for each individual person. The second main risk is that a person receiving EDTA does not get another more aggressive medical treatment that they actually need. For example, if someone has blocked arteries to the heart, it must be determined how extensive the blockage is and if it is critical that the patient receive an angioplasty or, in rare cases, even by-pass surgery. These aggressive forms of treatment are sometimes necessary for patients with advanced blockages of arteries, especially if they also have other medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol. If you have significant health problems, I will make sure that it is safe for you to have EDTA treatments.

How many treatments do I need and how often will I receive them?

The number of EDTA treatments will vary depending on the condition of each patient. In very severe cases of blood vessel disease, patients have received 50-60 treatments and occasionally even more. For the average patient, 20 treatments are usually recommended to achieve good results. In some cases where treatment is mainly preventative and a patient has little or no known problems, 10 treatments will suffice. Treatments are normally given once or twice a week. For preventative treatment, treatments can be given as infrequent as once a month.

After the initial series of treatments, patients often begin a maintenance program to receive a treatment anywhere from once a month to one treatment every three months. Some patients prefer to wait a year and than have another series of 10 or more treatments. If treatments are entirely preventative, follow-up treatments are determined on an individual basis.

What is ACAM?

ACAM stands for the American College for Advancement in Medicine, an educational organization of over 1,000 physicians that was started in 1973. The purpose of ACAM is to educate physicians on how to properly administer and incorporate chelation therapy into medical practice. In addition, ACAM teaches physicians about the critical importance of including nutritional medicine in the overall treatment of patients. ACAM holds conferences twice a year where physicians can learn the latest advances about chelation therapy, as well as nutritional and preventative medicine. Physicians who are experienced in chelation have the ability to become Diplomates or Diplomate Candidates which demonstrate a high level of level of proficiency in utilizing chelation therapy.