Chelation Therapy

If you suffer from memory, vision, or sensory problems, arthritis, fatigue, or any other signs of heavy metal toxicity (Watts, 3-4), chelation therapy, to reduce your heavy metal burden, may be right for you. Improvement in a number of conditions has been seen using chelation therapy to rid the body of a toxic burden (Chopra, 126).

There are some metals which occur naturally in the human body, but excessive amounts of even those which are beneficial materials can be dangerous. The main heavy metals responsible for human toxicity are mercury (harmful even in small amounts), arsenic, lead, and cadmium.

Heavy metals are notorious for endocrine (or hormonal) disruption. Cadmium is illustrative of this as it has been shown to mimic estrogens in breast cancer cell lines and it has been shown to contribute, in particular, to estrogen/progesterone imbalance (Johnson, 1081; Colburn, 378; Safe 487; Martin, 2425; Goyer, 582). Cadmium has also been linked to prostate and testicular cancer.

Chelation Therapy (or Heavy Metal Detox) is the administration of agents (either orally or intravenously) that remove heavy metals from the body. This is done by giving the patient a chelating agent that binds to the metals and promotes excretion of these metals through the urine. EDTA is one that we use during our Chelation Therapy however we also use a number of plant based oral chelating agents.

EDTA has been demonstrated to bind and promote the excretion of several metals, including cadmium and lead (Cranton, 143). Almost none of the compound is metabolized with over 95% of both the EDTA and the bound metals excreted within 24 hours of the dosage given. This can relieve symptoms of chronic heavy metal toxicity over a period of time. Vitamin and mineral supplements are given concurrently to counteract the removal of any essential minerals from the body.

Through an initial assessment (see Provocative Assessment Test for Heavy Metals), we are able to determine the levels and types of heavy metals to which one may have been exposed. After testing, nutrient recommendations and a schedule for chelation therapy will be made.

Chelation Therapy for heavy metals may be performed orally and/or intravenously with agents designed to target the metal or metals that are shown to be elevated by the provocative assessment. It is performed by trained holistic physicians only in amounts approved for human safety and our group has over 20 years experience with chelation therapies.