Learn More About Chelation Therapy

Chelation therapy is used to treat a variety of health problems. First, chelating agents are used to bind with heavy toxic metals such as cadmium, lead, and mercury substances that enter the body through food, water, and other means-and excrete these metals from the body. As certain minerals accumulate in the body, they interact with other minerals, promoting the actions of some and inhibiting the actions of others. Lead, for instance, has been shown to inhibit the actions of calcium, iron, and potassium, all of which are important nutrients. When chelating agents are used to eliminate toxic metals such as lead from the body, essential nutrients are better able to do their job.

Chelation therapy is also used in the treatment of atherosclerosis and other circulatory disorders, as well as in the treatment of gangrene, which often is the result of poor circulation. In atherosclerosis, deposits of cholesterol, fats, and other substances collect on the walls of large and medium sized arteries in the form of hard plaque. It has been found that calcium acts as the “glue” that holds the atherosclerotic plaque together. Chelating agents bind with this calcium and carry it out of the body, breaking up the plaque deposits, unclogging the arteries, and permitting more normal blood flow.