11 October 2009

What Is Chelation Therapy?

By Penny Logan

Chelation is defined as a chemical compound that combines with a metal compound to form a ring. When it is administered to a person as a treatment, what occurs is the natural chemical compound binds to the heavy metals, calcium deposits and plague which is then removed from the body via the liver and kidneys.

The word chelation is derived from a Greek word, Chele that means the claw part of a crab or lobster. Therefore, "chele" refers to a grabbing action. It grabs the toxins from the body.

When chelation therapy is administered to a person, the chemical compound mainly used today is EDTA (ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid) which is an amino acid. When Chelation therapy is administered to a person it is either intravenously, orally or by suppository. It is administered by a doctor after tests are done to determine the correct dosage for the individual.

A poisonous gas was used that affected service men in World War I. The gas was called lewisite and the toxic effects it created was due to the use of arsenic in the gas. Rather than EDTA, a different amino acid was used at that time to handle the toxicity but it created serious side-effects.

The subject of metal toxicity needed to be tackled again to help the Naval personnel of World War II. The paint that was used for the hulls on naval ships had high amounts of lead and the men wound up with lead poisoning. The chelation therapy that was done then utilized EDTA for the first time.

Another large situation of lead toxicity arose in the 1950's that gave evidence that chelation therapy can be useful in handling other body problems when battery factory workers got ill. There were some of the workers that prior to the lead poisoning suffered from heart disease and from conditions that reduce the blood flow through the arteries. After being treated for lead poisoning, the problems ceased, too.

On account of the positive results of chelation therapy, more research was done to see if it would be effective in treating other illnesses and to rid the body of toxins. Another use was found for chelation therapy with EDTA. It was found to produce favorable results when used in the reduction of calcium in the system. There is a disease known as hypercalcemia, hyper meaning "over," usually implying excess or exaggeration.

With positive results climbing, other treatments were tested. Discoveries were made about the vessel walls of an artery, the build ups that can occur and the problems it could lead to such as reduced elasticity, blood flow decrease and calcium build up. EDTA was found to handle a deterioration of the arterial walls that lead to coronary problems and strokes.

After the research was done, more uses for chelation therapy were found. Today it's use has expanded to not only be useful to rid the body of heavy metals, calcium build ups and for degenerative heart problems but also for reducing cholesterol, toxins and other minerals that build up and form deposits in the system. It is a long term proven method for enhancing and improving circulation and for improving the health of arteries. It is usually delivered by alternative treatment physicians while other physicians still use a scalpel and drugs to handle physical ailments.

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