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Medical data is for informational purposes only. You should always consult your family physician, or one of our referral physicians prior to treatment.

Supplement to

The Art of Getting Well

Chelation Therapy

Sources are given in references.

Authors of contributions\quotations are alphabetically arranged;

major author, if any, is underlined.

John M. Baron, D.O., Walter Blumer, M.D., Dr. J. Peter

Bercz, James P. Carter, M.D., Dr. P.H, H. Richard Casdorph,

M.D., Ph.D., E. Cheraskin, M.D., D.M.D., Dr. Norman Clarke,

Elmer Cranton, M.D., Arabinda Das, M.D., Charles H. Farr, M.D.,

James P. Frackleton, M.D., W. Grant, M.D., E.L. Hannan, M.D.,

Robert Haskell, M.D., Phillip Hoekstra, Sr., James Julian, M.D.,

Benjamin Lau, M.D., Ph.D., Warren M. Levin, M.D., William J.

Mauer, D.O., E.W. McDonagh, D.O., Henry D. McIntosh, M.D.,

Dr. O'Connnor, Efrain Olszewere, M.D., Gordon E. Potter, M.D.,

C.J. Rudolph, D.O., Ph.D., Calil Sabbag, M.D., Zigarts Strauts,

M.D., John Parks Trowbridge, Jr., M.D., John Parks Trowbridge,

Sr., M.D., Fred Walker, Ph.D., Morton Walker, D.P.M., Alfred

Werner, Dr. J. Zelen/Responsible editor/writer Anthony di Fabio.

Jack M.Blount Foundation

for Eradication of Rheumatoid Disease

AKA The Arthritis Trust of America

7376 Walker Road, Fairview, Tn 37062

What is Chelation Therapy?

Pronounced “Key-lay’-shun,” Chelation Therapy is one of

the most effective treatments for a wide spectrum of diseases or

aging conditions. But it is more than a treatment, it is a preventive

process and most certainly a treatment of the 21st century

effectively practiced by many physicians today. It is the only

therapy where physicians who practice it habitually use it on

themselves and their loved ones as either curative or preventive

treatment. Critics of Chelation Therapy have never used it on

themselves, nor their loved ones, nor on their patients, nor have

they read the voluminous literature that has been compiled by

various physicians and scientists who are members of the

American College of Advancement in Medicine

(ACAM), an

organization dedicated to certification in the practice of Chelation

Therapy and to further its research.

In Chelation Therapy, the imagery is often used of the lobster

claw, grabbing onto a cation -- a positive metal ion -- in the blood

stream during the process of surrounding a positive (metal) ion. The

chemical equivalent of the lobster claw is a protein, an amino acid

called EDTA (Ethylene Diamine Tetracetic Acid). EDTA combines

with cations in the blood stream, flushing them out with urine. Do

not think, however, that this is the only form of chelation that can

take place within the body. The most common form of chelation is

that which takes place during strenuous exercise, producing lactic

acid, a natural chelater.

According to James J. Julian, M.D.

“Chelation is a basic

process of life itself. Without the chelation mechanism, life as we

know it would not exist on this planet.

“Chelation is the process that enables plants to take inorganic

elements and change them into organic plant structure.

Chlorophyll of green plants is a chelate of the mineral magnesium;

blood hemoglobin (the oxygen carrier) is a chelate of iron. Chelation

is the process by which the body utilizes aspirin, penicillin,

vitamins, minerals and trace elements."

Chelation is a natural process found in nature. Soap is a

chelator, taking off grime and dirt. When you soften water through

a house water-softener, you use a chelating agent to take out

minerals. EDTA, when used in your 100,000 miles of internal

plumbing called capillaries, veins and arteries, acts in a similar

manner, by taking out metal ions that will otherwise damage us

As Julian

further explains, "A modified copy of one of these

natural amino acids called ethylene diamine tetracetic acid

(EDTA), is used in Chelation Therapy. It is modified to make it

more predictable and dependable in removing specific elements

with [positive] electric charges such as calcium and heavy metals;

namely lead, arsenic, mercury, cadmium and aluminum from the

body.”

In 1893, Swiss Nobel Laureate Alfred Werner proposed a

theory of metal which provided the foundation for modern chelation

therapy

10, 11

. In the early 1930's Germany and the United States both

experimented with chemical processes for synthesizing EDTA

Chelation therapy was first used by the British in WWII as an

antidote to poison gas inhalation. According to John Parks

Trowbridge, M.D. and Morton Walker, "The earliest reported

research using EDTA for removal of plaque-producing calcium

deposits was conducted in 1946 at the University of Zurich, and in

1947 and 1948 at the University of Bern

." In 1948 the U.S. Navy

used EDTA to treat lead poisoning. Dr. Norman E. Clarke, Director

of Research at Providence Hospital in Detroit, observed that after a

series of treatments with EDTA, patients' overall health appeared to

improve. Patients who had angina reported that their chest pain was

gone. Others with gangrene of the legs reported healing. Memory,

sight, hearing and sense of smell all improved. People treated with

chelation reported increased vigor

Clarke's observations stirred up interest in physicians who

reported a wide-range of benefits to patients suffering from heart

disease, brain disorders, and arteriosclerosis. It was clear that EDTA

was effective not only in removing toxic metals, but also in helping

restore blood vessels blocked by placque.

In 1952 W. Grant, M.D., in a research paper, "described the use

of EDTA chelation therapy as a solution for removing calcium from

the eyes of human patients with post-keratitis corneal opacities

which had resulted in cataracts

During the 1960's there was demonstrated a wide-range of

benefits to patients suffering from various diseases. These demon-

strations included both human and animal studies. In particular,

"That EDTA is able to remove calcium from the arterial wall was

conclusively shown in a study by Fred Walker, Ph.D. and outlined

in his doctoral thesis

." But, a serious blow to EDTA study occurred

in 1969 when a patient expired. This resulted in reduced motivation

to establish the positive effects of EDTA in cardio-vascular and age-

associated diseases

During the 1970's thru 2000's there were numerous medical/

legal battles surrounding chelation therapy. Some MD's were placed

on probation by their State Medical Boards. (This battle continues

in certain states to this day. Many states, such as Kentucky, has

arbitrarily ruled against physicians using chelation therapy. In 2000

the State of Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners scheduled

hearings with the same end in mind. However, the hue and cry from

patients was so great that the Board wisely backed down. Their

hearings resulted in the largest turnout of any board hearing in the

history of the State of Tennessee.) Others have won battles which

allowed them to use EDTA, which was approved by the FDA for