What in the World is EDTA? 

   Our other articles have pointed out how the body wants to heal arterial tears with collagen fibers.  If it is not getting sufficient nutrients to make enough collagen, it sends a signal to the liver to make more cholesterol – especially LP(a) “sticky” cholesterol.  This forms an emergency patch that prevents internal bleeding.  (Our body believes that to live awhile with accumulating arterial plaque is better than dying.) 

   Articles in Artery Restore and Cholesterol Balance talk about how to help our arteries heal properly and maintain proper cholesterol balance.  Here, we are primarily interested in removing arterial plaque.  However, if we can improve the cell’s ability to defend against damage in the meantime, it is even better! 

   So, it would be nice to remove some toxic heavy metals in our body (lead, mercury, etc.) which cause free radical damage – while also removing the arterial plaque that has built up.  It would go a long way to restoring health. 

One answer is EDTA.   It is a remarkable arterial cleansing agent with the ability to effectively remove plaque, cholesterol and heavy metals.  These congest, restrict, and impede blood flow and oxygen throughout the 75,000 miles of blood vessels within the body.  

   EDTA is an amino acid, with a composition very similar to common vinegar.  It was synthesized in the 1930’s, and first used extensively by the US government.  Sailors, ship fitters and battery industry workers were all developing lead poisoning from their work.  To this day, EDTA is the recommended and approved medical procedure for lead and other heavy metal removals by both the FDA and the medical community.  EDTA chelation has had a 50 year history of safety and effectiveness.  

How Does EDTA Chelation (pronounced “keelation”) Work? 

   EDTA will bind to ( “chelation” means ‘to bind to’) certain molecules such as metals or minerals.  It then holds on to them tightly so they can be removed from the body by the kidneys and liver.  This chelation process is comprehensive.  EDTA clears the bloodstream of heavy metals by seeking them out and binding to them.  The body then flushes out the EDTA, taking the metals along with it. 

   There are two aspects why chelation therapy works.   

1. EDTA binds to free radicals, the highly active molecular fragments that can damage tissue and perhaps the lining of the blood vessels.
2. It binds to calcium and other minerals in the bloodstream, resulting in a series of actions that improves cellular and vascular health. In the same way that an eggshell dissolves in vinegar, EDTA will take calcium and other clogging materials off your arteries and washes the debris out through the kidneys. 

This was the Kicker:   EDTA chelation therapy was first noticed to have an effect on the circulatory system in the early 1940's.     Following their treatment for lead, patients who were suffering from angina and coronary artery disease found their cardio symptoms dropping dramatically! 

   An unexpected benefit occurred was found in that there was a marked improvement in the circulatory status of patients who also had atherosclerotic conditions (hardening of the arteries or clogged vessels for us non-medical types.)This prompted the first studies to discover the other therapeutic effects of EDTA, principally in atherosclerosis and other heart diseases.  With 50 years of results, and thousands of confirming studies, articles and reviews, EDTA has been proven to be a safe and incredible treatment which has already been used by over 2 million patients. 

   More importantly to us, it is also approved for the treatment of hypercalcemia (an excess of calcium in the blood.)  EDTA binds with metals, minerals and toxins such as lead, mercury, calcium, etc and removes them from the body by way of the kidneys.  EDTA also removes arterial plaque the same way! 

   EDTA helps make clogged arteries and blood vessels more open, pliable and flexible by reducing inflammation and plaque density.  This therapy improves blood circulation, which in turn lowers blood pressure and improves cardiovascular and vascular disease.  (EDTA can also help diabetes, osteoarthritis and helping people with memory loss and cataracts because of the way it clears the heavy metal toxins from the bloodstream.) 

   Clinical experience with EDTA chelation therapy has convinced thousands of licensed physicians in North America that it is a safe and effective treatment for atherosclerotic vascular disease, as it consistently improves blood flow and relieves symptoms associated with the disease in greater than 80% of the patients treated. 

   There are over 3,000 research studies, papers and articles supporting the efficacy of EDTA Chelation Therapy over the past 50 years. There’s not much on the medical landscape this well documented.  Many are referenced at the end of this report and hundreds more are indicated for review at other web sites. 

   EDTA chelation gradually reduces atherosclerotic plaque and other mineral deposits throughout the cardiovascular system by literally dissolving them away.  It has frequently been compared to a "Liquid Plumber” in the cardiovascular system.  It dissolves plaque and returns the arterial system to a smooth, healthy, pre-atherosclerotic state.  

Heavy Metal Poisoning 

   This is an added benefit!  Environmental toxicity is increasing dramatically in the U.S. population at this time.  Lead is found in more children than ever before.  There is a long chain of events that occurs before a heart attack or stroke occurs.  If comprehensive prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis is to occur, then each major point must be addressed.  Therefore simple lipid lowering therapy is not enough, nor is simply cholesterol reduction.  The initiating point is almost always damage to the blood vessel lining from inflammation.  

   This inflammation is usually the result of infection or heavy metal toxins.  The irritation has to be there a long time because our blood vessels are coated naturally with substances which prevent irritation.  We want our bodies to be able to make collagen to heal the arteries.  However, over decades, if the cause is not removed, some plaque usually ensures because we are not perfect.  

Blood Clotting  

   EDTA helps prevent heart attacks, stroke, varicose veins, and more by inhibiting blood clotting.  Because EDTA inhibits blood clotting so well, by tying up calcium, it is routinely added to blood samples that are drawn for testing purposes.  Blood can't clot if the calcium is tied up.  Inhibition of blood clotting can help prevent stroke, heart attack, phlebitis (painful inflammation of a vein), pulmonary embolism (potentially fatal clot to the lung), or varicose veins.  Generally, these conditions are associated with aging. 

Oral EDTA 

   Oral EDTA has been used for at least as long as its IV cousin.  Scientists found that the body absorbs approximately 5-10% of orally consumed EDTA - and that it can take up to three days for the EDTA to be totally excreted.  We believe, that with our additional nutrients, especially lecithin, that we double the normal efficiency!   

Safety:   EDTA is used by the carload and FDA approved as a food and blood preservative.  (You may have heard of it in the O J Simpson trial where it was used in Simpson’s blood sample for preservation).  It is so safe it is used in baby food and every other kind of food and drink imaginable.  More than 200,000 children in the USA alone have been treated with EDTA for lead poisoning.  About two million patients have received EDTA intravenous Chelation therapy from Doctors.  It is very safe!! 

   EDTA chelation is one of the most effective, least expensive, and safest treatments for heart disease ever developed.