| Chelation Therapy |
Shopping Chelation |
Website Links For Therapy |
Information AboutChelation Therapy |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT CHELATION THERAPY | |
| medical treatments | |
| alternative medicine | |
|
DISCOVERY IN MEDICINE Chelating agents were introduced into medicine as a result of the Use Of Poison Gas In World War I . The first widely used chelating agent was called British Anti- Lewisite , or BAL, a name given to Dimercaprol . It is an organic compound related to the Mercaptan s, which are a class of sulfur-containing organic compounds. The name comes from their ability to react and form compounds with, or "capture," Mercury . Lewisite gas was an Arsenic based organic compound used in gas warfare; BAL bound the arsenic compounds from lewisite in the body and enabled it to be excreted harmlessly. After the metal capturing effects of BAL, a group of chelating agents was discovered. The chelating agents proper bind with Metal lic Ion s so that the ion is held by several chemical bonds, thus rendering it much less chemically reactive and allowing the ion to be excreted harmlessly. USES IN CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE , Iron , Arsenic , Lead , Plutonium and other forms of Heavy Metal poisoning, where the amounts are so high that there is enough risk to the health of the patient to justify the therapy. The buildup of iron in Thalassemia has led to use in treatment of that disease as well. One example of successful chelation therapy is the case of Harold McCluskey , a nuclear worker who became very badly contaminated internally with Americium in 1976. He was treated with diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid ( DTPA ) over many years to remove americium from his body. While it was not possible to remove all of the americium, it was possible to mitigate the effects of the accident. Harold McCluskey had 41 MBq (1.1 MCi ) of 241Am removed from his body, a significant proportion. Harold McCluskey died of unrelated causes 11 years after being contaminated. The chelating agent may be administered intravenously, intramuscularly, or orally, depending on the agent and the type of poisoning. Examples of chelating agents The choice of chelating agent depends on which metal is involved. Common chelating agents include:
USES IN ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE Some alternative practitioners believe intravenous chelation therapy "reverses and slows the progression of atherosclerosis and other age-related and degenerative diseases" {Link without Title} , such as Coronary Artery Disease and Macular Degeneration . Some chelation advocates believe that Autism , a neurodevelopmental disorder that appears in early childhood, might be caused or aggravated by heavy metal poisoning and might be ameliorated by chelation therapy, but there is no scientific proof to support this hypothesis. A private corporation calling itself the (NCCAM) estimated that 0.1%, plus or minus 0.02% of the adult US population had used chelation therapy at some point in their life. The efficacy, safety, and much of the theory behind these practices are disputed by mainstream medicine. In 2001, researchers at the University of Calgary reported that cardiac patients receiving chelation therapy fared no better than those who received Placebo treatment In August 2005, an autistic boy went into cardiac arrest fifty minutes after undergoing chelation therapy. A coroner's report found that the chelation therapy was the cause[http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06006/633541.stm . This is the first such case since the 1950s. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1751753,00.html] Calcium chelation therapy Some Alternative Practitioners use chelation to treat Hardening Of The Arteries . The safety and efficacy of EDTA chelation therapy as a treatment for coronary artery disease are being assessed by NCCAM in a five-year study which began in 2002. [http://nccam.nih.gov/news/2002/chelation/q-and-a.htm The original theory behind calcium chelation therapy was that EDTA forms a Complex with the Calcium in the walls of Arteries . One problem with this theory is that EDTA cannot penetrate the cell walls in the arteries and therefore cannot get access to the calcium. Another is that it binds preferentially to other metals. Finally, it is noted that that calcium has almost no danger in comparison to say, cholesterol. A number of dangers have been associated with the therapy including Hypocalcaemia and decreased blood Coagulation ability (possibly due to loss of calcium). Also associated with this practice is the risk of Leaching of necessary Trace Metal s. EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|