What is chelation therapy? US study calls for participants

Main Category: Public Health News
Article Date: 08 Aug 2004 – 12:00pm (UK)

Chelation (pronounced key-LAY-shun) therapy is an investigational therapy using a man-made amino acid, called EDTA. It is added to the blood through a vein. A national research study is now testing whether chelation therapy is safe and effective for treating heart disease.

Why is this study being conducted?

Many people are considering using chelation therapy because of the belief that it may treat heart disease. However this has not been scientifically proven. Past studies did not show benefit, but may have been too small to be conclusive. That is why the National Institutes of Health is conducting this large study to find out whether chelation therapy is safe and effective in treating heart disease.

What will you (the participant) be asked to do?

Before you join the study, you should discuss your participation with your doctor. Your participation in the study will last up to 5 years. During that time, it will be important that you continue your standard heart disease treatments.

You will be randomly assigned to receive one of several different treatment combinations. Randomly assigning people to treatment groups helps ensure that the treatments can be compared objectively.

You will receive:

– Either chelation therapy or placebo solution (an inactive treatment)

– Either high-dose vitamins or placebo pills

– All participants will receive low-dose vitamins.

You will visit your study site for your treatments once a week for 30 weeks. Then, you will have 10 more visits, between 2 weeks and 2 months apart. Each treatment will take about 3 hours. The study team will work with you to schedule your visits at a time that works best for you. Remember, participation in this study is your choice. You can leave the study at any time.

Why participate?

– Help the medical community find new and effective treatments for heart disease.

– Join a nationwide effort to learn whether chelation therapy works.

– Your health will be closely monitored while you are enrolled in the study.

Are there any risks or side effects?

Chelation with EDTA has been used to treat heavy metal poisoning such as lead. For this use, there is a low occurrence of side effects. The safety of EDTA for treating heart disease has not been established.

The most common side effect is a burning sensation at the site where the EDTA is delivered into the vein. Rare side effects can include fever, headache, nausea, and vomiting. Even more rare are serious side effects that can include a sudden drop in blood pressure, abnormally low calcium levels in the blood, permanent kidney damage, and bone marrow depression (meaning that blood cell counts fall). Reversible injury to the kidneys, although infrequent, has been reported with EDTA chelation therapy. Other serious side effects can occur if EDTA is not administered by a trained health professional.

In addition, because chelation therapy removes important vitamins and minerals from the body, it will be very important for you to take the vitamin supplements supplied by the study. It is also important that you continue to take your standard heart disease treatments.

What are the costs?

There are no costs for taking part in the study. You should continue to see your regular doctor and maintain your health insurance to cover all medical care not included in the study.

Where is the study taking place?

The study is taking place at more than 100 medical centers, clinics, and physicians’ offices across the USA. Please call 1-888-644-6226 to find out if you are eligible to take part and to find a location near you.

National Center for Complementary and Alternative Therapy

National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, Maryland 20892 USA
Web: http://nccam.nih.gov
E-mail: info@nccam.nih.gov

Oral EDTA Chelation Restores Cardiovascular Function

Both Your Heart and Brain Can Benefit from the Right Amounts of Malic Acid and Garlic in Oral EDTA Chelators

Chelation progression from “bad” to “better” to “good”

A powerful natural treatment for cleaning your cardiovascular system has just been improved. Life Enhancement’s Garlic-EDTA Chelator TM has a new formulation and has been renamed Oral EDTA Chelator Complex. TM This is not because garlic has been dropped, but because malic acid, an organic fruit acid found in apples and other fruits, has been added.

So now, in addition to garlic and EDTA, Oral EDTA Chelator Complex contains research-supported amounts of malic acid. This molecule is a vital component in the energy-producing Krebs cycle and plays many other roles in the body, including the maintenance of proper acid balance and the removal of toxic or undesirable metals by chelation. This process can be understood as the removal of excess calcium and other minerals that promote plaque formation, blood clotting, and atherosclerosis.

Malic acid also has an oxygen-sparing effect (the ability to lower cellular oxygen consumption without affecting availability), and there are a number of indications that it is critical in controlling mitochondrial function in our cells.

WHAT YOU MAY AND MAY NOT KNOW
You may already be aware of the power of oral EDTA chelation; it is a safe, convenient, and inexpensive dietary method that can help reduce problems from chest pain and high blood pressure to heart attack and stroke.

You may not know, however, that research indicates that your body requires a minimum level of supplemental malic acid to get certain benefits that can significantly improve your health and well-being, and that the majority of oral EDTA chelation supplements available today fail to supply it. Examine the data their manufacturers offer in explanation of their conclusions. As we will see, 600 mg/day is not enough.

ORAL EDTA CHELATION IS GOOD FOR YOUR ARTERIES AND YOUR BRAIN
Oral EDTA chelation is good news for your arteries, the conduits that deliver nutrients and other life-promoting substances throughout your body – from your heart to your brain to all your vital organs and tissues. It is essential to keep your arteries in good repair. That means maintaining optimal blood flow by preventing impedances such as plaque buildup and minimizing the levels of metals that can promote free radical damage. This is just what the ingredients in Oral EDTA Chelator Complex can help accomplish, and more.

Although the product is focused primarily on preventive maintenance for your cardiovascular system, your brain possesses fine arteries that supply it with oxygen and nutrients, so it too can realize improved functioning, leading to better memory. Minimizing metal toxicity can help you bootstrap yourself to better health.

THE BALANCE OF MINERALS
Although various minerals are needed in limited amounts for proper cardiovascular function, excessive amounts can actually cause free radical damage. So the problem is one of maintaining proper balance, of steering between two potential problems: mineral levels that are too high or too low. Unfortunately, most people suffer from both of these, so oral EDTA chelation can be beneficial at the same time (but in the opposite way) that mineral supplementation is beneficial.

Bearing the idea of balance in mind can be valuable. Proper mineral balance can help prevent the dysfunctionality that can cause cardiovascular or cerebral disease. Nevertheless, there has been some concern that you can’t have it both ways and that EDTA chelation, both oral and IV, can upset serum calcium levels. Scientific reports have indicated otherwise, however.

In one report, observations of 80 private-practice patients treated with slowly administered EDTA and supportive multivitamin/trace-mineral supplementation showed that this form of EDTA chelation therapy does not alter serum calcium concentration. 2 Perhaps more importantly, the evidence also suggests that the so-called high normals (referring to metal concentrations) declined slightly, the low normals rose slightly, and those in the intermediate range remained unchanged.

Another study raised a cautionary flag. Sixty patients with intermittent claudication (leg pain when walking) participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 20 courses of IV EDTA chelation therapy for from five to nine weeks. 3 By the end of the study, there was some loss of essential minerals, but this problem has been shown to be addressable by supplementation. A shortage of one or more minerals is characteristic of most “normal” patients (i.e., without claudication). For more information on this subject and on oral EDTA in general, read Oral EDTA Helps Restore Cardiovascular Function – Aug. 1999 ).

EDTA AND CHROMIUM
At the Nutrient Requirements and Functions Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, researchers recently examined the hypothesis that EDTA chelation therapy may lead to a depletion of the essential mineral chromium, supplemental amounts of which have been shown to lead to improved blood glucose, lipids, and insulin activity. 4 (Interestingly, EDTA has similar capabilities.)

To determine if EDTA chelation therapy leads to increased urinary losses of chromium and an altered distribution of chromium, two groups of subjects (one of which had recently undergone the therapy; the other had not) were examined. No significant differences in urinary chromium losses were found between the two groups, i.e., EDTA chelation therapy did not cause any significant loss of chromium. Whereas chromium levels can be strongly affected by mineral supplementation, EDTA chelation therapy has no apparent effect on those levels.

MALIC ACID AS CHELATING AGENT
Malic acid has been found to help remove the toxic metals lead, strontium, and especially aluminum, among others. Your body manufactures malic acid along with citric acid, fumaric acid, and many others, some of which are important parts of the energy-producing Krebs cycle. Normally, when acting in this role, they get used and reformed in an endless cycle. If you’re doing sustained aerobic activity, however, you need to be able to make more. Yet you may not be able to crank out as much of these organic acids as quickly as you need to for the higher metabolic demand. This justifies taking malic acid and the other organic acids as dietary supplements.

MALIC ACID? HOW MUCH?
With regard to the chelation abilities of malic acid, the questions of how much to take and under what circumstances are more complex. In a preliminary clinical test with 15 fibromyalgia patients, a total daily dosage of 1200-­2400 mg of malic acid was given, along with 300-­600 mg of elemental magnesium (which is necessary for ATP production and has oxygen-sparing efects) for eight weeks. 5 All patients reported significant reduction of muscular pain within 48 hours of starting the supplement.

However, a double-blind study by the same research group, using 1200 mg of malic acid and 300 mg of magnesium, failed to show a reduction in symptoms. 5 So there is some evidence, although the study was unblinded, that malic acid at 2400 mg/day and magnesium at 600 mg/day are needed.

The chelation amounts for aluminum detoxification are consistent with the 2000+ mg/day found to be beneficial for fibromyalgia, both in the study references and in countless reports from the Fibromyalgia Foundation. In a study at the University of Barcelona, toxicologists administered malic acid to mice exposed to aluminum at about one-fourth the LD 50 level. 6 (LD 50 is the level of a compound that will kill 50% of the experimental animals to which it is given.) Compared to other chelators, malic acid was the most effective, on a par with the synthetic chelator deferoxamine mesylate.

When the amount of malic acid is calculated based on the ratio of food consumption to body mass, the figures are similar to those used for fibromyalgia: approximately 80 mg/kg·day x 1/3 x 75 kg = 2000 mg/day (where 80 mg is the amount used in the animal chelation studies; the factor 1/3 reflects that rodents consume about three times more food per unit body mass than humans; and 75 kg is an average human body mass). Given that an apple contains several hundred milligrams of malic acid, it is possible, although difficult, to consume 2000 mg/day entirely from apples, by far the greatest source of malic acid in the diet. It is far easier, however, to take malic acid in supplement form, such as Oral EDTA Chelator Complex .

References

1. Domingo JL, Gomez M, Llobet JM, Corbella J. Influence of some dietary constituents on aluminum absorption and retention in rats. Kidney Int 1991 Apr;39(4):598-601.
2. McDonagh EW, Rudolph CJ, Cheraskin E. The effect of intravenous disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) plus supportive multivitamin/trace mineral supplementation upon fasting serum calcium. Med Hypotheses 1983 Aug;11(4):431-8.
3. Lyngdorf P, Guldager B, Holm J, Jorgensen SJ, Jelnes R. Chelation therapy for intermittent claudication: a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Circulation 1996 Jan 15;93(2):395-6.
4. Anderson RA, Bryden NA, Waters R. EDTA chelation therapy does not selectively increase chromium losses. Biol Trace Elem Res 1999 Dec;70(3):265-72.
5. Russell J, Michalek J, Flechas J, et al. Treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome with SuperMalic: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover pilot study. J Rheumatol 1995;22(5):953-7.
6. Llobet JM, Domingo JL, Gomez M, Tomas JM, Corbella J. Acute toxicity studies of aluminium compounds: antidotal efficacy of several chelating agents. Pharmacol Toxicol 1987 Apr;60(4):280-3.

STUDY TO FOCUS ON CHELATION THERAPY

Health Minister Lorne Calvert today announced a commitment to support a clinical trial to determine if chelation therapy is a viable treatment for certain forms of heart disease. Chelation therapy involves a chemical known as EDTA (ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid) being dripped intravenously into a patient’s bloodstream. The treatment is said to remove plaque from, and reverse hardening of, the arteries. Dr. Merril Knudtson, a University of Calgary medical researcher and cardiologist at the Foothills Hospital, will conduct an Alberta-based study involving about 130 people with heart disease over a two year period. Saskatchewan Health officials are working with Dr. Knudtson, the Regina Health District, and Regina-based cardiologists to establish a Saskatchewan site and Saskatchewan-based clinical trial. “Adding a Saskatchewan site to the study will increase the size of the test group and the accuracy of the study,” said Dr. Knudtson. The study will compare one group who will receive chelation treatments with a control group who will get a placebo. Chelation treatment is not sanctioned by physician licensing bodies in Canada. EDTA is currently licensed only for treating people with heavy metal poisoning. It is expected that the health protection branch of National Health and Welfare will support the use of the drug for broader chelation purposes only in a strictly controlled study. “A clinical trial under strict criteria and protocols would be welcomed by the Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons,” said college registrar Dr. Dennis Kendel. “A scientific study will assist physicians, patients, the college and the government in making decisions about its use,” Calvert said. “A Saskatchewan test site is expected to be in place by October, pending the outcome of further discussions.” -30- For more information, contact: Mark Seland Communications and Public Information Saskatchewan Health Regina Phone: 787-3825

Innovation and partnerships from the charity of the year

AUTISM CYMRU, Wales’ national charity for autism, is the first autism charity to be chosen as S4C’s Charity of the Year.

The charity is particularly privileged with the recognition as awareness of autism in Wales has never been so high.

Autism Cymru has offices in Aberystwyth, Cardiff and Wrexham. Its aim from the outset has been to raise the profile of autism in Wales.

It has joined forces with organisations across all sectors to improve services to those with or affected by autism.

Its greatest success has been the work carried out in partnership with the Welsh Assembly Government to develop what will be the world’s first government-led national strategy for autism.

We’ve also set up a truly Wales-wide education and training programme for parents and practitioners across a range of professions. There can’t be many autism professionals in Wales in 2006 who’ve not come into contact with our training programme.

And we’ve recently formed partnerships with local education authorities in Wales to train teachers from every single school in their authority.

The aim is to create autism-friendly primary and secondary mainstream schools and increase awareness and understanding of the condition which affects 20,000 children and adults throughout the country.

In North Wales we work with the North Wales Police force to operate the Emergency Services Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) scheme to help people with autism who come into contact with the emergency services.

The scheme has been enthusiastically received by the police and was recently extended to cover the whole of the North Wales Police area.

Our influence, however, has not been confined to Wales. We are soon to announce a partnership with Autism Northern Ireland (Papa).

Research has also been one of our major activities. We have collaborated in projects with several of Wales’ leading researchers in this field.

The outcome of a major research project into the prevalence of Asperger syndrome in the criminal justice system in Wales will be announced in May at our second International Autism Conference to be held at City Hall in Cardiff between May 8 to 10.

The event follows the tremendous success of our first international conference held two years ago. Leading autism experts from around the world will convene to put Wales firmly at the centre of the world autism map.

The “big names” include Professor Simon Baron-Cohen of Cambridge University, Dr Tony Attwood from Australia, Professor Ina van Berckelaer-Onnes from The Netherlands and Dame Stephanie Shirley.

People who have autism themselves will also give a first hand account of what it is like to be autistic.

The conference will focus on Development in Autistic Spectrum Disorders: Influences for Strategy, Practice and Research, and is open to practitioners, parents of people with autism and people with autism themselves. Bookings are now being taken.

For further information contact Jennie Thomas on 029 20463263 or email her at jennie@autismcymru.org

Laura Morgan is Communications and European Officer for Autism Cymru.

Chelation with EDTA

A Food Additive with Many Remarkable Properties
Ward Dean, MD

In the previous issue of Vitamin Research News, intravenous EDTA chelation therapy was discussed. This article continues to briefly describe a new intravenous approach with EDTA, to expand on EDTA’s protective and enhancing effects as a food additive in foods and dietary supplements, as well as some clinically tested uses of oral EDTA.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the synthetic amino acid, ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), as a pharmaceutical agent for the treatment of lead and other heavy metal poisoning or exposure. In older literature, the FDA also approved EDTA as being “possibly effective in occlusive vascular disorders…arrhythmias and atrioventricular induction defects…and in the treatment of pathologic conditions to which calcium tissue deposits or hypercalcemia may contribute other than those listed above.” (1)

These “possibly effective” indications were removed from FDA-approved literature in the late 1970s for reasons known only to the FDA. Fortunately, physicians are not limited solely to FDA-approved indications and can prescribe approved drugs for whatever “unapproved” conditions they find them to be effective. Consequently, since EDTA is approved for the treatment of heavy metal poisoning (especially lead), many physicians continue to use pharmaceutical EDTA with great benefit in many diseases and conditions other than their officially approved uses.

There are two medical associations whose physician members are trained in the administration of intravenous EDTA for the treatment and prevention of atherosclerosis, heavy metal toxicity, and other chronic degenerative diseases. These organizations are the American College for Advancement in Medicine (800-532-3688) and the International Association for Integrative Medicine (IAIM) (formerly, the Great Lakes Association of Clinical Medicine [GLACM]) (800-286-6013). Members of these organizations and their patients find that EDTA chelation therapy is highly effective as an alternative, or in addition, to more traditional/widely accepted approaches such as angioplasty or bypass surgery.

Low Dose, Rapid IV Injection
Although physicians in the US generally use doses of EDTA ranging from 1.5 to 3.0 grams, Dr. Walter Blumer in Switzerland has developed a protocol using calcium EDTA intravenously. This form of EDTA is non-irritating, and can be administered in less than five minutes. Dr. Blumer’s technique is being adopted by a growing number of physicians in the US.

Beneficial Uses of Oral EDTA in Cardiovascular Disease
In addition to the controversial but widespread recognition of EDTA’s intravenous benefits are its less well-known clinical uses when administered orally. Early clinical studies with EDTA reported loss of fat in rats, reduction of cholesterol in rabbits, and reduced blood pressure in humans. Consequently, a study of the effects of oral EDTA on patients with atherosclerosis and/or hypertension was conducted on 10 patients. Four of these patients had hypertension, four had angina pectoris, one had peripheral vascular disease (intermittent claudication), and one was recovering from a heart attack. All were treated with one gm of oral EDTA daily for three months. Seven of the ten patients experienced significant reductions in their cholesterol levels, and blood pressure was reduced in all ten. The most marked change occurred in the patient with intermittent claudication, whose cholesterol dropped from 278 mg per 100 ml to 128! This patient also reported improved exercise tolerance, and the researchers found improved pulsations in the extremities. The four patients with angina pectoris also all reported improvement. (2)

In another series of 20 patients who suffered from hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, angina or peripheral vascular disease, one gram of EDTA was administered orally every day for 3 months. During that short time, elevated cholesterol levels in nine of the patients dropped to within the normal range. No adverse results were experienced by any of the patients. Angina attacks were reduced in frequency and severity in five individuals. One person who previously had suffered a heart attack and experienced several angina attacks daily thereafter, obtained complete relief. (3)

In another study, two patients with extremely elevated cholesterol were treated with oral EDTA. One patient took EDTA in progressively large doses ranging from 500 mg to 4 gm daily for one year, and the other took 1,000 mg daily for three years (Fig. 1.). Although the first patient suffered a heart attack after three years of therapy, she recovered uneventfully, and had reduced angina pains and improved sense of well-being with continued use of EDTA. The second patient—in addition to hypercholesterolemia—had a condition known as xanthomatosis (yellowish papules in the skin, related to elevated blood lipids). She not only experienced dramatic reductions in her cholesterol levels with oral EDTA treatment, but her skin lesions completely resolved. (4) Other laboratory studies (including kidney and liver function) remained normal throughout the study for both patients. This is further confirmation of the safety of oral EDTA, considering that doses as high as 4 gm daily were consumed.

Further support of the anti-atherosclerotic effects of oral EDTA are provided by Italian researchers who found that two grams of oral EDTA daily were effective in reducing blood cholesterol. (5) Scientists at Wayne State University quantified reversal in atherosclerotic plaque in rabbits that were treated with daily subcutaneous EDTA injections. (6)

EDTA’s Multiple Uses as a Food Additive
In addition to its remarkable pharmaceutical uses, the FDA has also approved EDTA as a food additive that is generally recognized as safe (GRAS). EDTA’s array of biochemical properties make it extremely valuable as a food additive. It has the ability to: (1) bind with many metals; (2) act synergistically with other antioxidants to stabilize fats and oils; (3) prevent discoloration of potato products; (4) stabilize vitamins; (5) prevent discoloration of fish and shellfish; (6) prevent flavor changes in milk; (7) inhibit the thickening of stored condensed milk; (8) enhance the foaming properties of reconstituted skim milk; (9) prevent color changes of scrambled eggs prepared from egg powder; (10) preserve canned legumes; (11) prevent gushing in beer; (12) promote flavor retention and delay loss of carbonation in soft drinks; (13) prevent oxidation of meat products; and (14) prevent discoloration of canned fruits and vegetables. (7,8) In fact, EDTA’s use in foods is so widespread that its presence in bloody evidence even created questions during the O.J. Simpson trial as to its source-i.e., from food or from blood previously drawn as evidence—since EDTA is also used as an anticoagulant in blood used for laboratory studies.

Absorption of Oral EDTA
In 1954, Dr. Harry Foreman and his colleagues performed a landmark study to determine how much orally administered EDTA the body absorbs. (9) The scientists found that the body absorbs about five percent of orally consumed EDTA (Fig. 2, pg. 3) and that it can take up to three days for the EDTA to be totally excreted. If someone consumed nutritional supplements that contained 1,000 mg of EDTA (used as a stabilizer of the ingredients in the supplement), then we can assume from Dr. Foreman’s research that about 50 mg will be absorbed each day and that 1,500 mg will be absorbed each month. That equates to almost the same amount of EDTA administered in one intravenous chelation treatment using the low-dose optimum protocol of Drs. Born and Geurkink (10) that was described in last month’s Vitamin Research News.

Conclusion
Consequently, those unable to obtain intravenous chelation therapy due to financial, occupational, geographical or other restraints, or who wish to undergo a less-intensive preventive approach may be able to obtain many of the same benefits of intravenous chelation therapy by consuming food-additive EDTA that is used as a stabilizer in food supplements. Many physicians are augmenting weekly or monthly intravenous infusions with daily oral EDTA.

Because of concern that long-term use of EDTA might result in depletion of certain elements, Drs. Ira Manville and Robin Moser recommended that a potent vitamin and mineral formula be administered during treatment with EDTA. (11)

VRP recommends that the supplemental minerals should be taken with meals and not with the EDTA formula because of the possibility of EDTA binding to nutritional as well as to unwanted metallic elements. Dr. Garry Gordon at one time agreed with this approach, and recommended that EDTA would be most effective when taken on an empty stomach. (12) (1 hour before or 2-3 hours after a meal.). He has more recently altered this view, and now believes that EDTA can be taken at any time with any supplement. (13)

References
1. Calcium disodium edetate and disodium edetate. Federal Register, Volume 35, No. 8, Tuesday, January 13, 1970, 585-587.

2. Perry, H. Mitchell, Schroeder, Henry A. Depression of cholesterol levels in human plasma following ethylenediamine tetracetate and hydralazine. J Chronic Diseases, 1955, 2: 5, 520-532.

3. Schroeder, Henry A. A practical method for the reduction of plasma cholesterol in man. J Chronic Diseases, 1956, 4: 461-468.

4. Perry, Jr., and Camel, G., Some effects of CaNa2EDTA on plasma cholesterol and urinary zinc in man, in: Metal Binding in Medicine, by Marvin J. Seven and L. Audrey Johnson (eds), 1960, J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 209-215.

5. Mariani, B., Bisetti, A., and Romeo, V. Blood-cholesterol-lowering action of the sodium salt of calciumethylenediaminotetraacetic acid. Gazz Intern Med e Chir, 1957. 62: 1812-1823.

6. Wartman, A., Lampe, T.L., McCann, D.S., and Boyle, A.J. Plaque reversal with MgEDTA in experimental atherosclerosis: Elastin and collagen metabolism. J Atherosclerosis Res, 1967, 7: 331-341.

7. Aamoth, H.L., and Butt, F.J. Maintaining food quality with chelating agents. Annals New York Academy of Sciences, 1960, 526-531.

8. Furia, T. EDTA in Foods-A Technical Review. Food Technology, 1964, 18: 12, 1874-1882.

9. Foreman, H., Trujillo, T. The metabolism of C14 labeled ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid in human beings. J Lab Clin Med, 1954, 43: 566-571.

10. Born, G.R., and Geurkink, T.L. Improved peripheral vascular function with low dose intravenous ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA). Townsend Letter for Doctors. July, 1994, # 132, 722-726.

11. Manville, I., and Moser, R. Recent developments in the care of workers exposed to lead. AMA Arch Indust Health, 1955, 12: 528-538.

12. Gordon, G. Oral Chelation with EDTA. J Holistic Medicine, 1986, 8: 1 & 2, 79-80.

13. Dean, W., Oral Chelation Update, Vitamin Research News, 2002, Vol 16, Number 2.

Nontoxic Oral Clathration Agent Shown to Perform Better than or Equal to DMSA and DMPS

Parents of autistic children who suspect heavy metal toxicity as a contributor to their child’s condition may find a nontoxic oral clathration agent will perform as well as or better than typically-used chelating agents, according to a report in the nationally-respected consumer journal, The Doctors’ Prescription for Healthy Living.

The report – published in the February edition – details the experience of a Troy, Michigan, couple whose child was diagnosed with autism that may have resulted from or been exacerbated by such toxicity. The couple notes that the oral clathration agent proved to be as effective as their son’s DMSA/DMPS treatments, yet without side effects.

Autistic children may be prescribed dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) or dimercaptopropane sulfonate (DMPS) if heavy metal toxicity is suspected. However, a combination of the oral clathration agent and ionic mineral supplements increased their child’s heavy metal output by two to three times (as measured by urinalysis). The couple is quoted as telling the publication, “In two months, we had the same benefits with PCA-Rx and ionic minerals as using DMSA for an entire year. Also, unlike DMSA, PCA-Rx will not chelate beneficial minerals, one reason it is less stressful to the child’s body.”

“This information is important to parents of autistic children,” notes publisher and editor David Steinman. “Many of the treatments afforded to children have some toxicity associated with them and stress the child. Based on our current report and past reports, we believe that oral clathration is certainly an option that parents should know about.”

Steinman notes that while conventional oral chelation therapy may be described as one dimensional, oral clathration is a three-dimensional process. In this case, specifically-sequenced glycoproteins and peptides form a lattice (or inclusion complex) and multiple receptor sites that attach to a toxic molecule with irreversible bonds, literally wrapping around the toxic substance to prevent additional reactions with tissues or organs as it is eliminated from the body.

Chelation to Treat Autism

Posted by: Jodi Johnston , Daybreak Anchor Created: 3/6/2006 11:46:46 AM Updated: 3/6/2006 11:46:46 AM
It’s a treatment that’s been around for decades -it’s called chelation. It’s commonly used to treat lead poisoning. But now some parents claim the drug is bringing about a dramatic change in their Autistic children.

Parents like those of four year old Josh Shoemaker. Josh was diagnosed with autism a year ago. This is home video from June. His parents say Josh barely spoke, rarely responded, and slid into his own world.

“He used to spin himself in circles constantly, we were losing him daily.”

But within five months, this was Josh: talking, and responsive. The Shoemakers credit a treatment called chelation. Josh’s parents spread a sulfur-based cream on his skin, a compound they and doctors who prescribe it, say roots out toxins like mercury from the body – toxins they blame for Josh’s autism.

Dr. Phil Demio, a national specialist says, “The sulfur grabs onto the mercury like a magnet so our body can excrete it where it would never have the ability to do that on its own without something like this.”

But can chelation, a treatment big insurers cover for mercury poisoning, help against autism? One pediatrician cautions that josh’s progress, though dramatic, isn’t proof.

Chelation is FDA approved, but only to treat lead poisoning. And not all chelating agents are the same. the FDA this week said that one drug commonly used to treat lead poisoning, called endrate, caused the deaths of two people last year.

Parents Credit Chelation With Autism Cure

POSTED: 3:30 pm PST March 3, 2006 UPDATED: 10:44 am PST March 6, 2006A treatment for lead poisoning that’s been around for decades is now being used to treat autistic children. Some parents say chelation is bringing about dramatic change, but it is also bringing about controversy. Josh Shoemaker, almost 4, is not his old self, his parents are happy to say. Angie Shoemaker, Josh’s mom, said, “It’s just not even comparable. He’s just not the same child.”

Josh was diagnosed with autism a year ago. His parents say Josh barely spoke, rarely responded and had slid into his own world, as was captured in home video from June. His father, Scott, said, “He used to spin himself in circles constantly, we were losing him daily.” But within five months, Josh was talking and responsive. The Shoemakers credit a treatment called chelation, outlined in a recent edition of Mothering Magazine. Josh’s parents spread a sulfur-based cream on his skin, a compound that they and doctors who prescribe it say roots out toxins like mercury from the body, which they blame for Josh’s autism. Dr. Phil De Meio believes in chelation therapy for autism. “The sulfur grabs onto the mercury like a magnet, so our body can excrete it. Where it would never have the ability to do that on its own without something like this,” De Meio said. There is far from consensus about what causes autism, NBC11’s Brooke Hart reported. Most doctors see no place for chelation as therapy for autism. Two years ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention commissioned a report that found no evidence of a link between mercury and autism. Mercury’s other effects on children are a concern, however. The Food and Drug Administration warns pregnant women to avoid certain fish and has had a mercury ingredient removed from most vaccines. But can chelation, a treatment big insurers cover for mercury poisoning, help against autism? One pediatrician cautioned that Josh’s progress, though dramatic, is not proof. “Why is he improved? I don’t know. Would he (have) improved on his own? I don’t know. But as of now, mercury is not a cause of autism based on the studies we know now the chelation is not an acceptable form of treatment for autism.” Josh’s parents and speech therapist say his improvement is proof to them that it works. “Josh is the only child I’ve ever worked with that I can say he’s going to go to kindergarten being a perfectly normal kindergartner, and he was not a perfectly normal 2-year-old and it’s chelation that did it,” speech therapist Nancy McCloskey said. His mother, Angie, agrees. “It is like he went from his world into ours.” His parents are convinced that they found the solution for him. Chelation is FDA approved only to treat lead poisoning. Federal researchers are looking into whether it can help heart patients by draining calcium from clogged arteries.

Nontoxic Oral Clathration Agent Shown to Perform Better than or Equal to DMSA and DMPS

Parents of autistic children who suspect heavy metal toxicity as a contributor to their child’s condition may find a nontoxic oral clathration agent will perform as well as or better than typically-used chelating agents, according to a report in the nationally-respected consumer journal, The Doctors’ Prescription for Healthy Living.

The report – published in the February edition – details the experience of a Troy, Michigan, couple whose child was diagnosed with autism that may have resulted from or been exacerbated by such toxicity. The couple notes that the oral clathration agent proved to be as effective as their son’s DMSA/DMPS treatments, yet without side effects.

Autistic children may be prescribed dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) or dimercaptopropane sulfonate (DMPS) if heavy metal toxicity is suspected. However, a combination of the oral clathration agent and ionic mineral supplements increased their child’s heavy metal output by two to three times (as measured by urinalysis). The couple is quoted as telling the publication, “In two months, we had the same benefits with PCA-Rx and ionic minerals as using DMSA for an entire year. Also, unlike DMSA, PCA-Rx will not chelate beneficial minerals, one reason it is less stressful to the child’s body.”

“This information is important to parents of autistic children,” notes publisher and editor David Steinman. “Many of the treatments afforded to children have some toxicity associated with them and stress the child. Based on our current report and past reports, we believe that oral clathration is certainly an option that parents should know about.”

Steinman notes that while conventional oral chelation therapy may be described as one dimensional, oral clathration is a three-dimensional process. In this case, specifically-sequenced glycoproteins and peptides form a lattice (or inclusion complex) and multiple receptor sites that attach to a toxic molecule with irreversible bonds, literally wrapping around the toxic substance to prevent additional reactions with tissues or organs as it is eliminated from the body.

Unlike the ionic bond utilized to transport metals from the body with chelation, clathration utilizes ionic, covalent and hydrogen bonds. Not one but three major types of bonds at multiple points are created.

“The product that we mentioned – PCA-Rx – has a very high bonding affinity for heavy metals,” notes Steinman. “Most toxins or heavy metals that attach to cell receptors do so in a manner that is competitively reversible, so if molecules like those in PCA-Rx come along with greater affinity, the toxins can be dislodged from the receptors. Because of the formula’s tremendous affinity for heavy metals, this is an improvement over chelation therapy, which has a much more difficult time removing heavy metals from cell receptors.”

“We want parents of autistic children and groups dedicated to helping such children and adults to know about oral clathration because it is a viable and important option,” adds Steinman.

He adds, “Few proven treatments are available to autistic children. What we do know is that heavy metal toxicity may sometimes be part of the pathology. Testing for heavy metal burden is essential. PCA-Rx has been successfully used with autistic children to safely accelerate detoxification. While additional clinical studies are desired, we know that PCA-Rx is safe and efficacious. It is an important healing pathway that parents of autistic children should know about.”

Steinman, a nationally-recognized consumer advocate, is available for interviews and may be contacted at (800) 959-9797. For individuals or organizations wishing to learn more about oral clathration, they should contact ASN™/Maxam™ Nutraceutics™ toll-free at (800) 800-9119.

ROCHESTER , N.Y. , Feb. 23, 2006 (CBS) It was the stuff of Hollywood , but it was real. Senior Jason McElwain had been the manager of the varsity basketball team of Greece Athena High School in Rochester , N.Y. McElwain, who’s autistic, was added to the roster by coach Jim Johnson so he could be given a jersey and get to sit on the bench in the team’s last game of the year. Johnson hoped the situation would even enable him to get McElwain onto the floor a little playing time. He got the chance, with Greece Athena up by double-digits with four minutes go to. And, in his first action of the year, McElwain missed his first two shots, but then sank six three-pointers and another shot (video) , for a total of 20 points in three minutes. “My first shot was an air ball (missing the hoop), by a lot, then I missed a lay-up,” McElwain recalls. “As the first shot went in, and then the second shot, as soon as that went in, I just started to catch fire.” “I’ve had a lot of thrills in coaching,” Johnson says. “I’ve coached a lot of wonderful kids. But I’ve never experienced such a thrill.” The crowd went wild, and his teammates carried the excited McElwain off the court. “I felt like a celebrity!” he beamed. McElwain’s mother sees it as a milestone for her son. “This is the first moment Jason has ever succeeded (and could be) proud of himself,” reflects Debbie McElwain. “I look at autism as the Berlin Wall, and he cracked it.” His teammates couldn’t be happier. “He’s a cool kid,” says guard Levar Goff. “You just get to know him, get used to being around him. A couple of weeks ago, he missed practice because he was sick. You feel different when he’s not around. He brings humor and life to the team.” Jason’s next goal: to graduate. ©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.