The chemistry behind chelation therapy was not invented; it was discovered. The Swiss Nobel Laureate Alfred Werner in 1893 suggested the chemical structure that was later confirmed by others. This chemical structure which involves an organic molecule surrounding a metal ion was defined and termed "chelation" in 1920 and in 1913 the Nobel Prize was awarded for discovery of chelation chemistry.

The complex, of the organic molecule, when it surrounds a metal nullifies the reactive charge on the metal which is what causes certain metals to have undesirable reactions. Again, this chelation complex was not invented in a laboratory; it was discovered as existing in nature. It is a part of nature and it is a part of us. Examples of chelation chemistry existing in nature include chlorophyll which is a chelate of magnesium, hemoglobin which is a chelate of iron, vitamin B12 which is a chelate of cobalt. The coenzyme, cytochrome C, and the enzymes, catalase and peroxidase, are chelates of iron.

Chelation therapy as a medical treatment, in part, is the use of a chelating agent (organic molecule) introduced into the body, ideally as an infusion (intravenously). As it circulates around the body, suspended in the bloodstream, it will attract and surround a metal ion. The resulting complex, chelating agent (organic molecule) and the surrounded metal ion will eventually pass through the kidneys. The kidneys recognize this complex as not being food and not needed or wanted and it is filtered from the bloodstream through the kidneys into the urine and then eliminated from the body. More in a moment about why the activity of deburdening the body of minerals and metals can be so therapeutic.

The consideration of using this chelation chemistry therapeutically in man began to be formulated in the era around World War II as an antidote for arsenic-containing poison gasses. Arsenic is a metal, that if immobilized, would decrease the effectiveness of the poison gasses. Around the same time, the chelating agent EDTA (ethylenediamine tetra-acetate acid) appeared on the scene in 1947. Studies were done in Georgetown University and at Walter Reed Army Hospital on patients utilizing the chelating agent EDTA. An entirely different application of chelation therapy in vascular disease and related disorders began to be reported in the medical literature around 1950. Back to minerals and why they are so important in health and in disease.

Energy production is the most basic and essential activity in the body. Impaired energy production will result in impaired health and is a major factor in the development of chronic degenerative diseases and the aging process as well. The body's energy is a composite of cellular energy production. An average body has approximately 7,000 billion cells. In order for cellular energy to proceed effectively and efficiently, enzymes must be present. Enzymes are proteins which accelerate the cellular chemical reactions that result in the cellular energy production. There are hundreds of enzymes. This enzymatic reaction must have a coenzyme or cofactor to have an effective reaction. Many coenzymes must have a mineral and/or a vitamin as an essential ingredient. Magnesium and zinc, for instance, are coenzymes necessary for hundreds of cellular chemical reactions, so….if there is a deficiency of an essential coenzyme mineral it blocks the enzyme needed to insure that the cellular chemical reaction happens and that determines the cellular function, and consequently the health and function of the organ and other systems the malfunctioning cells are located in.

There is yet another way in which minerals affect health. We have just learned of the essential nature of certain minerals in cellular health and therefore, body health. Energy production of all kinds depends on this activity. Toxic minerals can compete for positions with the enzymes. Toxic metals such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, uranium and others are particularly adroit at replacing the essential mineral (magnesium, zinc and others) on the cellular receptors. This toxic mineral (wrong coenzyme/cofactor) prevents the enzyme from being active; therefore, the cell energy and function suffers and the body's health and function suffer, disease ensues and symptoms eventually follow and resulting symptoms are the central concern of standard medical treatment.

A chelation therapy program, as one of its modes of action, provides a solution for mineral imbalances, both essential and toxic, increasing the essential minerals and decreasing the toxic minerals and metals. A chelation therapy program is a common sense comprehensive program that when properly designed and followed can restore health, cellular health resulting in increased energy and bodily health.