Biologic aging actually starts at birth. Calcium increases and magnesium decreases. This effect is more noticeable in middle and old age, but is even detectable in early youth.

By testing oscillographically of the peripheral arterial blood flow, it has been found that 75 per cent of children between the ages of 3 and 16 have some irregularity or decreased circulation. This has been corrected with EDTA infusions.

Chelation therapy is not a cure-all. It is a specific therapy aimed toward the removal of abnormal deposits of calcium and minerals which have caused a diseased state. Along with the chelation therapy, a total plan to improve circulation should be instigated with the proper use of exercise, nutrition and hydrotherapy (water).

In about 85 % of the cases, there is a good to excellent result. An additional 10 per cent show mild improvement, while 10 per cent of the cases show no clinical evidence of improvement. All of this is dependent upon the patient and his willingness to make a complete commitment to developing good health habits.

Comprehensive histories and physical examination, with various laboratory tests and diagnostic procedures are given before chelation therapy can begin. This is done to assess the general overall health status of the patient. The lungs, kidneys and liver are given particular attention. People with old tubercular calcified lesions in the lungs are not acceptable for chelation therapy.

In order to eliminate the waste products from chelation, the kidneys and liver must be functioning properly. Persons suffering from kidney and liver disorders can have chelation therapy. But these people have modified programs. And many find their kidney and liver function improve.

Provided the patient is found to be medically suitable for treatment, the treatments are conducted on an out-patient basis. Usually modified doses are given for the initial treatments, and if no adverse reactions are noted, the patient is started on a full course of 40+ treatments. Each treatment takes from 1 to 3 hours and is conducted under the direction of a qualified physician and a certified chelation trained technician.

The number of treatments varies with each patient, due to the nature and severity of the disease. Twenty treatments are minimal for non-vascular situations. Usually, however, severe cases, any person with a cardiovascular event (stroke, heart attack, angina or blocked extremity) require 50 or more treatments.

EDTA is given intravenously over a period of 1 to 3 hours. Much new recent research has shown that most people can easily take treatments in about 1.5 hours with no ill effects.

The patient receiving the treatment is fully awake and may rest comfortably in a chair, read, watch TV or walk about. Usually only 1 or 2 treatments per week are given. Some acute or severe situations may require three treatments per week.

There is really no limit to the total number of treatments and it is possible to let some time go by between treatments, once one is well into the course of therapy. Some patients, in a 10- year period, have received over 500 infusions. Some of these patients' histories had shown several strokes or myocardial infarctions before chelation therapy and they have shown no further advance during this treatment time.

In the case of hardening of the arteries, usually 50 to 60 treatments will suffice. Some cases, of course, respond much better than others. 'Treatments normally are given every other day, and after about 10 treatments there is a change in the calcium metabolism of the body.

Sometimes, before, during and after the infusion program, tests are done periodically and on an individual basis, to insure the safety of the patient. For instance, hair/urine mineral analysis is used to determine the mineral content of the body and to diagnose any toxicity or deficiency. Also, the tests inform the physician of the levels of fats and sugar and metals remaining in the blood.

Depletion of trace minerals, such as magnesium, zinc, chromium, manganese and iron and the B vitamins are quickly replaced by vitamin supplementation and generally should not be added during the treatment.

By testing urinary calcium levels, it has been noticed that 25 percent to 60 percent of the excess calcium is excreted during a two-hour infusion. Of the remainder, up to 60 percent is excreted within six hours. After a number of infusions, calcium still comes out of the deposits for up to six months. This fact is most surprising since 99 percent of the EDTA is excreted within 48 hours of the injection.

The beneficial results of chelation therapy can be readily proved with the use of infrared thermographs, which are infrared or heat-ray photographs of the patient taken at controlled room temperatures. The photograph reveals warm and cool areas of the body. The warmer areas will appear much brighter or a lighter color, and the cooler areas will appear darker. The difference in color reveals the areas of the body receiving good circulation. Benefits of chelation therapy are usually not visible for two or three months after the series of treatments.

As a preventive measure, chelation therapy can be used and is especially beneficial in such cases as hypertension and similar circulatory problems that will develop in time into more serious diseases.

The oral method of taking EDTA is not satisfactory because it is so poorly absorbed into the system. And, it would readily bind with minerals in foods and water and become, virtually, useless. It is believed an oral medication could be developed if it were financially expedient to a drug company.

Just why the various heart associations, which have collected millions upon millions of dollars for research, have not allotted some of their funds for chelation therapy investigation is not known, or is it?