Question: What is your opinion concerning EDTA taken as a pill? Will it do everything that sellers of this product claim, or is it dangerous to take something like this every day?
Dr. Hibberd's Answer:
I think daily EDTA tablets represent a true health hazard. EDTA is a chelation agent. That is, it binds metals, especially lead, but also zinc and other metals. Trace amounts of metals are required in our diets, so why are you trying to remove them? There is no evidence-based data to support the use of EDTA to prevent or treat cardiovascular disease.
EDTA is not recommended for oral use. EDTA is indicated for the treatment of metal poisoning (lead) only by the intravenous or intra-muscular route under close physician supervision. It has variable, poor, and unreliable oral absorption, and it has significant potential to enhance absorption of metals from our gastro-intestinal tract.
Some forms of EDTA will induce severe, and in some cases life-threatening, calcium deficiency, and approved treatment regimens require monitoring for renal (kidney) toxicity. EDTA oral treatment should be regarded as experimental, unproven, and a potentially toxic choice. It cannot be recommended as safe for either supplementation or for disease prevention.
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