Chelation therapy treats heavy metal poisoning. It’s not FDA-approved for other conditions like heart disease or autism. You receive an injection in a healthcare provider’s office or take pills by mouth. The medication binds to heavy metals to clear them out of your body when you go to the bathroom. You may have side effects like stomach upset.
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Chelation therapy is a treatment for heavy metal poisoning that removes metals from your body to prevent them from harming you. It always requires a prescription from a healthcare provider. It’s dangerous to try chelation therapy on your own with over-the-counter products that claim to remove metals from your body. You can only do chelation therapy safely under the care of a healthcare provider.
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Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
Heavy metals are toxic to your body once they reach certain levels and may damage your brain, liver or other organs. If the results of a heavy metal test show you have unhealthy levels of a certain metal, your healthcare provider may recommend treatment.
Not everyone needs chelation therapy. For example, your provider may recommend ways to avoid exposure to certain metals. But sometimes, avoiding exposure isn’t possible or doesn’t bring down your levels enough. In those cases, your provider may recommend chelation therapy.
You may receive injections in your provider’s office. In some cases, your provider may prescribe pills you take by mouth at home (following careful instructions). In either case, you receive medications containing chelating agents. Chelating agents are substances that bind with the metals inside your body and force them to leave through your poop or pee.
As of December 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has only approved chelation for treating heavy metal poisoning. In other words, it treats conditions involving a buildup of heavy metals in your body. Left inside your body, these metals can damage your organs and lead to life-threatening complications.
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Specific conditions that chelation therapy can help treat include:
There are many reasons why you might have excess metals in your body. For example:
The FDA has issued warnings about unapproved uses of chelation therapy. This is when a provider, company or other source offers chelation therapy to treat various conditions like:
Most healthcare providers view these unapproved uses as misleading and even dangerous. That’s because chelation for purposes other than treating heavy metal poisoning may harm you. It may also delay or prevent you from receiving evidence-based treatments that really can help you, or even save your life.
Your healthcare provider prescribes medications for you to remove harmful heavy metals from your body. Chelation may involve:
The FDA has approved several different medications (containing chelating agents) to treat heavy metal poisoning. Medications are available to help remove arsenic, copper, iron, gold, lead and mercury.
Your provider will prescribe the appropriate medication for you based on the type of metal that’s building up inside your body. They’ll also determine the proper dose for you to have the maximum benefit with the least possible side effects. Your provider may adjust the dose as you go through treatment.
You may need chelation therapy for just a short time or for longer depending on what’s causing the heavy metals to build up. Your provider will tell you the details of your individual treatment plan.
You may need certain tests at regular intervals to check how well the treatment is working. For example, if you’re having iron chelation therapy, you may need a yearly MRI of your liver to see the levels of iron in your body. This helps your provider decide the proper dose of medications and when treatment can stop.
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Chelation therapy is sometimes the best or only way to remove toxic heavy metals from your body. Removing these metals can protect your organs from serious and sometimes life-threatening damage.
Your healthcare provider will explain the possible side effects of the specific medication you receive. Common side effects of chelation therapy include:
Severe reactions include:
Your recovery and outlook depend on many factors, including the type of heavy metal poisoning you have and its cause. Your healthcare provider is the best person to ask about what you can expect going forward.
Call your provider if you have:
It’s only safe to do chelation therapy at home if your provider prescribes you medication to treat heavy metal poisoning (like iron overload). It’s never safe to use chelation products you can get without a prescription. These include dietary supplements, nasal sprays, clay baths or suppositories. The FDA hasn’t approved of these products.
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No, chelation therapy isn’t safe or appropriate for treating autism. Chelation therapy treats heavy metal poisoning. The FDA warns against using chelation to try and treat or cure autism. There’s zero scientific evidence that chelation helps autistic people. There is, however, evidence that inappropriate uses of chelation have caused serious side effects or even death.
Autism is a difference in how your child’s brain works, and it’s something they’re born with. It’s not a disease, and there’s no “cure.” Instead, qualified healthcare providers offer a range of therapies that help your child build skills. Chelation has no place in these therapies.
Some people claim that chelation therapy can treat a wide range of conditions — from autism to heart disease. But most healthcare providers disagree with these claims. Let’s take a closer look at the heart disease controversy.
Chelation therapy removes heavy metals like lead and iron from your bloodstream. The chelating agents bind to these metals and send them out of your body through your pee. Advocates of chelation therapy for heart disease believe that the chemical cocktail also can remove plaque from clogged arteries in the same way. But there’s no proof this theory is true. And most heart doctors strongly disagree with it.
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The main study that showed possible benefits of chelation for heart disease had serious design flaws. This means we can’t trust its results. It’s a bit like putting a cup in your garden to measure rainfall but then watering your garden at the same time. You couldn’t really say how much water in the cup came from rain and how much came from the hose.
So, the scientists who did that controversial study decided to try again. But their second study (published in 2024) didn’t show any benefits of chelation. Instead, it provides evidence that chelation does not help with heart disease.
The bottom line? Chelation shouldn’t be used to treat heart disease. It doesn’t work and could cause serious side effects.
Chelation therapy is an important treatment option for people with heavy metal poisoning. If your provider prescribes this therapy, follow their guidance closely and let them know if you have any side effects.
You might hear chelation can help cleanse your body of heavy metals or treat conditions like autism or heart disease. There’s no scientific evidence to back up these claims. Using chelation for these purposes is unsafe and can delay you or your child from getting proper care. Talk to your healthcare provider about safe and effective treatments and therapies.
Last reviewed on 02/12/2025.
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