Thursday, February 5, 2009

What You Should Know about Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic Products

Thousands of people have received relief when wearing Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic products.
Arthritis is one of the leading reasons people purchase our magnetic products. The easing of pain makes a magnetic bracelet or ring a 'must have' for many arthritic sufferers.
Many experience an increase in energy when wearing Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic products. Magnetic Hematite is better for increasing energy, but not so good as static magnets with the4 north pole facing the body, for pain relief and healing.
A feeling of well-being with reduced stress is another benefit people claim who wear Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic products.
The benefits of magnetic therapy were discovered over 2000 years ago in China. Magnetic products are so widely used in Japan that they are available at any drugstore.
Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic products come in all shapes and sizes to fit almost any need. You can wear magnetic products as stylish jewelry or wraps for painful areas. There are even tiny dots that can be applied like band-aids. You can also sleep on magnets with a Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic Mattress Pad.
Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic products are totally harmless and can be worn without side-effects.
How quickly do they work? It depends on the individual. Some people get almost instant relief. Others require a week to a month or more before noticing a difference.
Will Bio-Magnetic Therapy Magnetic Products work for you? The only way to know for certain is to try one out. You may be wonderfully and pleasantly surprised to find out how effective they are. And then you will want to be selling magnetic bracelets in your store.

Source : http://www.bio-magnetictherapy.com/whatyoushouldknow.html

What is Bio-Magnetic Therapy? - By Lilias Curtin

By Lilias Curtin

Used in ancient Egypt, rediscovered by NASA; favoured as a cure by the famous yet accessible to all. It is, of course, bio-magnetic healing, the therapy that helps the body heal itself.Bio-magnetic therapy is simple and natural. Take the fact that iron makes up about 4 percent of our blood content and then imagine magnets attracting metal and you have the basis of the therapy. Magnets placed on the body increase blood flow in a specific area, much as exercising does; indeed often giving a similar feeling of euphoria. Capillaries carry increased oxygen and nutrients to the cells accelerating the healing process. Meanwhile, muscles lengthen and relax as magnetic waves pass through tissue, thus helping reduce muscle swelling and pain as the magnets neutralise the acidity in the area and assist by kicking in the body's own beta endorphin system (the body's own pain-relieving defence).

Not only does the modern environment shield us from much of the natural geomagnetic field around the earth but research shows that over the last century it has actually declined by 5 percent, yet it is fundamental for our health and well being. Proof of the pudding is that early astronauts returned from brief bursts into gravity-free space with diminished bone density and compromised immunity. Nowadays space suits are lined with magnetic material and astronauts suffer no ill effects after months aloft. So NASA were the first people in the West to accept the premise of what the Chinese have long called magnetic deficiency syndrome. Magnet therapy helps redress the balance.

It can benefit virtually any condition and because magnets temporarily alter the molecular structure of the blood in the specific area where they are worn, it flows more easily into places like cartilage and bone; this speeds up the healing process.

Fibromyalgia has been getting a lot more attention in the last few years as various universities through out the world carry out clinical trials using magnetic mattress pads and keep getting the same positive results. The most recent research carried out was from the University of Virginia in the US, which concluded that, although the overall results of the research were inconclusive, magnet therapy reduced fibromyalgia pain intensity enough in one group of study participants enough to be "clinically meaningful". Dr Alan Alfano, lead researcher of the study, said, "Finding any positive results in the groups using the magnets was surprising, given how little we know about how magnets work to reduce pain."

The team gathered data for six months on 94 fibromyalgia patients randomly divided into four groups. Pain was measured by functional status of the patients, number of tender points and pain intensity ratings.

One control group was given sham pads containing demagnetised magnets, and another control group received the usual treatment for fibromyalgia, which consists of drugs in combination with an exercise programme.

The other two groups received active magnetic pads: one group used Pad A, which provided whole body exposure to a low, uniformly static magnetic field of negative polarity, while the other used Pad B, which provided a low static magnetic field that varied spatially and in polarity.

Dr Ann Taylor, a member of the research team, said, "When we compared the groups, we did not find significant statistical differences in most of the outcome measures."

She said, however, that they observed a statistically significant difference in pain intensity for one of the pads, and both groups with pads showed improved scores after six months, unlike the sham pad group and group receiving usual care.

Dr Taylor said this was the largest and most rigorous study on the therapy conducted so far, but additional research was needed to assess safety and efficacy.

So how do the magnetic mattress pads work. First of all, it is important that all the magnets, that you are lying on are north facing. Since the north side of a magnet will bring down trauma, swelling and bruising and most importantly reduce the acidity in the body by neutralising it. Most people who are in pain generally have a problem sleeping. This can mean you can toss and turn in pain changing positions up to 140 -160 positions a night, this in itself is stressful. These magnetic mattress pads are used in insomniac clinics in America. For the simple reason, the energy from the magnets calm down the circadian rhythm of the brain waves and help to induce an alpha state of sleep. It is only when you are in a deep state of sleep that your pineal gland is activated, which is in charge of all of your healing systems and all of your energy systems. So if you do not sleep well, your batteries are not charged in the morning, worse still the badly needed healing has not been able to be carried out during the night.

For anybody suffering from any form of bone degeneration, arthritis, rheumatism, general stiffness in the mornings or lack of energy these are wonderful. Apart from helping to remove the general aches and pains it will rebalance the hormones in the body, lower the acidity, boost the circulation and immunity and generally give you greater energy. Another thing which magnets do is to help the bones to absorb more calcium, whilst at the same time preventing the calcium which is suspended in the blood flow from adhering to areas like finger joints causing swelling and deformations. This is achieved by the magnets raising the pH balance in the body. This enables the body to function more efficiently, and helps prevent unwanted calcification and crystalisation from occurring in joints whilst also preventing further stiffness and soreness.

It is, however, important that people treat magnets with caution. They can be very powerful and you do need to know what you are doing., knowing what is needed, where and of what intensity. Often only one or two repeat visits are needed and then a very occasional top up when necessary. A key factor is whether the N or S Pole of the magnet is next to the skin. The N energy appears to have a calming action, it also increases blood flow over an area in about five minutes. N energy also dislikes acidity so helps disperse lactic acid and bi-products that make up the ouch factor in any area of trauma and injury. Not only is pain removed but bruising and swelling is quickly and greatly reduced. The S energy appears to have a very different action. It stimulates enzyme action, lymphatic function and helps remind the body how to balance itself back to good health.

Magnet therapy has also been shown to be highly effective in the control and treatment of chronic depression and sleep-related disorders. Melatonin, the central hormone that controls the entire energy system of the body, is highly responsive to N pole magnets. This hormone has a dramatic effect on our immune and enzyme functions, it is not only antibiotic, anti stress, anti cancerous but also responsible for controlling degenerative diseases. It has been medically proven that sleeping on N pole magnetic products enhances deep alpha sleep, thus helping activate the thyroid gland and increase melatonin production. This also contributes to the improvement of all body processes especially those related to energy production and ageing. Many users have reported a more youthful appearance as well as feeling physically rejuvenated; it also stimulates hair and nail growth and, because increased circulation helps flush out cholesterol, toxins and other waste products that normally lodge in the arterial walls, it helps prevent blocked arteries and associated increases in blood pressure, too.

Source : http://www.worldwidehealth.com/health-article-What-is-BioMagnetic-Therapy.html

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE - MAGNETIC THERAPY

Magnetotherapy
Magneto therapy is a system in which diseases are treated through the application of magnets to the human body. No drugs are administered under this therapy.Magneto therapy is a clinical system in which human ailments are treated ad cured through the application of magnets to the body of the patients. In this therapy medicine itself is considered irrelevant; no medicine is orally fed or externally applied to the body of the patient or injected in his system .One may call it a nature-cure, but a cure free from the intricate cumbersomeness of naturopathy. Magneto therapy is the simplest, cheapest ad entirely painless system of treatment with almost no side or after effects.The only tool of magneto therapy is the magnet. The ancients knew its healing properties, but later-probably during the dark ages- the knowledge was lost. The evolution of magneto therapy as a science of healing started from humble beginnings in the 16th century and the process of evolution is still continuing. Empirically the science has been going from strength to strength and the number of its believers and followers have been constantly increasing .A large number of physicians trained in other systems of medicines are coming to realize the advantages of magneto therapy and are running to it for succor in cases supposed to be incurable.This is an art of selection of magnets of different strength for different parts of the body in order to cure ailments of diverse nature. This type of treatment is fast gaining popularity in countries like France, Germany, Japan, U.S.S.R., U.S.A. & India. This technique of healing is based on the fundamental principle that the earth is one big magnet and that all our bodies are surrounded by magnetic waves emanating from the earth and other spatial bodies including the sun and moon. This natural magnetism influences and supports all forms of life. Legend has it that Cleopatra always wore a small magnet on her forehead to maintain her youth and beauty, and that in ancient times, men in love kept magnets with them to keep their beloved attracted to them ..!!
Other important principles underlying this System of Alternative Medicine are explained as under:Disease is caused by the imbalance between the various electro-magnetic forces present within our bodies.Strategic placement of magnets on specific parts of the body can cure chronic ailments that standard medicine might find difficult to control.Mutually opposite properties of the North and South Poles are used in Magneto-therapy. The use of only one pole on a diseased organ gives desired results only if diagnosis and selection of pole is correctly made.During the course of treatment the patient is made to sit or lie down on an insulating wooden chair or bed for best results.While the shape or size of the magnet does not matter, for sensitive organs like eyes, brain and heart, weak magnets are used for very short periods of time. For chronic ailments, strong magnets are required.Pregnant women should opt out of Magneto-therapy and all metallic objects that absorb magnetic waves should be taken off before the treatment can commence.In the treatment of skin diseases, a cloth should be used between the magnet and the skin.

Source : http://www.altmededu.com/hypotherapy_magnetotherapy.htm#Magnetotherapy

CONCLUSION

After researching this topic thoroughly, it is clear that biomagnetic therapy is on the rise; marketers and doctors alike are becoming extremely interested in the topic. This form of alternative medicine/therapy is fortunately a scientifically researched topic, therefore there are studies that have shown when magnets works and when they don?t. This therapy should be treated like most any other form of alternative medicine, it is not a replacement for standard medical treatment, but it is an option, an alternative, when making a decision about when which road to take in one?s health highway.
A last thought: if you are injured in an automobile accident and your body is mangled, you will choose the standard medical route- go to the emergency room. But, now it is two years later and you have chronic back pain from the accident, wouldn?t you try a scientifically researched alternative form of medicine just at the chance that it could free you from your two-year chronic back pain? Magnetic therapy should be given a chance at helping certain biological and psychological problems; scientific research has proven it is worth a try.

Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu

SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE SUPPORTING BIOMAGNETIC THERAPY

Most research on biomagnetic therapy has been done on magnetic effects on the brain and neurological disorders. It has been recognized that electricity and magnetism are independent but yet are still connected, passing a current through a coil of wire causes a magnetic field that is perpendicular to the current flow in the coil. (6) The type of magnetic therapy being used in the scientific arena most often is transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). The Archives of General Psychology, in an article titled ?Transcranial Magnetic Stimulations: Applications in Neuropsychiatry? by Mark S. George MD, describes the process as placing an electromagnetic coil on the scalp, while a high-intensity current is rapidly turned on and off. It produces a magnetic field that lasts for an extremely short amount of time (100 to 200 microseconds). The strength of the magnetic field is 40,000 times greater than the earth?s magnetic field. This causes a sufficient current in the brain to produce neuronal depolarization. The treatment is not a pleasant one and the higher the frequencies the greater the pain. The pain is felt in the facial and scalp muscles that result in muscle tension headaches. The headaches can be alleviated with aspirin. These are the only know adverse effects of this treatment.
A study has show that TMS has beneficial effects on people with severe depression by applying slow repetitive TMS to the right prefrontal area of the brain. The objective of the experiment was ?to asses the efficacy of slow repetitive TMS (rTMS- random transcranial magnetic stimulation) in patients with major depression. 70 patients with major depression participated in the experiment and were randomly assigned to receive rTMS or sham rTMS (placebo rTMS) in a double blind study. The participants were given 10 daily treatments during a two-week period. The patients? mental states were assessed before, during, and after the treatment. The findings were that the patients who received rTMS had significantly greater improvement in their ?depression score? than those who received the sham treatment. The conclusion is that the short-term efficacy of slow rTMS improves the mental states of those who are diagnosed as having recurrent major depression. (7)
Another study supporting biomagnetic therapy, specifically TMS, is focused on the effects of TMS on the treatment of mood improvement. The title of the experiment is ?Mood Improvement Following Daily Left Prefrontal Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Patients With Depression: A Placebo-Controlled Crossover Trial?. The objective of this experiment was to confirm that the daily use of rTMS might have antidepressant effects. 12 depressed adults participated, and over a four-week period, they received 2 weeks of active treatment and 2 weeks of sham treatment. The results, based on the Hamilton depression scale, were that those individuals who had the rTMS had improved moods than those who had the sham treatment. The study suggest that daily rTMS has positive effects on depressed individuals; the treatment acts as an antidepressant. (8)
The effects of rTMS on Epilepsy also support the theory of magnetic therapy. An experiment called the ?Low-Frequency Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Improves Intractable Epilepsy? was published in The Lancet in 1999. (9) The objective of the experiment was to find out if rTMS would give benefits to patients with epilepsy on the basis of animal experiments that have shown that low-frequency repetitive electrical stimulation blocked the development of seizures in rats. 9 patients participated in the study, all of whom had medically refractory focal epilepsies with very frequent partial and secondary generalized seizures. On average, each person was having 7 seizures per week prior to the treatment. The treatment, rTMS, was administered on 5 consecutive days at 2 trains of 500 pulses placed over the vertex. For 4 weeks prior to and 4 weeks after the treatment, the participants were required to record every seizure or seizure-like event. The results: 8 patients found improvement in the number of or severity (or both) of seizures per week after the having had the treatment, 2 patients had partial seizures directly after the rTMS, and the number of seizures per week did not increase in any of the participants. The conclusion was that low-frequency rTMS may temporarily improve intractable epilepsy but that in order to be conclusive of the claim, more studies should be done.
Other studies dealing with such issues as ulcers of the limbs, bone healing, and chronic wounds have been conducted that support biomagnetic therapy. The following reports are from abstracts only.
A study on the effects of various magnetic currents on patients with trophic ulcers of the lower limbs was conducted in 1998 by Alekseenko AV et al. (10). 74 patients participated and after 10-12 days of the treatment, (magnetic therapy in form of varying magnetic currents: continuous, alternating, and ?running? impulse), the surface of the wounds had ?cleaned form necrotic tissues, surrounding inflammatory changes eliminated, epithelization of the wounds began.? The conclusion is that a magnetic current, when applied to trophic ulcers of the lower limbs, begins the healing process of the damaged area.
A study of the effects of static magnetic and pulsed electromagnetic fields on bone healing was conducted in 1997 by Darendeliler MA et all. (11) The purpose of the experiment was to assess ?the healing pattern of an experimentally induced osteotomy in Hartley guinea pigs in the presence of static magnetic and pulsed electromagnetic fields.? The experiment used 30 pigs that were divided into 3 groups- control, static magnetic, and pulsed electromagnetic. After undergoing an osteotomy, the pigs were places in their respective treatments or lack there of for 9 days. The results showed that both static and pulsed electromagnetic fields seemed to speed up the rate of bone repair in comparison with the control group, for the control group only had connective tissue and the other groups had filled in the osteotomy area with new bone. This study, because it was done on animals, does not automatically mean that it applies to human bone, but it does give reason to perform further experiments in this field.
In 1998, Toledo Hospital in Ohio conducted a case study about the use of magnetic therapy on a chronic abdominal wound. The case study involves a 51-year-old paraplegic woman who had had an abdominal wound for one year. After exhausting traditional approaches to cure the wound, she allowed a magnet to be placed over her wound dressing. The results: after 1 month, the wound was completely healed. (12) This study also warrants for more studies to be conducted on the use of magnets.

Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu

SCIENTIFIC EXPLANTIONS OF HOW BIOMAGNETS WORK

The claims made above do not follow standard physiology. One claim was that a cell?s interior was positive and the outside, negative. Leonard R. Johnson, author of Essential Medical Physiology (15), first of all, states that a cell?s interior has a negative charge with respect to the outside of the cell. This enables the cell to diffuse substances in and out of the cell efficiently. The above claims about the inflammatory response are also incorrect. The word ?inflammation? actually means, ?to set on fire?. The body?s response to tissue damage is not a constriction of blood vessels that causes a lack of blood flow to the damaged tissue; the body actually increases the blood flow to the injured area, causing the tissue to feel ?warm? and to swell. After researching numerous physiology textbooks, zero information was found about cell ?polarity,? therefore the idea of magnets being able to ?realign the cell?s polarity? is not possible. There also was no scientific evidence to back up the claim of magnets acting like a catalyst on the body.


Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu

THE CLAIMS MADE ABOUT HOW BIOMAGNETS WORK

They claim that how biomagnets work is based upon the body?s make up of cells and how they interact. The explanation: All cells that are alive are electrical; that is the outside of a cell has a negative charge and the inside, a positive charge. This combination of opposite charges allows the cell to function normally. When a part of the body becomes damaged, such as the body?s tissue, the damaged area responds with inflammation, which is caused by a lack of blood flow. This lack of blood flow blocks the body?s natural ability to provide oxygen and nutrients to the injured cells. Thus, the polarity of the cells gets out of whack. The role biomagnets play in aiding damaged tissue is based upon the belief that magnets can realign the cell?s polarity, which helps the cell get back to functioning normally. They claim that an increase in the diameter of the body?s blood vessels is also an affect of using a biomagnet on damaged tissue. This enlargement allows more blood, carrying rich nutrients and oxygen, to flow to the injured area and leave with tissue?s toxins. They also say that the magnet?s energy has been described as a catalyst, which speeds up biological processes and enables the body to heal itself and ease pain. This catalyst stimulates blood circulation, allowing more oxygen to be distributed all over the body.

Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu

THE CLAIMED PURPOSE OF BIOMAGNETIC HEALING

The claimed purpose of biomagnetic healing is to relieve pain and discomforts in the body. Gary Null, the author of Biomagnetic Therapy, (2) says that, in addition to relieving pain and discomfort, magnets can reduce inflammation and stress, improve circulation, help the body ward off invaders such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi, correct central nervous system disorders, enhance energy supply, quicken healing, increase athletic endurance and performance, and positively influence conditions such as aging, amputees with phantom pain, appendicitis, asthma and bronchitis, breast fissures, burns, cancer, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Cervicitis, depression, Dermatitis, ear pain, Endometriosis, Fibromyalgia, foot and leg problems, head injuries, heart disease, muscle spasms, strains, sprains, and joint pain.

Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu

INTRODUCTION

Biomagnetic therapy is an alternative form of healing that has been in existence for over 100,000 years (1). The ?AncientGreeks discovered the very first natural magnet in the form of the lodestone, and Hippocrates, the father of medicine, noted it?s healing powers?

Unlike the United States, Japan, China, India, Austria, and Germany all are advanced in the field of magnetic therapy. (2). The United States does, though, use magnets in complex machines to help better understand the body and brain, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), which uses magnetic fields to formulate 3-D images of the brain, and electroncephalogreaphs (EEG), which look at the electrical activity of the brain. But, as for biomagnetic therapy being used as a form of healing, the medical field is not yet completely convinced of its success. As time goes by though, ?More and more American studies, however, are confirming the value of magnetic therapy?

Source : http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/psychology/health_psychology/biomagnetic_therapy.htm