My wife showed me this article on the benefits of magnet therapy by Dr. Weil yesterday. He doesn’t really say much about it other than that there are some studies that show that magnets work, others that don’t, and some information about people who probably shouldn’t use magnets. My feeling from the short article is that he isn’t in favor of them.
I’m very much in favor of them, so I want to address a few points in Dr. Weil’s article. The first are the claims for what magnets can do. I believe that magnets promote better nerve conduction, better circulation, and better relaxation. In so far as those three things affect other conditions, magnets can be beneficial for them as well. I am a massage therapist, not a doctor and I stress that these are only my beliefs, not medical claims. As a massage therapist, I have found them to be very beneficial to my clients during a massage.
Dr. Weil lists three studies in his article that at least suggest that magnets can be beneficial for managing pain. One of the studies he noted, while inconclusive, suggested that magnets may help people who suffer from fibromyalgia. Any hope, however small, can be significant for these people. There is another study that I often refer people to. This one shows that diabetics with peripheral neuropathy can achieve reduced pain from wearing magnetic insoles.
Dr. Weil also points out that there are more studies that show no benefit from magnets than those that do show benefit. When conducting a study on anything you need to limit and control your variables so that you can get meaningful results. To conclusively study magnets and their benefits would take a lifetime and a lot of money because the magnets themselves carry a lot of variables. What strength of magnet do you use? They can go up to 10,000 gauss. What polarity do you use? You can have negative, positive, or a mix of both poles. How many magnets do you use and for how long at a time?
The contraindications for using magnets. Magnetic fields affect the flow of energy, including electricity, so you don’t want to use magnets if you have an implanted device. Magnets will never be proven safe for use during pregnancy because nobody in their right mind is going to conduct tests on pregnant women. There are just too many things that can go wrong during a pregnancy. I wouldn’t use a magnet near an open wound because if they do increase blood flow like I believe, then it will take longer for the wound to close.
This is my feeling on magnets. The Earth is a magnet and we were created, evolved, or whatever your belief is, to live on the Earth and in its magnetic field. Therefore magnetic fields are safe, and even essential for us to live. The question is how strong does a magnetic field have to get before it is no longer beneficial, or even harmful?
The magnets that I use are typically between 300 gauss and 1,000 gauss, nothing close the the 10,000 gauss that some people use. They are also a mix of north and south poles which more closely matches what we experience when we are outside and not shielded from Earth’s natural magnetic field. The insoles that were used in the diabetic peripheral neuropathy study I mentioned earlier are 450 gauss magnets with both magnetic poles.
You can go here for more information about the magnets that I use. I wrote another post about magnets and the placebo effect about a year ago.
Wayne Woodworth
PS. Dr. Weil listed snoring as one of the things that some people say that magnets can “cure”. My cat is sleeping on my magnetic chair pad and is snoring like you wouldn’t believe. I think it is safe to say that magnets do NOT cure snoring.
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