Magnet Therapy Doubts

Therapy Doubts

Magnet therapy involves the idea that placing a magnet on a painful part of the idea can actually reduce pain or help heal diseases. This is absolutely true to some extent; pulsed electromagnetic fields have been studied substantially in depth and have been demonstrated to help heal some bone fractures. Therapists who profess the use of static magnet therapy to reduce pain, however, may be seriously flawed in their experiences. The one thing that magnet therapy does offer, however, is a convincing placebo for people who believe it and therapists who are willing to administer it.

1. Many of the positive studies are flawed

There are two main studies that most magnet therapists use to promote magnet therapy. Both of these studies, had somewhat flawed experiment processes, including significant discrepancies between the placebo group and the magnet therapy group, and some manipulation of statistics and standard deviations to produce the most favorable numbers.

2. Plenty of studies disagree

A number of studies by proper researchers and therapists have brought up results that suggest that magnet therapists are phonies. Studies conducted by the Mayo Clinic, New York College of Podiatric Medicine, and the VA Medical Center in Prescott, Arizona all came up with results that showed that magnet therapy treatment worked no better than a placebo treatment.

3. Circulation increases are baseless

The first thing to note is that if magnet therapy increased circulation, placing a magnet on the skin should make it red from attracted blood under the skin. In addition, a study published in 2002 showed that magnet therapy failed to increase blood flow. Additionally, it suggested that magnet therapists using the brand of magnet advertised to increase this blood flow were, perhaps, misled.

4. Several cases have found against magnet therapy

One of the most prominent magnet producers in the US that produces magnets specifically for therapy uses has been repeatedly penalized by the state of Texas, where they are located, for making unsubstantiated claims. In addition, a number of other magnet therapists nationwide have been subject to penalties and fines for making claims that were not backed by fact, or for misleading people into thinking that magnet therapists could help reduce pain.

5. Most magnets don’t produce a magnetic field

Most magnet therapists work off the premise that the magnetic field of a magnet is what creates all of these wonderful benefits. In fact, these therapists are incorrect. Electromagnetic magnets certainly do produce a magnetic field and have been shown to have mild benefits, but static magnets, which these therapists use and sell, produce absolutely no magnetic field in or under the skin to speak of, and so cannot affect the body.