I didn't know where to put this so I figured this forum would be the place where it will really stir up some conversation. This is only reporting an interesting bit of information not a personal opinion.
While talking with the Martial Artist I met on vacation last week, we were talking about Pressure Points, Yin/Yang, and the topic of healing and magnets came up as my wife is experimenting with them for an ailment. He asked if it was working for her and she said it did help considerably, at which time I also told of a few others I knew that all had very benificial results with the use of the Magnets.
Well it turns out that his profession is a Magnetic Phyicist. He was saying that his current project was with hydroelectric plants
and the problems of the water mains clogging with sediments has been almost completely fixed due to the use of magnets. He stated there is no specific reasoning they figured as to why it works but it does and it is a tremendous boon for this industry. He also stated that the future for magnetics is just opening up and some amazing innovations will be springing form it.
------------------
Evan Pantazi
www.erols.com/kyusho
Magnets
Moderator: Available
-
Evan Pantazi
- Posts: 1897
- Joined: Thu Sep 17, 1998 6:01 am
- Location: N. Andover, Ma. USA
- Contact:
-
Kevin Mackie
- Posts: 671
- Joined: Wed Sep 16, 1998 6:01 am
Magnets
Evan, as you will see from the following, the jury's still out on the effectiveness of these systems in treatin scale and minerals in water. what is clear however, is that there is a real physical explaination of how they work in treating water. There is no medical documentation that a static magnetic field does anything to help the body heal.
Here are some comments taken from a plumbing chat board from plumbers.
I have tried magnets over my 28 years in the water treatment business. They only work if you THINK they work. Kind of like a placebo. A large number of water treatment systems are certified by the NSF and other approved testing facilities. Strange - NO MAGNETS have been tested, certified or approved by NSF or others. I WONDER WHY? Get Magnets certified and those of us in the conventional water treatment business will buy and sell tons. I am not going out to buy the truck yet tho. We believe what we see and can test.
****
I have been interested in the use of magnets as a means of altering some of the unpleasent attributes of water.
Because of a long term battle with kidney stones, I decided to have a large magnetic device installed on my water line as it enters the house. This decision was predicated on the assertion that magnets inhibit the formation of scale buildup in pipes.
After ten years of observations, I can report a definite change in the number and severity of kidney stone incidents. I have noticed that if I relax on a inflatable air mattress in our
swimming pool, my body is aligned perfectly with the Magnetic North Pole.
Another thing that I have noticed is the old style mechanical wrist watch will simply not work for more than a day or so before it fails.
My mind remains open on the subject of"The Magnetic Influence on Water"
Bud...........
******
Anne I have been using a Physical water conditioner for some time now and have been so impressed with it's performance that I became a dealer for SoPhTec International. I was a skeptic in the beginning and was proven wrong. The Units we purchased performed well, doing exactly what they where advertised to do. I had water with 29 grains per gallon hardness. Converted to parts per million it is 495. The investment was very reasonable and the product was backed by 90 day money back guarantee. I would invite you to visit my web sight at www.atoka.net/sophtec and learn more about this amazing process with no cost or obligation to you. I hope this will help.
*****
These magnetic deals pop up every now and then. Our response has always been to report them to the Justice Dept, Financial Fraud unit. You need a real water softener.
This is a Dept of energy page that describes the systems.
www.pnl.gov/fta/11_non.htm
Kevin
Here are some comments taken from a plumbing chat board from plumbers.
I have tried magnets over my 28 years in the water treatment business. They only work if you THINK they work. Kind of like a placebo. A large number of water treatment systems are certified by the NSF and other approved testing facilities. Strange - NO MAGNETS have been tested, certified or approved by NSF or others. I WONDER WHY? Get Magnets certified and those of us in the conventional water treatment business will buy and sell tons. I am not going out to buy the truck yet tho. We believe what we see and can test.
****
I have been interested in the use of magnets as a means of altering some of the unpleasent attributes of water.
Because of a long term battle with kidney stones, I decided to have a large magnetic device installed on my water line as it enters the house. This decision was predicated on the assertion that magnets inhibit the formation of scale buildup in pipes.
After ten years of observations, I can report a definite change in the number and severity of kidney stone incidents. I have noticed that if I relax on a inflatable air mattress in our
swimming pool, my body is aligned perfectly with the Magnetic North Pole.
Another thing that I have noticed is the old style mechanical wrist watch will simply not work for more than a day or so before it fails.
My mind remains open on the subject of"The Magnetic Influence on Water"
Bud...........
******
Anne I have been using a Physical water conditioner for some time now and have been so impressed with it's performance that I became a dealer for SoPhTec International. I was a skeptic in the beginning and was proven wrong. The Units we purchased performed well, doing exactly what they where advertised to do. I had water with 29 grains per gallon hardness. Converted to parts per million it is 495. The investment was very reasonable and the product was backed by 90 day money back guarantee. I would invite you to visit my web sight at www.atoka.net/sophtec and learn more about this amazing process with no cost or obligation to you. I hope this will help.
*****
These magnetic deals pop up every now and then. Our response has always been to report them to the Justice Dept, Financial Fraud unit. You need a real water softener.
This is a Dept of energy page that describes the systems.
www.pnl.gov/fta/11_non.htm
Kevin
-
Bill Glasheen
- Posts: 17299
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA --- Louisville, KY
Magnets
I would also argue caution here. Once again, it is impossible to do science by anecdote. Particularly in the case of human health, many things will work by simply believing that they work. That is the reason for doing controlled trials. These treatment-vs-control tests are designed to eliminate the body-mind element of human health so we can measure true efficacy. Furthermore many individuals get well because of a phenomenon called regression to the mean. Basically this means that most people seek help right when they are at their worst, and they will naturally get better anyhow without doing a thing.
Let's see if several of us can scan the literature for good, objective science on the subject.
- Bill
Let's see if several of us can scan the literature for good, objective science on the subject.
- Bill
-
Kevin Mackie
- Posts: 671
- Joined: Wed Sep 16, 1998 6:01 am
Magnets
Go Here....FTP directory /pub/uechi-ryu/mackie/ at ftp.uechi-ryu.com
Kevin
[This message has been edited by Anthony (edited 07-20-99).]
Kevin
[This message has been edited by Anthony (edited 07-20-99).]
-
Enrique Mitman
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Tue Jul 27, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Newton, Massachusetts. USA
- Contact:
Magnets
A few months ago, I had the opportunity to see magnetic products used by the chief of surgery for Sports Medicine at new England Baptist Hospital in Boston. His discomfort on his back (typical of surgeons) and feet dissapeared in one hour. And this is not an isolated case since I have met hundreds of MD's who are helping patients with quality magnetic products. I used the word "quality" to separate the fast buck operators from the real products that do work...Just like hundreds of "martial arts" schools that produce graduates who cannot perform.
I am enclosing a serious study done on the subject for your review:
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PAIN MANAGEMENT
MAGNETIC NEUROMEDICINE: AN "ATTRACTIVE" PROMISE
Frank Adams, MD, FRCPC, DAAPM
Magnetism is one of the fundamental forces of nature---a phenomenon known and speculated about, studied and utilized in one manner or other since antiquity. It is most commonly associated with the compass---a direction finder which, in the West, dates from the 13th Century---that revolutionized navigation and pointed the way to the New World. It is a long voyage from the ancient high seas to modern medicine, but recent developments indicate that this ubiquitous force may have a place in the treatment of certain central and peripheral nervous disorders as well. The therapeutic potential suggested by early clinical experiments and speculation might very well lead to the development of a new treatment modality--Magnetic NeuroMedicine--with important implications for pain management.
Magnetism is already well established in medicine as an investigative tool of inarguable importance (magnetic resonance imaging or MRI). Less well known is the existence of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). A small circle of investigators, having made extensive use of TMS as a noninvasive method of mapping regional brain activity, has been applying it experimentally to treat such neuropsychiatric disorders as Parkinson's Disease, clinical depression, migraine, and epilepsy (1). Encouraged by early results, clinical researchers unflinchingly proclaim that TMS will be a "neurophyschiatric tool for the 21 St. century" (1), the hyperbole or prescience of this statement to be decided in the crucible of clinical reality.
In this issue of the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PAIN MANAGEMENT, Michael Weintraub, MD, using a less sophisticated technique, provides further evidence in support of the magnetism's therapeutic potential. This is a small but impressive pilot study in which patients used garden variety magnets to treat painful symptoms of peripheral neuropathies of multiple origins (2). The project was undertaken because the author was intrigued by the public's embrace of commercially available magnetic devices for the treatment of sore feet, a non conventional medicine approach based upon purely anecdotal reports. But, as the author notes, in 1995, the sales of these devices amounted to $100-million in the US and CANADA, and an estimated 1.2-billion worldwide---and "attractive" venture fueled by mainstream medicine's continuing neglect of pain.
Nonconventional medicine attracts the Desperate and often gullible sufferers of orphan conditions. Mainstream medicine equates it with charlatanism and generally dismisses nonconventional methods as unsound and unproven, all too often without any evidence 'for' or "against". In this case, the author resisted that reflexive and unscientific response, and, with a handful of patients and a relatively straightforward methodology, decided to put magnetism--and, indirectly, mainstream medicine, to the test. It is fair to say that magnetism may not be the "antibiotic" of pain medicine, but the surprising and dramatic outcome justifies the author's conclusion that the "...results are exciting and encouraging and warrant further investigation..." which he is undertaking.
Weintraub chose patients with peripheral neuropathies, conditions that are largely intractable, are usually progressive, and are refractive to most conventional therapies. Fourteen patients, eight with diabetic neuropathies (DN) were given magnetic foot pad insoles which they were to wear 24 hours a day for up to four months. The investigator used a variety of electrophysciology studies, and the patients utilized visual analogue scales (VAS) twice a day to quantify their pain.
Overall, 64% of the 14 patients showed statistically significant improvement in the paresthesias of numbness and tingling. DN patients had the best response of the two groups, with 75% (6/8) improving, 38% (3/8) completely. The N-DN group had a 50% response rate. VAS scores reflected the changes in decreased pain.
The most significant finding is that peripheral neuropathies are, for the most part, responsive to continuous submaximal magnetic stimulation (CSMS). Additionally, the treatment is relatively inexpensive and has no side effects. The most disquieting finding was that the conditions returned when treatment was discontinued, suggesting that treatment was symptomatic at best. On balance, however, this therapeutic outcome differs little from that of most pain management modalities which usually relieve but do not eliminate the pathology. The most logical conclusion to be drawn from this small unblinded trial is that CSMS has therapeutic promise which needs to be rigorously and systematically explored.
Weintraub credibly speculates on the biological effects of magnetism on nerve conduction fibers. It is known that the pathophysiology of dysesthesia involves the unmyelimated and myelinated small C-fibers. He theorizes the CSMS selectively recruits C-fibers which, in neuropathic pain, are inhibited by the large A-delta fibers.
Anticonvulsants are also believed to act on C-fibers by affecting the voltage-dependent sodium or calcium channels. This raises the question as to whether combination magnetic-pharmacological treatment in cases where monotherapy by either method is not effective could be considered a viable therapeutic option. The attractiveness of combination therapy is enhanced by the author's speculation that magnetism improves blood flow. This contributes to a milieu in which opioids and the proliferation of opoid receptors tend to flourish. It is not a quantum leap in reasoning to envisage some pain treatments based upon, "magnetic-pharmacology".
The author uses the term neuro-protective to describe the effects of CSMA. Whether that was operative in these patients is not clear, especially if it is meant to imply retardation or prevention of the disorder's progression. Neuro-protection is an important concept, and further research is warranted if for no other reason than to see if CSMA not only delays progression of peripheral nerve damage but whether, as in the case of some toxic cancer chemotherapy's, can prevent it.
Vincristine, for example, is a highly effective chemotherapy for the treatment of acute lymphocyte leukemia (ALL). But its notorious peripheral nerve toxicity is the major dose-limiting factor, preventing more effective treatment. Truly NEURO-PROTECTIVE, CSMS would dramatically alter all therapy.
The public market for magnet devices for painful conditions is robust, even--or especially--without medicine's tacit approval. Magnetic steel balls are marketed for arthritis and fibromyalgia. There are even magnetic mattress pads for sore backs. It is intriguing to think how much more effectively these conditions might be treated with magnetized garments (eg, corsets, gloves, neck collars, socks) designed to be worn all or most of the time--the constant exposure an important condition the author tells us.
The study is not isolated or an idiosyncratic example of magnetism's possible therapeutic value. It is one of a number of impressive clinical experiences to demonstrate this force's positive biological activity (1). TMS, earlier referred to in the experimental treatment of neurological disorders has been used to stimulate the cerebellar vermis to demonstrate its function in the control of saccadic eye movements (3). Could this same laser precision magnetic probe someday become the magic bullet to the thalamus, the putative storm center of pain? TMS and magnified booties may represent the high and low tech cousins, respectively, of a dynamic force spectrum.
And finally, the development of an electromagnetic approach to provide pain relief would not only add another treatment modality, but would help the youthful science and practice of pain management grow by broadening its armamentarium and horizons. It is a field still driven with internecine struggles (4-7), with specialties trumpeting ideologies over science, each claiming exclusivity to a complex clinical disorder which more often than not, defeats our best efforts. We grow, and our patients ultimately benefit when we are able to transcend our petty bickering in favor of the larger issue. Another treatment option is a welcome addition to the family, and the ability to embrace, incorporate, and nurture any new idea is a sign of intellectual and clinical maturity. Let the magnetic force be with us
******************************************************************
Frank Adams, MD, FRCPC, DAAPM, is a neuropharmacologist who is in private practice in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. He has been chief of pain services at major cancer centers in the United States and Canada. Dr. Adams is certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, is a diplomat of the American Academy of Pain Management, and is Associate Professor, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario.
******************************************************************
REFERENCES
1. George MS, Wasserman, EM, Post RM. Transcranial magnetic stimulation: a neuropsychiatric tool for the 21st Century.
2. Weintraub MI. Chronic submaximal magnetic stimulation in peripheral neuropathy. American Journal of Pain Management, 1998.
REFERENCES (continued)
3. Hashimoto M, Ohtsuka K. Transcranial magnetic stimulation over the posterior cerebellum during visually guided saccades in man. BRAIN, 1995.
4. ADAMS F. Recommendations for clinical guidelines for
pharmacotherapy of intractable pain of cancerous and nocancerous etiology. American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
5. Shealy, CN. A response to recommendations for clinical guidelines for pharmacotherapy of intractable pain of cancerous and noncancerous etiology. American Journal of pain Management, 1995.
6. Zimmerman SJ. The use of narcotics in nonmalignant pain (letter). American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
7. Washburn, TC. The use of narcotics in nonmalignant pain (letter). American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
I am enclosing a serious study done on the subject for your review:
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PAIN MANAGEMENT
MAGNETIC NEUROMEDICINE: AN "ATTRACTIVE" PROMISE
Frank Adams, MD, FRCPC, DAAPM
Magnetism is one of the fundamental forces of nature---a phenomenon known and speculated about, studied and utilized in one manner or other since antiquity. It is most commonly associated with the compass---a direction finder which, in the West, dates from the 13th Century---that revolutionized navigation and pointed the way to the New World. It is a long voyage from the ancient high seas to modern medicine, but recent developments indicate that this ubiquitous force may have a place in the treatment of certain central and peripheral nervous disorders as well. The therapeutic potential suggested by early clinical experiments and speculation might very well lead to the development of a new treatment modality--Magnetic NeuroMedicine--with important implications for pain management.
Magnetism is already well established in medicine as an investigative tool of inarguable importance (magnetic resonance imaging or MRI). Less well known is the existence of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). A small circle of investigators, having made extensive use of TMS as a noninvasive method of mapping regional brain activity, has been applying it experimentally to treat such neuropsychiatric disorders as Parkinson's Disease, clinical depression, migraine, and epilepsy (1). Encouraged by early results, clinical researchers unflinchingly proclaim that TMS will be a "neurophyschiatric tool for the 21 St. century" (1), the hyperbole or prescience of this statement to be decided in the crucible of clinical reality.
In this issue of the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PAIN MANAGEMENT, Michael Weintraub, MD, using a less sophisticated technique, provides further evidence in support of the magnetism's therapeutic potential. This is a small but impressive pilot study in which patients used garden variety magnets to treat painful symptoms of peripheral neuropathies of multiple origins (2). The project was undertaken because the author was intrigued by the public's embrace of commercially available magnetic devices for the treatment of sore feet, a non conventional medicine approach based upon purely anecdotal reports. But, as the author notes, in 1995, the sales of these devices amounted to $100-million in the US and CANADA, and an estimated 1.2-billion worldwide---and "attractive" venture fueled by mainstream medicine's continuing neglect of pain.
Nonconventional medicine attracts the Desperate and often gullible sufferers of orphan conditions. Mainstream medicine equates it with charlatanism and generally dismisses nonconventional methods as unsound and unproven, all too often without any evidence 'for' or "against". In this case, the author resisted that reflexive and unscientific response, and, with a handful of patients and a relatively straightforward methodology, decided to put magnetism--and, indirectly, mainstream medicine, to the test. It is fair to say that magnetism may not be the "antibiotic" of pain medicine, but the surprising and dramatic outcome justifies the author's conclusion that the "...results are exciting and encouraging and warrant further investigation..." which he is undertaking.
Weintraub chose patients with peripheral neuropathies, conditions that are largely intractable, are usually progressive, and are refractive to most conventional therapies. Fourteen patients, eight with diabetic neuropathies (DN) were given magnetic foot pad insoles which they were to wear 24 hours a day for up to four months. The investigator used a variety of electrophysciology studies, and the patients utilized visual analogue scales (VAS) twice a day to quantify their pain.
Overall, 64% of the 14 patients showed statistically significant improvement in the paresthesias of numbness and tingling. DN patients had the best response of the two groups, with 75% (6/8) improving, 38% (3/8) completely. The N-DN group had a 50% response rate. VAS scores reflected the changes in decreased pain.
The most significant finding is that peripheral neuropathies are, for the most part, responsive to continuous submaximal magnetic stimulation (CSMS). Additionally, the treatment is relatively inexpensive and has no side effects. The most disquieting finding was that the conditions returned when treatment was discontinued, suggesting that treatment was symptomatic at best. On balance, however, this therapeutic outcome differs little from that of most pain management modalities which usually relieve but do not eliminate the pathology. The most logical conclusion to be drawn from this small unblinded trial is that CSMS has therapeutic promise which needs to be rigorously and systematically explored.
Weintraub credibly speculates on the biological effects of magnetism on nerve conduction fibers. It is known that the pathophysiology of dysesthesia involves the unmyelimated and myelinated small C-fibers. He theorizes the CSMS selectively recruits C-fibers which, in neuropathic pain, are inhibited by the large A-delta fibers.
Anticonvulsants are also believed to act on C-fibers by affecting the voltage-dependent sodium or calcium channels. This raises the question as to whether combination magnetic-pharmacological treatment in cases where monotherapy by either method is not effective could be considered a viable therapeutic option. The attractiveness of combination therapy is enhanced by the author's speculation that magnetism improves blood flow. This contributes to a milieu in which opioids and the proliferation of opoid receptors tend to flourish. It is not a quantum leap in reasoning to envisage some pain treatments based upon, "magnetic-pharmacology".
The author uses the term neuro-protective to describe the effects of CSMA. Whether that was operative in these patients is not clear, especially if it is meant to imply retardation or prevention of the disorder's progression. Neuro-protection is an important concept, and further research is warranted if for no other reason than to see if CSMA not only delays progression of peripheral nerve damage but whether, as in the case of some toxic cancer chemotherapy's, can prevent it.
Vincristine, for example, is a highly effective chemotherapy for the treatment of acute lymphocyte leukemia (ALL). But its notorious peripheral nerve toxicity is the major dose-limiting factor, preventing more effective treatment. Truly NEURO-PROTECTIVE, CSMS would dramatically alter all therapy.
The public market for magnet devices for painful conditions is robust, even--or especially--without medicine's tacit approval. Magnetic steel balls are marketed for arthritis and fibromyalgia. There are even magnetic mattress pads for sore backs. It is intriguing to think how much more effectively these conditions might be treated with magnetized garments (eg, corsets, gloves, neck collars, socks) designed to be worn all or most of the time--the constant exposure an important condition the author tells us.
The study is not isolated or an idiosyncratic example of magnetism's possible therapeutic value. It is one of a number of impressive clinical experiences to demonstrate this force's positive biological activity (1). TMS, earlier referred to in the experimental treatment of neurological disorders has been used to stimulate the cerebellar vermis to demonstrate its function in the control of saccadic eye movements (3). Could this same laser precision magnetic probe someday become the magic bullet to the thalamus, the putative storm center of pain? TMS and magnified booties may represent the high and low tech cousins, respectively, of a dynamic force spectrum.
And finally, the development of an electromagnetic approach to provide pain relief would not only add another treatment modality, but would help the youthful science and practice of pain management grow by broadening its armamentarium and horizons. It is a field still driven with internecine struggles (4-7), with specialties trumpeting ideologies over science, each claiming exclusivity to a complex clinical disorder which more often than not, defeats our best efforts. We grow, and our patients ultimately benefit when we are able to transcend our petty bickering in favor of the larger issue. Another treatment option is a welcome addition to the family, and the ability to embrace, incorporate, and nurture any new idea is a sign of intellectual and clinical maturity. Let the magnetic force be with us
******************************************************************
Frank Adams, MD, FRCPC, DAAPM, is a neuropharmacologist who is in private practice in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. He has been chief of pain services at major cancer centers in the United States and Canada. Dr. Adams is certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, is a diplomat of the American Academy of Pain Management, and is Associate Professor, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario.
******************************************************************
REFERENCES
1. George MS, Wasserman, EM, Post RM. Transcranial magnetic stimulation: a neuropsychiatric tool for the 21st Century.
2. Weintraub MI. Chronic submaximal magnetic stimulation in peripheral neuropathy. American Journal of Pain Management, 1998.
REFERENCES (continued)
3. Hashimoto M, Ohtsuka K. Transcranial magnetic stimulation over the posterior cerebellum during visually guided saccades in man. BRAIN, 1995.
4. ADAMS F. Recommendations for clinical guidelines for
pharmacotherapy of intractable pain of cancerous and nocancerous etiology. American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
5. Shealy, CN. A response to recommendations for clinical guidelines for pharmacotherapy of intractable pain of cancerous and noncancerous etiology. American Journal of pain Management, 1995.
6. Zimmerman SJ. The use of narcotics in nonmalignant pain (letter). American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
7. Washburn, TC. The use of narcotics in nonmalignant pain (letter). American Journal of Pain Management, 1995.
-
Kevin Mackie
- Posts: 671
- Joined: Wed Sep 16, 1998 6:01 am
Magnets
I'll beat everyone to the punch Enrique, How did the control group fare? Was there one?
14 data points don't count in any study as statistically significant. How can one separate the effects of magnetism from, 1) a placebo effect, and 2)the effects of the padding in the shoes.?
Kevin
14 data points don't count in any study as statistically significant. How can one separate the effects of magnetism from, 1) a placebo effect, and 2)the effects of the padding in the shoes.?
Kevin
-
Evan Pantazi
- Posts: 1897
- Joined: Thu Sep 17, 1998 6:01 am
- Location: N. Andover, Ma. USA
- Contact:
Magnets
J.D. San,
Wasn't me this time...but I will thank Enrique San for the input. And Thank God the guy that invented those MRI things believed in magnets.
------------------
Evan Pantazi
www.erols.com/kyusho
Wasn't me this time...but I will thank Enrique San for the input. And Thank God the guy that invented those MRI things believed in magnets.
------------------
Evan Pantazi
www.erols.com/kyusho
-
Enrique Mitman
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Tue Jul 27, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Newton, Massachusetts. USA
- Contact:
Magnets
Yes Kevin, there was a control group. This was a small first study on magnetic neuromedicine and its results were published in the Wall Street Journal a few months ago. I received an extensive fax on the study from a Baltimore Doctor named Lee Gresser M.D. You can get the same study by calling him at his office. I can e-mail you his phone number. Unfortunately I was challanged to produce the study by another Uechi practitioner who enrolled in the Air Force a month ago and took the (hard to read) faxed copy with him. As a result of that study, there are scores of additional research and studies being done as we write.
Dr.X, when millions of people claim to be helped by quality magnets, and when the first scientific medical studies (although small for the time being) show promise and the need for further research, it would be a disservice to the medical profession and its patients to insist that the subject has no relevance.
The following two doctors in the US are at the forefront of this technology:
PAUL J. ROSH, M.D. is a fellow and life member of the American College of Physicians. An international authority on the relationship between stress and illness, he has served as president of the American Institute of Stress for 20 years. Editor of stress medicine, Dr. Rosch has written extensively on all aspects of stress over the past 45 years. He is a clinical professor of medicine and psychiatry at New York medical college and past president of the New York State Society of Internal Medicine. He has been interviewed on 60 minutes and widely quoted in the media, including the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and the London Times.
RON LAWRENCE, M.D., Ph.D., is president of the North american Academy of Magnetic Therapy. Considered a leading authority on the medical use of magnets and a respected neurologist with over 45 years experience, Dr. Lawrence established the first in-patient pain center in the United States. He has studied and practiced acupuncture, served on the national advisory council on aging at the National institute of Health, and is an assistant clinical professor at the UCLA School of Medicine.
These two doctors published a book in 1998 titled "Magnet Therapy, The pain cure alternative". here is Amazon.com Book Description:
Magnet therapy is an ancient form of healing that is enjoying renewed interest and popularity. By creating magnetic fields that penetrate deep into the affected tissue, magnet therapy enhances the flow of oxygen, ions, and nutrients and spurs the healing process. This book outlines how magnets work, the most effective placements of magnets on the body, and the many benefits of using magnets to treat common ailments. In addition, the potential effectiveness of magnet therapy in treating Parkinson's disease, hearing impairment and depression
is examined.
Here are some reviews:
DOCTORB@PDQ.NET from KATY, TEXAS , November 25, 1998
GREAT BOOK HELPS PODIATRIST GET GREAT RESULTS!
I WAS EXCITED TO SEE DR.LAWRENCE WRITE A COMPREHENSIVE BOOK ABOUT MAGNETIC
THERAPY THAT COULD BE UNDERSTOOD BY BOTH THE LAY PUBLIC AS WELL AS A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. AS A PODIATRIC SURGEON AND PHYSICIAN, I INCORPORATED MAGNETIC THERAPY INTO MY PRACTICE 8 MONTHS AGO, UTILIZING THEM IN SPORTS INJURIES AND POST-OP BANDAGING AND GETTING TERRIFIC RESULTS.
healthy7@aol.com from San Francisco Bay Area, USA , October 19, 1998
Magnets are changing health care. This book tells you why.
Dr. Lawrence, Dr. Rosch, and Ms. Plowden do an excellent job of summarizing recent findings on how magnets are being used by medical and other professionals around the world to help people with chronic health problems of all kinds -- without the negative side effects commonly associated with drugs and surgery. In lay person
language this book tells you where and how to use health-grade magnet products for best results with problems ranging from back discomfort, to joint stiffness, to attention and sleep disorders and more. It also discusses how magnets were used in health care for more than 4 thousand years and why we are returning to their use after
almost 80 years of using drugs and surgery as alternatives. This book points out that contemporary medical professionals were not trained in the use of magnets for health, so few have any awareness of their use. If you or someone you love has a chronic health problem, get and read this book then try health-grade magnets for yourself!
After having said and copied all of above, let me summarize with the statement that health grade magnets are not a magic bullet. Their understanding is still in the preliminary stages. Substantial research is still needed to truly understand it. However lets remember that Medicine is not an exact science and since ther are no known side effects from millions of users over the last few hundred years (specially in the Far East, we should not discard it summarily based on "technicalities".
Dr.X, when millions of people claim to be helped by quality magnets, and when the first scientific medical studies (although small for the time being) show promise and the need for further research, it would be a disservice to the medical profession and its patients to insist that the subject has no relevance.
The following two doctors in the US are at the forefront of this technology:
PAUL J. ROSH, M.D. is a fellow and life member of the American College of Physicians. An international authority on the relationship between stress and illness, he has served as president of the American Institute of Stress for 20 years. Editor of stress medicine, Dr. Rosch has written extensively on all aspects of stress over the past 45 years. He is a clinical professor of medicine and psychiatry at New York medical college and past president of the New York State Society of Internal Medicine. He has been interviewed on 60 minutes and widely quoted in the media, including the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and the London Times.
RON LAWRENCE, M.D., Ph.D., is president of the North american Academy of Magnetic Therapy. Considered a leading authority on the medical use of magnets and a respected neurologist with over 45 years experience, Dr. Lawrence established the first in-patient pain center in the United States. He has studied and practiced acupuncture, served on the national advisory council on aging at the National institute of Health, and is an assistant clinical professor at the UCLA School of Medicine.
These two doctors published a book in 1998 titled "Magnet Therapy, The pain cure alternative". here is Amazon.com Book Description:
Magnet therapy is an ancient form of healing that is enjoying renewed interest and popularity. By creating magnetic fields that penetrate deep into the affected tissue, magnet therapy enhances the flow of oxygen, ions, and nutrients and spurs the healing process. This book outlines how magnets work, the most effective placements of magnets on the body, and the many benefits of using magnets to treat common ailments. In addition, the potential effectiveness of magnet therapy in treating Parkinson's disease, hearing impairment and depression
is examined.
Here are some reviews:
DOCTORB@PDQ.NET from KATY, TEXAS , November 25, 1998
GREAT BOOK HELPS PODIATRIST GET GREAT RESULTS!
I WAS EXCITED TO SEE DR.LAWRENCE WRITE A COMPREHENSIVE BOOK ABOUT MAGNETIC
THERAPY THAT COULD BE UNDERSTOOD BY BOTH THE LAY PUBLIC AS WELL AS A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. AS A PODIATRIC SURGEON AND PHYSICIAN, I INCORPORATED MAGNETIC THERAPY INTO MY PRACTICE 8 MONTHS AGO, UTILIZING THEM IN SPORTS INJURIES AND POST-OP BANDAGING AND GETTING TERRIFIC RESULTS.
healthy7@aol.com from San Francisco Bay Area, USA , October 19, 1998
Magnets are changing health care. This book tells you why.
Dr. Lawrence, Dr. Rosch, and Ms. Plowden do an excellent job of summarizing recent findings on how magnets are being used by medical and other professionals around the world to help people with chronic health problems of all kinds -- without the negative side effects commonly associated with drugs and surgery. In lay person
language this book tells you where and how to use health-grade magnet products for best results with problems ranging from back discomfort, to joint stiffness, to attention and sleep disorders and more. It also discusses how magnets were used in health care for more than 4 thousand years and why we are returning to their use after
almost 80 years of using drugs and surgery as alternatives. This book points out that contemporary medical professionals were not trained in the use of magnets for health, so few have any awareness of their use. If you or someone you love has a chronic health problem, get and read this book then try health-grade magnets for yourself!
After having said and copied all of above, let me summarize with the statement that health grade magnets are not a magic bullet. Their understanding is still in the preliminary stages. Substantial research is still needed to truly understand it. However lets remember that Medicine is not an exact science and since ther are no known side effects from millions of users over the last few hundred years (specially in the Far East, we should not discard it summarily based on "technicalities".
-
Enrique Mitman
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Tue Jul 27, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Newton, Massachusetts. USA
- Contact:
Magnets
I found a copy of the study. Here is the abstract. If anybody wants the complete study send me an e-mail:
Magnetic bio-stimulation in painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy: A novel intervention. A randomized, double-placebo crossover study.
Michael I. Weintraub, MD, FACP
The pathophysiology of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is complex and poorly understood. Despite the current state of technology, dysesthetic pain in the extremities of diabetics and other patients with neuropathies remains a refractory problem. Conventional treatment is largely symptomatic somewhat arbitary, and often ineffective. Prior preliminary studies suggested that the application of magnetic foot pads may be a modifiable factor in intractable neuropathy pain syndromes.
The primary objective of this randomized, double-placebo control, crossover trial was to test the effectiveness of magnetotherapy in neuropathic pain and also to assess the role of placebo. Secondary objectives were to quantify nerve conduction electrophysiologic changes and neurologic examination changes over a 4 month period.
Of 24 initial patients, 19 completed the 4 month trial. There were 10 patients with advanced and refractory DPN (stage ll/lll) and 9 non-DPN. Improvement was significantly more pronounced in the diabetic cohort, 90% versus 33%, at the end of the four months (p<0.02). During the first month, the placebo response was noted to be the same in both groups (22%) for symptoms of burning and numbness and tingling, whereas in the second month, the placebo effect was greater in the DPN cohort (38% versus 22%). This was felt to represent an overshoot phenomenon. At the end of the 4 months, improvement was significantly more pronounced in the diabetic cohort for burning (p<.05) and numbness and tingling reduction (p<.05). Neuropathologic differences identified severe damage principally in the diabetic cohort (absent CMAP 60%, absent SNAP 100%). whereas mild demyelinating changes were seen principally in the N-DPN group. These severe axonal changes were strongly predictive of clinical success and responsiveness. There were no significant serial changes in the neurologic examination or electrodiagnostic studies.
Painful dysesthesias associated with C-fiber dysfunction in the diabetic cohort responded dramatically to exposure to static magnetic fields. The most plausible explanation of benefit and suppresion of symptioms was that "K" internal rectifying channels were stimulated producing repolarization and/or hyperpolarization. Despite the uncertainty regarding the precise mechanism of this novel approach, the results are impressive and suggest that a legitimacy exists for magnetotherapy as a safe and uniquetherapy in neuropathy diabetic foot pain. These preliminary data need to be validated by a larger longitudinal study.
Magnetic bio-stimulation in painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy: A novel intervention. A randomized, double-placebo crossover study.
Michael I. Weintraub, MD, FACP
The pathophysiology of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is complex and poorly understood. Despite the current state of technology, dysesthetic pain in the extremities of diabetics and other patients with neuropathies remains a refractory problem. Conventional treatment is largely symptomatic somewhat arbitary, and often ineffective. Prior preliminary studies suggested that the application of magnetic foot pads may be a modifiable factor in intractable neuropathy pain syndromes.
The primary objective of this randomized, double-placebo control, crossover trial was to test the effectiveness of magnetotherapy in neuropathic pain and also to assess the role of placebo. Secondary objectives were to quantify nerve conduction electrophysiologic changes and neurologic examination changes over a 4 month period.
Of 24 initial patients, 19 completed the 4 month trial. There were 10 patients with advanced and refractory DPN (stage ll/lll) and 9 non-DPN. Improvement was significantly more pronounced in the diabetic cohort, 90% versus 33%, at the end of the four months (p<0.02). During the first month, the placebo response was noted to be the same in both groups (22%) for symptoms of burning and numbness and tingling, whereas in the second month, the placebo effect was greater in the DPN cohort (38% versus 22%). This was felt to represent an overshoot phenomenon. At the end of the 4 months, improvement was significantly more pronounced in the diabetic cohort for burning (p<.05) and numbness and tingling reduction (p<.05). Neuropathologic differences identified severe damage principally in the diabetic cohort (absent CMAP 60%, absent SNAP 100%). whereas mild demyelinating changes were seen principally in the N-DPN group. These severe axonal changes were strongly predictive of clinical success and responsiveness. There were no significant serial changes in the neurologic examination or electrodiagnostic studies.
Painful dysesthesias associated with C-fiber dysfunction in the diabetic cohort responded dramatically to exposure to static magnetic fields. The most plausible explanation of benefit and suppresion of symptioms was that "K" internal rectifying channels were stimulated producing repolarization and/or hyperpolarization. Despite the uncertainty regarding the precise mechanism of this novel approach, the results are impressive and suggest that a legitimacy exists for magnetotherapy as a safe and uniquetherapy in neuropathy diabetic foot pain. These preliminary data need to be validated by a larger longitudinal study.
