Magnetic Field Therapy

  • Magnetic therapy is not new.   On the contrary, it has been in use for several thousand years.   Cleopatra used loadstones (natural magnets) to surpress wrinkles.   Orientals believe it can improve the Chi or natural balance of the body.   Great strides were made in the 20's.   Then God (The American Medical Assn.) assured us it was dangerous and worthless.   Sound familiar?

  • Electromagnetic energy and the human body have a valid and important interrelationship.   Magnetic field therapy can be used in both diagnosing and treating physical and emotional disorders.   This process has been recognized to relieve symptoms and may, in some cases retard the cycle of new disease.   Magnets and electromagnetic therapy devices are now being used to eliminate pain, facilitate the healing of broken bones, boost immune systems, relieve diabetes symptoms and counter the effects of stress and depression.   Recent studies suggest it can be beneficial for migraines, a problem which has baffled physicians for years.

    The world is surrounded by magnetic fields: some are generated by the earths magnetism, while others are generated by solar storms and changes in the weather.   Magnetic fields are also created by everyday electrical devices: motors, televisions, office equipment, computers, microwave ovens, the electrical wiring in homes, and the power lines that supply them.   Even the human body produces subtle magnetic fields that are generated by the chemical reactions within the cells and the ionic currents on the nervous system.

    Recently, scientists have discovered that external magnetic fields can affect the body’s functioning in both positive and negative ways, and this observation has led to the development of magnetic field therapy.

  • What Is Magnetic Field Therapy?
    The use of magnets and electrical devices to generate controlled magnetic fields has many medical applications, and has proven to be one of the most effective means for diagnosing human illness and disease.   For example, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is replacing x-ray diagnosis because it is safer and more accurate, and magnetoencephalography is now replacing electroencephalography as the preferred technique for recording the brain’s electrical activity.

    In 1974, researcher Albert Roy Davis, Ph.D., noted that positive and negative magnetic polarities have different effects upon biological systems of animals and humans.   He found that magnets could be used to arrest and kill cancer cells in animals, and could also be used in the treatment of arthritis, glaucoma, infertility, and diseases related to aging.   He concluded that negative magnetic fields have a beneficial effect on living organisms, whereas positive magnetic fields have a stressful effect.

    "Scientifically designed, double-blind , placebo-controlled studies, however, have not been done to substantiate the claims of there being different effects between positive and negative magnetic poles", says John Zimmerman, Ph.D., president of the Bio-Electro Magnetics Institute. "But numerous anecdotal, clinical observations suggest that such differences are real and do exist.   Clearly scientific research is needed to substantiate these claims." Robert Becker, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon and author of numerous scientific articles and books, found that weak electric currents promote the healing of broken bones.

    According to Wolfgang Ludwig, Sc.D., Ph.D., Director of the Institute for Biophysics in Horb, Germany, "Magnetic field therapy is a method that penetrates the whole human body and can treat every organ without chemical side effects."   Magnetic field therapy has been used effectively in the treatment of:

    Cancer, Rheumatoid Disease, Headaches and migraines, Insomnia and sleep disorders Circulatory problems, Fractures and pain, Environmental stress

    Dr. Ludwig adds that magnetic changes in the environment can affect the electromagnetic balance of the human organism and contribute to disease.   Kyoichi Nakagawa, M.D., Director of the Isuzu Hospital in Tokyo, Japan, believes that the time people spend in buildings and cars reduces their exposure to the natural geomagnetic fields of the earth, and may also interfere with health.   He calls this condition magnetic field deficiency syndrome, which can cause headaches, dizziness, muscle stiffness, chest pain, insomnia, constipation, and general fatigue.   Researchers suggest that magnetic therapy can be used to counter the effects caused by the electromagnetic pollution in the environment.
  • How Magnetic Field Therapy Works
    "The healing potential of magnets is possible because the body’s nervous system is governed in part, by varying patterns of ionic currents and electromagnetic fields," reports Dr. Zimmerman.   There are numerous forms of magnetic field therapy, including static magnetic fields produced by natural or artificial magnets, and pulsating magnetic fields generated by electrical devices.   The magnetic fields produced by magnets or electromagnetic generating devices are able to penetrate the human body and can affect the functioning of the nervous system, organs, and cells.   According to William H Philpott, M. D., of Chooctaw, Oklahoma, an author and biomagnetic researcher, magnetic fields can stimulate metabolism and increase the amount of oxygen available to cells.   When used properly magnetic field therapy has no known harmful side effects.

    All magnets have two poles: one is called positive, and the other negative.   However, as there are conflicting methods of naming the poles of a magnet, a magnetometer should be used as a standard method of determination (if one is using a compass to locate the poles, the arrowhead of the needle marked "N" or "North" will point to the magnet’s negative pole).   Dr. Philpott and other researchers claim that the negative pole generally has a calming effect and helps to normalize metabolic functioning.   In contrast, the positive pole has a stress effect, and with prolonged exposure interferes with metabolic functioning, produces acidity, reduces cellular oxygen supply, and encourages, the replication or latent microorganism.   The strength of a magnet is measured in units of gauss (a unit of measuring the intensity for magnetic flux), or Tesla (1 tesla=10,000 gauss), and every magnetic device has a manufacturer’s gauss rating.   However the actual strength of the magnet at the skin surface is often much less than this number.   For Example, a 4,000 gauss magnet transmits about 1,200 gauss to the patient.   Magnets placed in pillows or bed pads will render even lower amounts of field strength at the skin surface, because a magnet’s strength quickly decreases with the distance from the subject.
  • How Magnets Are Used Therapeutically
    Magnetic Therapy can be applied in many ways, and devices range from small, simple magnets to large machines capable of generating high magnitudes of field strength (used for treating fractures and pseudoarthrosis, a joint affliction caused by nerve breakdown).   Magnetic blankets and beds have also been manufactured for the purposes of promoting sleep and reducing stress.   Specially designed ceramic, plastiform and neodymium (a rare earth chemical element) magnets can be placed either individually or in clusters above the various organs of the body on lymph nodes, or on various points of the head.   In Japan, small Tai-ki magnets have been designed to stimulate acupuncture points, but no clinical studies have yet explored this procedure.   Magnetic devices are quite popular in Germany, where the use of certain devices is covered by medical insurance.   After simple instruction is given to the patient, these devices can be used at home.
  • Conditions Benefited By Magnetic Field Therapy
    Treatment can last from just a few minutes to overnight and depending upon the situation and severity, may be applied several times a day, or for days or weeks at a time.   Sometimes, though, the results of magnetic therapy can be quite dramatic, as in a case cited by Dr. Ludwig.   A forty-six year old man had suffered for years from severe heart flutter, diarrhea, and nausea.   No treatment seemed to help, but when a magnetic applicator with less than one gauss of energy was placed upon his solar plexus for only three minutes, his symptoms immediately ceased.   Two years later, he had experienced no relapse.  

    In a case described by Dr. Philpott, a seventy-year old man who had undergone coronary bypass surgery continued to suffer from heart pain.   His walk was reduced to a shuffle, his speech was slurred, and he lived in a state of chronic depression.   He decided to try magnetic therapy and a plastiform magnet was placed over his heart.   Within ten minutes, the pain disappeared.   Magnets were applied to the crown of his head while he slept, and within a month, his depression was gone, his speech was clear, and his walking returned to normal.  

    In other cases cited by Dr. Philpott, magnets have helped to eliminate toothaches, eliminate periodontal disease, and eradicate fungal infections like candidiasis.   Kidney stones and calcium deposits in inflamed tissues have also been known to dissolve.   Magnetic therapy has been shown to be particularly effective in reducing swelling and edema.   According to Dr. Philpott, "Symptoms of cardiac atherosclerosis and brain atherosclerosis have been observed to disappear after six to eight weeks of nightly exposure to a negative static magnetic field."

  • Stress and Depression
    A negative magnetic field applied to the top of the head has a calming and sleep-inducing effect on brain and body functions, due to the stimulation of the production of the hormone melatonin, according to Dr. Philpott.   Melatonin has been shown to be anti-stressful, anti-aging, anti-infectious, anticancerous, and to have control over respiration and the production of free radicals.   A free radical is a highly destructive molecule that is missing an electron, and readily reacts with other molecules.   This can lead to the aging of cells, the hardening of muscle tissue, the wrinkling of skin, and in general, a decreased efficiency of protein synthesis.   As there are literally hundreds of diseases that are related to stress, infections, and aging, magnetic field therapy could be considered an important adjunct in their treatment and researchers are currently studying its contributions.
  • Bacterial, Fungal, and Viral Infections
    "A negative magnetic field can function like an antibiotic in helping to destroy acterial, fungal, and viral infections," says Dr. Philpott, "by promoting oxygenation and lowering the body’s acidity."   Both these factors are beneficial to normal bodily functions but harmful to pathogenic (disease-causing) microorganisms, which do not survive in a well oxygenated, alkaline environment.   Dr. Philpott theorizes that the biological value of oxygen is increased by the influence of a negative electromagnetic field, and that the field causes negatively charged DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) to "pull" oxygen out of the bloodstream and into the cell.   The negative electromagnetic field keeps the cellular buffer system (pH or acid-based balance) intact so that the cells remain alkaline.   The low acid balance also helps maintain the presence of oxygen in the body.
  • Pain Relief
    A negative magnetic field normalizes the disturbed metabolic functions that cause painful conditions such as cellular edema (swelling of the cells), cellular acidosis (excessive acidity of the cells), lack of oxygen to the cells, and function.   Dr. Philpott cites the case of a women in her seventies who had experienced pain and weakness in her left leg for thirty-three years stemming from a blood clot in the groin area, and could not climb stairs, without stopping several times due to pain.   After twelve months of sleeping on a negative magneto-electro pad, the woman found that she could walk a long flight of stairs without any pain or weakness in her leg.   A negative magnetic field cannot take the place of local anesthetics and analgesics, however.   A positive magnetic field, on the other hand, can increase pain due to its interference with normal metabolic function.
  • Central Nervous System Disorders
    "When a negative magnetic field is placed directly over an area of electrical activity in the brain, the electrical excitement can be reduced," says Dr. Philpott. It can stop such symptoms as hallucinations, delusions, seizures, or panic without disrupting the patient’s mental alertness and orientation.   Small disc magnets (made form ceramic neodymium or iron oxide) can be placed around the head to alleviate these kinds of symptoms.   Dr. Philpott has pioneered the use of magnetic therapy for numerous psychiatric disorders, and he believes that in the future subtle uses of magnets will be used to control a variety of symptoms and central nervous systems disturbances. A woman who had a benign tumor removed from her spine could not walk without dragging her feet.   When Dr. Philpott placed a positive magnetic pole over the area where the tumor had been removed, she could walk perfectly.   With practice, and with help of both a positive and negative magnetic field, the neuronal function returned.   The positive field stimulated the nonfunctioning neurons and produced (as a reaction to stress) endorphins (natural opiates produced in the brain), while the negative field prevented the neurons from becoming overly excited.   Because of the potential dangers relating to positive magnetic fields, the period or exposure was quite brief.

    Caution: The body’s subtle electromagnetic fields can be affected by even the weakest of magnets.   For some patients, magnetic field therapy can cause pain, while others may have symptomatic reactions to various medications they are taking. nbsp Toxins may also be released into the body, causing severe reactions.   Dr. Philpott adds the following precautions: Don’t use magnets on the abdomen during pregnancy.   Don’t use a magnetic bed for more than eight to ten hours.  Wait sixty to ninety minutes after meals before applying magnetic therapy to the abdomen.   To prevent interference with peristalsis (wavelike contractions of the smooth muscles of the digestive tract).   Do not apply the positive magnetic pole unless under medical supervision.   It can produce seizures, hallucinations, insomnia, hyperactivity, stimulate the growth of tumors and microorganisms, and promote addictive behavior.
  • The Future of Magnetic Field Therapy
    With the rising popularity of magnetic field diagnostic techniques such as MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), magnets and electrical devices are beginning to gain mainstream medical acceptance as human diagnostic and treatment tools.   According to Dr. Philpott the application of magnets provides the most predictable results of any treatment he has observed. "It is not only valuable as a medical supervised technique, but for many self help problems such as insomnia, chronic pain, and tension." Because magnets do not introduce any foreign substance into the body this will, Dr. Philpott believes, make them safer over the long term than aspirin or other over-the-counter medications.

  • A small company came up with a novel concept which makes a great deal of sense.   Erectile dysfunction is primarily due to decreased blood flow to the penis (the basis of Viagra).   It has been clinically established that magnetic therapy increases blood flow.   They produce a jock strap with appropriately placed magnets.   I ordered two today! (hey, I'm over 60 and it doesn't works like it once did sigh).   Stay tuned.... I will spare you any sordid details if it turns me into a World Class Swordsman! (snort!)

  • Recent studies at The Baylor College of Medicine and Columbia University provide proof that magnetic therapy is much more than witchcraft.   For some problems it is a simple, inexpensive, non invasive way to treat them.

  • Magnetic therapy appears to be a real, "Heads you win, tails you break even" situation.   Before you spend your money be advised:

    1. Ignore what the hypsters claim about their magnets being unique.   Magnet strength is measured in "gauss"   Don't be fooled......gauss is gauss regardless of the material from which the magnet is made.   The strength will depend on the thickness for a given material.

    2. Promoters sell small discs, the size of an M&M, for 5-20 dollars!   Exactly the same magnet is sold for .50 to 1.00 without all they hype and hokus-pokus.   The best source I have found is Here   If you find a better one please advise.

    3. Amway has launched a magnetic therapy product line. They are coining this launch "as one of the greatest Amway product introductions." Their product line consists of the following:
    Magna Bloc Neuromagnet Discs (3).... $132.00
    Neoprene Head Wrap.......................... $ 70.00
    Terrycloth Elbow Wrap....................... $ 75.00
    Terrycloth Wrist Bands....................... $ 65.00
    Terrycloth Knee Bands........................ $ 75.00
    Neoprene Back Belt............................ $109.00

    Compare this with the prices on the above URL.   Only a 300-1,000% markup!

For a more extensive discussion see this site.

Please advise me of any results (good or bad) you have or have had with magnetic therapy.

Email Dr. Jon

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