Magnetic Therapy

Magnetic therapy refers to the application of specially designed magnets to various parts of the body for many beneficial reasons such as relieving pain, improving sleep and even the reversal of several degenerative diseases.

The factor that swings most people in favor of magnetic therapy is that even after 40 years of research, there have been no side effects related to magnetic therapy. While some skeptics may argue the benefits of magnetic therapy, not one of them can refute the fact that magnetic therapy causes no known harm to humans.

History Of Magnetic Therapy

In fact, the use of magnetic therapy for healing goes back much further than just 40 years. Ancient Egyptians used loadstones for healing. It is often said that Cleopatra wore a polished loadstone on her third eye to help preserve her unparallel beauty and youth.

In more recent times, Paracelsus (1493-1541) – often considered to be the Father of modern medicine – believed that the life force of the body was influenced by the force of magnets. He believed that any injured portion of the body when exposed to a magnet would heal faster than it can with any other medicine.

Father Hall, an Austrian professor of Astronomy treated nervous men and women using magnetic therapy. Messer (1734-1815) applied magnetic treatment to his patients and succeeded in curing many complex ailments. However, it was Hanneman (1775-1843) who first used magnetic therapy for the treatment of illness. He exposed milk and water to magnets and used the magnetized water to treat over 1243 symptoms of illness.

Thus, magnet therapy has existed long before it became popular in the West. Most Asian nations like India, China and Japan have been using magnetic therapy as a valid system of healing for centuries. The popularity has now spread to the West.

How Does Magnetic Therapy Work?

The exact answer to this question is not really known. With all the years of research, science is still unable to provide a solid theory explaining how magnetic therapy works. One theory goes that the magnetic field affects the hemoglobin (iron component of blood) and increases circulation to the injured area when magnets are applied.

Another theory goes that magnets energize and oxygenate the white blood corpuscles in the body. The WBCs are natural healing agents and work more efficiently thanks to greater oxygen.

Yet another theory is that all physical and mental functions of the body are controlled by the movement of electro chemicals or ions within the body. When a body part suffers injury all the positive ions move there causing pain and swelling. By using a magnetic field, the natural negative electromagnetic state is restored. The magnetic field also helps to relax capillary walls and surrounding muscles and tissues thereby allowing increased blood flow. More oxygen and nutrients are supplied to the injured area and result in faster healing.

However, all common sense and logic says that magnetic therapy increases blood circulation and this allows the body’s natural healing mechanism to function more effectively.

Using Magnets For Therapy

The most important thing to remember is that magnets are NOT for everyone. Magnets can interfere with the functioning of pacemakers and automatic internal defibrillators. They can also be harmful for a fetus so should be avoided by pregnant women. Other than this, magnetic therapy is beneficial for pretty much everyone.

There are various factors that determine how effective a magnet will be. The power of the magnet or its strength is an important factor. Gauss refers to a magnet’s strength. Generally therapists recommend magnets with higher gauss power (1000 to 3000) for chronic problems like paralysis, backache and rheumatism. For delicate areas like ears and eyes 500 gauss power is generally considered sufficient. 500 gauss power is also enough when treating children.

Generally it is also better if the magnet penetrates a large surface area of the body. This is why magnetic mattresses have gained much popularity.

One can also charge water magnetically by placing it on the negative pole of a magnet for 5 minutes or so. Drinking this magnetically charged water twice a day can provide immense benefits as experienced by those who undergo magnetic therapy.

Placing Magnets On The Body

There are three possible ways to place the magnets on your body.

The first method of treatment is to place the magnets at the site of injury. Magnets often work best in a balanced application. So if you want to cure knee pain it is best to use a magnet at the front and another one at the back of the knee. This is the reason why magnetic pads for knees, elbows and various other parts of the body are often sold in pairs.

The second method of treatment is slightly more complicated and believes in treating the cause of the problem rather than the problem itself. So it suggests that if you have a back pain that has actually been caused by a strained knee, it is better to place the magnets on the knee rather than the back directly. This method is not very popular.

The third method combines magnetic therapy with acupressure and acupuncture. It requires expert level knowledge of acupressure. In this method you place the magnets on the various acupressure points that will affect healing in the body.

Can I treat Myself Using Magnetic Therapy?

Yes, you can. However, it is important to know the appropriate gauss strength you need to treat your particular problem. It is also necessary to know where the pressure points of the body are that you need to place the magnets on. Also how long the magnetic field should be exposed to the body? All these variables can be understood and evaluated best by an experienced magnetic therapist only. So it is always advisable to go to a trained practitioner.

Using Magnetic Products

As stated before magnetic therapy has no negative consequences and you can choose to use magnetic products freely. Other than people who are using medical devices to aid their basic bodily functions and pregnant women, pretty much anyone can use magnetic products to relieve some pain.

Whether magnetic therapy really works you need to experience it yourself.