Magnetic therapy for arthritis

pattiemay

Hi, wonder if anyone can help. I've been reading some posts from a while back on magnetic braclets etc. but it has not helped me to decide wether to buy one. The doctors cannot suggest anything other than painkillers (which upset my stomach too much)for the bad osteoarthritis I have in my hand and wrist and as it is getting worse I thought I would give the magnets a go but cannot find anyone (other than my colleague at work who says her horse has benefited from magnetic boots!) that has actually tried these and if so, has it helped at all?. Would be grateful for some info and which to buy please.

talksalot81

Scientifically there is next to no evidence of these working and no acceptable theory on why they ever would.

If you are inclined to force yourself to feel better in light of spending the money (as many many people subconsciously are!), then it'll probably work. If you are a disbeliever, dont waste your money.

Mojisola

We used Bioflow magnets on our dog. He couldn't report back on the pain relief but he moved more easily and was able to walk further.

It does seem to depend on the type and strength of magnetic. Bioflow had a 3 month money back guarentee so you could try it for yourself.

If, as talksalot81 says, it only works if you believe in it - then believe in it and live a pain-free life. Who cares how it works if you're rid of the pain?

Ted_Hutchinson

pattiemay wrote: »

The doctors cannot suggest anything other than painkillers (which upset my stomach too much)for the bad osteoarthritis

This paper suggests The biochemical origin of pain: the origin of all pain is inflammation and the inflammatory response the author says the origin of all pain is inflammation and the inflammatory response.

May I suggest you go back to your GP and ask for a 25(OH)D test if your GP doesn't think it necessary as for a referral to The Doctor's Laboratory who will do one privately for £40.

You may like to take a copy of this to your GP. and maybe this as well.

There are other natural anti inflammatory agents such as omega 3 fish oil & olive oil that will help if you take an effective amount. That research used fish oil omega-3 fatty acids (3 g/d) and 9.6 mL of olive oil. So to get that much Omega 3 you would need a desertspoon full of Zipvit omega juice and another desertspoon full of olive oil (ordinary vigin olive oil will do it doesn't have to be from the pharmacy)

Static magnets for reducing pain: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials

kaya

we used a magnetic collar on our old dog, it worked wonders, i dont think that the effect was a placebo as we didnt explain to the dog what was going on in the first place(seriously)

BlondeHeadOn

I tried the Bioflow but didn't like it - it made me feel very strange, so I stopped using it. However, I immediately got my money back - all of it - under their 3-month money back guarantee. So it is worth trying one, as you can get all your money back anyway.

Hope this helps.

moneysaving_pharmacist

There is hardly any evidence supporting the use of magnets for OA, and this press release from the OFT is quite amusing http://www.oft.gov.uk/news/press/2007/6-07

There is a placebo effect in animals and children! The placebo effect is a strange thing and you don't need to know what is going on for there to be a placebo effect - just giving something to a pet can evoke a placebo effect. In adults, the size of the placebo effect is affected by the intervention - certain coloured placebo painkillers evoke a bigger response than others, and an injection evokes a larger response than tablets.

If it is osteoarthritis you should ideally be using paracetamol, and taking it reguarly. Other things can be added on if needed, but it is possible to manage osteoarthritis without anti-inflamatory drugs.

moneysaving_pharmacist

Ted_Hutchinson wrote: »

This paper suggests The biochemical origin of pain: the origin of all pain is inflammation and the inflammatory response the author says the origin of all pain is inflammation and the inflammatory response.

May I suggest you go back to your GP and ask for a 25(OH)D test if your GP doesn't think it necessary as for a referral to The Doctor's Laboratory who will do one privately for £40.

You may like to take a copy of this to your GP. and maybe this as well.

There are other natural anti inflammatory agents such as omega 3 fish oil & olive oil that will help if you take an effective amount. That research used fish oil omega-3 fatty acids (3 g/d) and 9.6 mL of olive oil. So to get that much Omega 3 you would need a desertspoon full of Zipvit omega juice and another desertspoon full of olive oil (ordinary vigin olive oil will do it doesn't have to be from the pharmacy)

Static magnets for reducing pain: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials

Any idea how predictable you are Ted? And do you actually look at any of the papers you link to? If you do, why not give a little bit of information about them?

Something like this:
The paper was published in the Canadian Medical Journal (I don't know too much about this, but it's not one of the top 5 or so).It was written by a team of academics at Exter, who have a good reputation for investigating complementary medicine (anything with Edzard Ernst as a co-author should be pretty good). It was a systematic review and meta-analysis, so basically they looked at all the trials that had been done in the area, and pulled the results together where they could to analyse them. They found that the evidence does not support the use of static magnets for pain relief, and so magnets cannot be recommended as an effective treatment. For osteoarthritis the evidence is insufficient to exclude a clinically important benefit (not sure why they've worded it this way, would normally go along the lines of insufficient evidence of benefit over placebo). More research is needed.

Mojisola

moneysaving_pharmacist wrote: »

Any idea how predictable you are Ted?

Please don't turn another thread into an "attack Ted" thread.

Like everyone else in the other replies, Ted has suggested some things to be considered. We're all old enough to read stuff and make up our own minds.

pattiemay

kaya wrote: »

we used a magnetic collar on our old dog, it worked wonders, i dont think that the effect was a placebo as we didnt explain to the dog what was going on in the first place(seriously)

Like it! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Ted_Hutchinson

moneysaving_pharmacist wrote: »

Any idea how predictable you are Ted? And do you actually look at any of the papers you link to? If you do, why not give a little bit of information about them?

Because if I comment on them folk shout at me that I am giving medical advice.

I think most people here are capable of reading the conclusion and coming to the same conclusion that both you and I have come to.