WHAT IS IT?
Science has established the fact that electricity and magnetic energy exist in the human body. Indeed, we cannot survive without the tiny amounts of electricity that control heartbeat, stimulate muscles to action, and perform many other necessary functions.
Because our bodies "run" on electric currents, we are able to use powerful jolts of electricity in hospital emergency rooms to restart the electrical systems of heart attack victims. Devices sensitive to electric currents (called electroencephalograms or EEGs) measure the electrical activity of the brain. Cardiologists evaluate the electrical patterns of heartbeats with electrocardiograms (EKGs).
It is also known that each of the body's molecules contains a tiny amount of magnetic energy.
From all this, it would seem that electromagnetic energy applied to the body could be therapeutic. This is what "energy medicine" supporters believe. They developed electrical, magnetic, microwave, infrared, and other energy-based devices for healing purposes. These devices were to be used instead of drug-based treatments.
That is how this type of alternative therapy began. It goes by names such as electromagnetism, bioelectricity, magnetobiology, magnetic field therapy, and magnetic healing.
Modern alternative electromagnetic therapies almost always depend on some type of external galvanic or electrified device said to identify and treat disease. A number of instruments, often referred to as "black boxes," are offered as alternative cures for everything from arthritis to cancer.
One contemporary healer in Florida has patients place their bare feet in a basin of water. A small electric charge is run through the water. This charged water is said to "treat" many different ailments, including cancer. Although there is no evidence that this process helps, a world-renowned golfer uses the treatment to improve his golf swing.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Although there is no scientific evidence that this approach to treating disease is useful, supporters continue to make claims about its value. Many electromagnetic therapies are sold today. However, none is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA has the power to regulate such devices.
Supporters say that when electromagnetic frequencies or fields of energy within our bodies go out of balance, disease and illness occurs. They believe that these imbalances disrupt the body's chemical makeup.
Practitioners believe that they can correct these flaws by applying electrical energy from the outside. There are many "black boxes" which supporters claim will correct these "imbalances" in the body. They promise to restore energy levels and return the patient to good health.
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