Do Magnetic Bracelets Work

We have often heard that magnetic bracelets aid in healing various conditions like arthritis, chronic pain and provide stress relief. Wearing magnetic bracelets is said to improve sleep. But traditional physicians are still unsure about the health benefits of magnetic bracelets. Some people even believe that serious illnesses like cancer can be cured. These claims have been endorsed by advertisers of magnetic bracelets, but not by the medical community. Due to the lack of substantial scientific evidence, many doctors do not consider it as an effective medicinal tool.

Do Magnetic Bracelets Work?

A recent study revealed that magnetic bracelets help relieve pain associated with osteoarthritis. The research focused on 194 patients in the age group of 45-80, suffering from osteoarthritis of the hip or knee. The patients were divided into 3 groups. One group was asked to wear standard strength magnetic bracelets, while the other 2 groups were given a weak magnetic bracelet and a dummy bracelet. The results were quite encouraging. Patients who wore the standard magnetic bracelet for a period of 12 weeks experienced great relief from the pain. However, the group wearing weak magnetic bracelets did not find any significant change in their condition. The non-magnetic dummy bracelet was hardly of any use.

British Medical Journal Report

Research concluded that the pain due to osteoarthritis reduces considerably by wearing a standard magnetic bracelet. A detailed report about this research was published in the British Medical Journal. The report clearly states that the patients did not stop their existing treatment. It has thus concluded that magnetic therapy combined with pre-existing treatments showed health benefits. So patients are advised to follow their treatments as prescribed by the doctor. The ailment may not improve only by wearing magnetic bracelets. The research was done to know whether there was any truth to the claims made by magnetic bracelet manufacturers. To a certain extent, their claims cannot be denied or overlooked. Although results do appear in the favor of patients, it is not confirmed whether the benefits are due to placebo effects.

Magnetic bracelets are available in the price range of $50 to $70. People who manufacture magnetic bracelets advertise that these devices are capable of alleviating pain that occurs in variety of health problems. However, research has proved this wrong. Some studies revealed a considerable pain reduction and ease of discomfort was observed. However another study showed no positive effect on the patients. The research was also quick to add that magnetic bracelets and jewelry are not an affordable option as compared to other pain relieving medicines such as analgesics. Medicines like paracetamol cost only $30-35 a year.

Investigations are yet to ascertain the safety of magnetic healing in comparison to the use of analgesics. The team of experts also suggested that to reap benefits of magnetic bracelets, wearing a high strength magnet would be a better choice. Also, it is not possible to treat the whole body by wearing just one magnet. In other words, where there is substantial pain, you need to place magnets within or near that area. The experts clarified that with just one magnet around the wrist, one cannot reduce pain of the entire body. Decrease in pain is observed only in areas like wrist, fingers, arms or hand. However, till date, any major negative effects of wearing magnet bracelets have not been reported. Occasional rashes may be noticed on the skin that comes in contact with the bracelet.

There is no evidence that magnetic bracelets cure diseases. So avoiding the intake of traditional medicines and depending completely on magnetic therapy would in fact decrease the chances of curing the ailment.