Magnetic Therapy (was "Snake Oil")

[Richard Hake <rrhake@EARTHLINK.NET>]

In his 1/9/2000 Phys-L post "Snake Oil," Ray Rogoway writes:

"I wonder if any of your students have inquired about 'Magnetic
Therapy?' Mayhaps I missed it but I don't remember postings on
'magnetic therapy'.  What brings it to mind at this time is a catalog
from a 'Lifestyle' company which has at least 14 pages out of 47
featuring magnetic therapy devices...... The sections called: 'How
magnetic therapy works' states:..... 'Several scientific studies
...... (all uncited)...... on magnetic therapy have proven the
powerful effect magnets can have on muscular pain, diabetes related
foot pain, fibromyalgia and sports injuries...'

I think it's our responsibility to deal with 'JUNK SCIENCE' in the
classroom.  Does anyone have any data that supports magnetic therapy?"

I don't have any data that support magnetic therapy but data which
purport to do so is critically discussed by Abraham Liboff (see
below).

Although I could find no evidence of posts on magnetic therapy at the
Phys-L Archives <http://mailgate.nau.edu/archives/phys-l.html>, this
subject has been recently discussed on its biology counterpart
Biopi-L.(1) To see the posts go to the Biopi-L archives at
<http://listserv.ksu.edu/archives/biopi-l.html>, click on "Search the
archives," and then type "Magnetic Therapy" into the "subject" slot
to obtain 8 hits. (I don't offhand know whether or not one must be a
subscriber to Biopi-L in order to access the archives.)

One of the Biopi-L posts "Re: Magnetic Therapy???" is my own of
12/11/99 in which I write:

"In his 12/8/99 Biopi-L (1) post "Magnetic Therapy???" Richard Cobb writes:

'Many of our students are wearing magnetic pads for injuries.  An
article in Science Daily recently disclaimed all the magnetic therapy
reports as being a hoax.  How should I respond when students ask me
what the magnets do????'

Among the reports and reviews which you might suggest your students
study is ref. 2 in the newsletter
<http://physics.wm.edu/~sher/newsletter.html> of the American
Physical Society (APS) Forum on Physics and Society
<http://physics.wm.edu/~sher/phys_soc.htm>.

Although I'm not an expert in this area, Liboff's review appears to
me to be scientifically accurate, balanced, and insightful.

According to Liboff's homepage
<http://www.oakland.edu/physics/faculty/Liboff.htm>:

'Prof. Abraham Liboff's research in the biological effects of
extremely weak electromagnetic fields continues to receive attention.
He was invited to organize a session on this topic at the March 1996
American Physical Society Meeting. ..... His most recent television
appearance, discussing the physics of magnetic therapy, was in April,
1999 on the Canadian Broadcasting Health Show, originating in
Toronto.' "

Phys-L'ers with an interest in improving education may be interested
in Lifoff's comment that:

"I sometimes think that physics has been so successful in explaining
the non-biological world that the public, making the comparison, is
asking the medical community:  Why can't you be more like them? Even
though they don't know much physics, the New Age people want to bring
more of it into medicine.  In a certain sense, this argument may
strike a resonant chord. . MEDICAL EDUCATORS IN THIS COUNTRY CONTINUE
TO IGNORE THE ADDITIONAL SECOND YEAR OF PHYSICS THAT SHOULD BE
REQUIRED OF ANYONE SEEKING TO ENTER MEDICAL SCHOOL[2].... (as argued
in)  A.R. Liboff and M. Chopp, "Should the pre-med requirements in
physics be changed?" Am. J. Phys. 47, 331-336 (1979). ".......None of
us should be surprised at how ignorant physicians are about the
electromagnetic field."(My CAPS.)

I think biologists may have something to learn from physicists  (and
vice versa).(3,4)

Richard Hake, Emeritus Professor of Physics, Indiana University
24245 Hatteras Street, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
<rrhake@earthlink.net>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~hake>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~sdi>
<http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~redcube>


REFERENCES
1.  The Biopi-L homepage is at
<http://www.dsuper.net/~missus/biopi/>.  The archives are at
<http://listserv.ksu.edu/archives/biopi-l.html>.

2. A.R. Liboff, "Magnet Therapy," Physics and Society 27(4), 5-7
(1998); on the web at <http://physics.wm.edu/~sher/aoct98.html#a3>.

3. R.R. Hake, "Research, Development, and Change in Undergraduate
Biology Education: A Web Guide for Non-Biologists (REDCUBE.pdf)"
at <http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~redcube>.  This Adobe Acrobat
portable document file (pdf) gives non-biologists a point of entry
into the vast literature and web resources relevant to research,
development, and change in undergraduate biology education.  It
contains 47 biology-educator profiles; 446 references (including 124
relevant to general science-education reform); and 490 hot-linked
URL's on (a) Biology Associations, (b) Biology Teacher's Web Sites,
(c) Scientific Societies and Projects (not confined to Biology), (d)
Higher Education,  (e) Cognitive Science and Psychology, (f) U.S.
Government, and (g) Searches and Directories.  The references and
URL's may be generally useful to teachers and education researchers,
and may provide some ideas for hastening education reform.

4.  R.R. Hake, "What Can We Learn from the Biologists about Research,
Development, and Change in Undergraduate Education," AAPT Announcer
29(4), 99 (1999).