Magnetic Therapy For Improved Sleep

INTRODUCTION

MAGNETIC THERAPY

Magnetic therapy is a safe, non-invasive method of applying magnetic fields to the body for therapeutic purposes. It accelerates the natural healing process, provides natural pain relief, arthritis pain relief and improves sleep without any adverse side effects.

Today mostly everyone is aware of the changes in medicine, especially as it relates to finding cost-effective means of providing care and treating ailments. Early manufacturers produced the familiar magnet with north and south poles, but growing numbers of investigators have realized the importance of using only one pole (usually north or negative). This allows for a much stronger magnetic field to be placed against the area of pain, which research seems to indicate the need for, especially in chronic pain or overuse symptoms.

The idea of magnetic energy or magnetic therapy is centuries old. Legend has it that Cleopatra wore magnetic bracelets and necklaces for healing. Though actively employed by medical doctors in America in the 1800's and early 1900's, magnetic therapy eventually fell out of favor. But in the past decade, magnetic therapy has become a 100 million dollar a year industry in this country (magnetic therapy has long been used as an effective healing tool in China, France, India and Japan, especially in repairing soft-tissue injuries).

Studies on magnetic therapies in the Journal of Electro-and Magnetobiology led some pioneering doctors in this country to experiment with magnets in their practice. Their activities helped to standardize the use of some magnets, the magnet size and strength-in treating various conditions. The length of exposure to a magnet for healing certain ailments was also determined. Because of their work we know which magnets work most efficiently.

WHAT IS A MAGNET?

In any material that is capable of being magnetized, there are groups of atoms with their own magnetic orientation arranged haphazardly in the material. When that material comes into contact with a strong magnetic field, it rearranges the groups of atoms so that they are in alignment. As the groups of atoms become aligned, they project a magnetic field. Magnetic energy has different names. Some people call it energy or life force; the Chinese call it Chi, the Indians know it as Prana. Whatever you choose to call it, magnetic energy is a basic force of life-it pulses throughout the galaxies and is found everywhere in nature.

Better Sleep Yields Better Memory and Learning

The study found people who get a good night's sleep after learning a simple skill perform better when tested on the same skill days later. Those findings lend support to the notion that sleep is important in memory development and learning.

The Facts...

Sleep is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, and is essential if you are to feel your best during the day. Sleep requirements vary widely, but most adults need seven to eight hours of sleep a night.

Sleep loss decreases the entire brain's ability to function, most significantly impairing the areas of the brain responsible for attention, complex planning, complex mental operations, and judgment. Until recently, most scientists did not believe that lack of sleep caused any significant physical problems. A study at the University of Chicago, Dept. of Medicine found that sleep debt has a harmful effect on endocrine function and carbohydrate metabolism and may increase the severity of chronic disorders, including the sensation of pain. The impact of lack of sleep on the body is astounding. When healthy young men in there 20's were allowed only four hours sleep per night for six consecutive nights their blood test results nearly matched those of diabetics. In addition, they had elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which can lead to hypertension and memory impairment.

How do the seasons affect our sleep?

The process of sleep is not fully understood, but we do know that when it is dark, the pineal gland (a magnetically sensitive gland located in the center of the brain) secretes a hormone called melatonin, which is believed to induce sleep. The results of a study conducted at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York on "seasonal affective disorder" found there is strong indication that changes in the earth's magnetic field alter melatonin secretion by the pineal gland, which synchronizes our circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms control our sleep/wake cycle, also known as our biological clock. During the winter months the earth's magnetic field diminishes in strength, leading to increased susceptibility for desynchronization of circadian rhythms and "seasonal affective disorder," characterized by recurrent winter depression associated with hypersomnia, overeating, and carbohydrate craving. The study also found that when the earth's magnetic field is shielded it significantly desynchronizes man's circadian rhythms, which could gradually be resynchronized with the application of a supplemental magnetic field. The practical application of which would be to sleep on a magnetic mattress or mattress pad.

Pain and sleep...

Difficulty in sleeping (insomnia) can take various forms or patterns: difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep, and early wakening. Pain effects sleep patterns: arthritis, leg cramps, fibromyalgia, restless legs syndrome, and other forms of musculoskeletal pain can all interfere with your sleep patterns. The most common reason for sleep problems for people with pain is the pain itself. While people with discomfort may eventually be able to fall asleep, the pain awakens them throughout the night, and they feel exhausted the next day. Although they may get many hours of sleep, they are fatigued during the day due to poor quality of sleep. Sleep consists of two very different states: rapid-eye-movement (REM) and Non-REM sleep. In REM sleep (when dreams occur) your eyes move under your lids, your heartbeat quickens, your body processes speed up, and you toss and turn, which further aggravates a painful condition. Many people wake up in the morning feeling stiff or sore, which can also be a sign that your mattress is no longer comfortable or supportive. There are several stages of Non-REM sleep, but we will concern ourselves with the deepest stage (stage 4). During this time the body repairs itself and restores lost energy, utilizing a hormone called somatostatin. Lack of stage 4 sleep is believed to be an important factor in chronically painful conditions such as fibromyalgia.

Magnetic mattress or magnetic pillows have embedded magnets in them. Magnetic therapy product Re-energizes, relieves discomfort and gives an n amazingly comfortable sleep. Magnetic mattresses relieves chronic discomfort and it works excellent for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and more.

Magnetic therapy works much more quickly and effectively than heat, infrared light, anti-inflammatory drugs, trigger-point injections or microwave diathermy. It's likely to be four or six months before an injured skier or other athlete is back in play again from the conventional treatment of ice, followed by heat to reduce swelling. Heat alone will not stimulate therapeutic repair of injured tissue or muscle. An ample magnetic therapy increases supply of nutrient-rich blood is needed. Healing requires resumption of normal blood flow to the injured site, not simply pain relief. In magnetic therapy, knee braces can be removed more quickly; weightlifters can reduce lower back pain; sciatica (inflammation of sciatic nerve running down the hip and thigh) and carpal tunnel syndrome can be relieved.

Is magnetic therapy safe?

Yes, magnetic therapy is very safe. The World Health Organization has issued a formal statement confirming that static magnetic fields pose no health risks whatsoever. No complications have ever been reported with its proper use.

There are certain conditions where magnet therapy should not be used, such as if you are wearing a pacemaker, defibrillator, insulin pump or any other implanted electro-medical device or if you are pregnant.