Examining the effects of biofield therapy through simultaneous assessment of electrophysiological and cellular outcomes | Scientific Reports

Abstract

Abstract In this case study, a self-described biofield therapy (BT) practitioner (participant) took part in multiple (n = 60) treatment and control (non-treatment) sessions under double-blind conditions. During the treatment phases, the participant provided BT treatment at a distance of about 12 inches from the cells, alternating with rest phases where no such efforts were made. Human pancreatic cancer cell activity was assessed using three markers – cytoskeleton changes (tubulin and β-actin) and Ca2+ uptake. The study examined changes in the participant’s physiological parameters including electroencephalogram (EEG) and heart rate measures during the treatment of: (1) live cells and (2) either ... between the participant’s physiological parameters and cellular outcomes were examined. The experimental setup was a 2 × 2 design, contrasting cell type (live vs. control) against session type (treatment vs. non-treatment). Parallel ... observed significant (p < 0.01) spectral changes in the participant’s EEG during BT treatment in all frequency bands of ... the BT group relative to the sham-treatment controls (p = 0.03). When using Granger causality to assess causal ... 0.000001). These outcomes suggest a complex relationship between physiological responses and cellular effects during BT treatment sessions. Given the study’s limitations, follow-up investigations are warranted. ### Multicellular adaptation to electrophysiological perturbations analyzed by deterministic and stochastic bioelectrical models ### Quantifying cancer- and drug-induced changes in Shannon information capacity of RTK signaling ### Electric-field facilitated rapid and efficient dissociation of tissues Into viable single cells ## Introduction Complementary and alternative medicine interventions, once viewed as fringe science, have in some cases provided novel, efficacious therapeutic interventions that are now part of conventional medicine 1. However, some modalities are met with skepticism due to the lack of any accepted mechanistic bases for such interventions on pathophysiological processes. One such treatment modality is biofield therapy (BT), which the National Cancer Institute classifies as “energy therapy” 2. The practice of providing BT posits that it is possible to influence ... Reiki, Healing Touch, Therapeutic Touch, Qigong, and other forms of treatment3,4,5, 6. Although the ... patients 5. Clinical trials that have examined the effects of BTs such as Therapeutic Touch, Healing Touch, and Reiki have shown ... with 13 trials showing statistically significant outcomes. Other systematic reviews of BT studies have found that most ... 10, 11 came to similar conclusions, although a more recent meta-analysis study took a more ... intersubject variability among practitioners is high, case studies have value in analyzing phenomena with minimal or ... Despite this relevant prior research, there is no accepted scientific mechanism of action of BT. There are multiple theories of consciousness compatible with biofield therapy 23. We anticipate that developing a rigorous ... commonalities can be identified. The intent of the present study was, therefore, not to test any specific mechanism(s) of BT per se, but to determine if there was a statistically significant effect in both the BT practitioner and cancer cells in vitro. The current case study involved a BT practitioner (participant) who took part in a series of treatment sessions providing BT to live cells or dead cells/medium only (no cells) in vitro in a blinded fashion while simultaneously examining changes in cell measures and physiological changes in the participant (Fig. 1). Sets of sham-treated control cells were also examined and tracked over time. The aim was to determine any potential effects of ... live cells versus control conditions (dead cells or no cells), and investigate the association between the BT’s ... The previous research has shown