Find it Fast

Energy Medicine: An Overview

Introduction

Energy medicine is a domain in CAM that deals with energy fields of two types1: Veritable, which can be measured, Putative, which have yet to be measured.The veritable energies employ mechanical vibrations (such as sound) and electromagnetic forces, including visible light, magnetism, monochromatic radiation (such as laser beams), and rays from other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. They involve the use of specific, measurable wavelengths and frequencies to treat patients. In contrast, putative energy fields (also called biofields) have defied measurement to date by reproducible methods. Therapies involving putative energy fields are based on the concept that human beings are infused with a subtle form of energy. This vital energy or life force is known under different names in different cultures, such as qiIn traditional Chinese medicine, the vital energy or life force proposed to regulate a person's spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical health and to be influenced by the opposing forces of yin and yang. in traditional Chinese medicineA whole medical system that originated in China. It is based on the concept that disease results from disruption in the flow of qi and imbalance in the forces of yin and yang. Practices such as herbs, meditation, massage, and acupuncture seek to aid healing by restoring the yin-yang balance and the flow of qi. (TCM), ki in the Japanese Kampo system, doshas in Ayurvedic medicineA whole medical system that originated in India. It aims to integrate the body, mind, and spirit to prevent and treat disease. Therapies used include herbs, massage, and yoga., and elsewhere as prana, etheric energy, fohat, orgone, odic force, mana, and homeopathic resonance. Vital energy is believed to flow throughout the material human body, but it has not been unequivocally measured by means of conventional instrumentation. Nonetheless, therapists claim that they can work with this subtle energy, see it with their own eyes, and use it to effect changes in the physical body and influence health. Practitioners of energy medicine believe that illness results from disturbances of these subtle energies (the biofieldAn energy field that is proposed to surround and flow throughout the human body and play a role in health. Biofields have not been measured by conventional instruments. Reiki and qi gong are examples of therapies that involve biofields.). For example, more than 2,000 years ago, Asian practitioners postulated that the flow and balance of life energies are necessary for maintaining health and described tools to restore them. Herbal medicine, acupunctureA family of procedures that originated in traditional Chinese medicine. Acupuncture is the stimulation of specific points on the body by a variety of techniques, including the insertion of thin metal needles though the skin. It is intended to remove blockages in the flow of qi and restore and maintain health., acupressureA type of acupuncture that stimulates specific points on the body using pressure applied by the hands., moxibustionIn traditional Chinese medicine, the use of heat from burning the herb moxa on or near the skin at an acupuncture point. Intended to stimulate the flow of qi and restore health., and cupping, for example, are all believed to act by correcting imbalances in the internal biofield, such as by restoring the flow of qi through meridians to reinstate health. Some therapists are believed to emit or transmit the vital energy (external qi) to a recipient to restore health. Examples of practices involving putative energy fields include: Reiki and Johrei, both of Japanese origin, Qi gong, a Chinese practice. Healing touch, in which the therapist is purported to identify imbalances and correct a client's energy by passing his or her hands over the patient. Intercessory prayer, in which a person intercedes through prayer on behalf of another. In the aggregate, these approaches are among the most controversial of CAM practices because neither the external energy fields nor their therapeutic effects have been demonstrated convincingly by any biophysical means. Yet, energy medicine is gaining popularity in the American marketplace and has become a subject of investigations at some academic medical centers. A recent National Center for Health Statistics survey indicated that approximately 1 percent of the participants had used ReikiA therapy in which practitioners seek to transmit a universal energy to a person, either from a distance or by placing their hands on or near that person. The intent is to heal the spirit and thus the body., 0.5 percent had used qi gongA component of traditional Chinese medicine that combines movement, meditation, and controlled breathing. The intent is to improve blood flow and the flow of qi., and 4.6 percent had used some kind of healing ritual.

more