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Is Schumann Resonance bioeffects real?
As the following article shows. Dr. James Oschman, a cellular biologist suggests Schumann Resonance is related to our biological body. He mentioned about intruments where magnetic field from the hands are detected. And how they originated and affected tissues. Do you really believe Schumann Resonance can affect biology. If Dr. Oschman is right, the power lines company is in big trouble. If you believe in Dr. Oschman, you have to show how tissues are connected to the Schumann Resonance and functionings need its entrainment. Dr. Oschman mentioned a lot about Becker research on "current of injury" too. What do you think are this? The following can be divided into 3 parts. 1. Becker research and biophysics 2. Schumann Resonance effect on biology 3. Details of scientistic experiments on magnetic field emitted from the hands One can focus them separately. Meaning if no one believes magnetic field can come from the hands. At least justify if Schuman Resonance can indeed affect the body. - Consc. James Oschman wrote: (I shuffled them for clarify) The functioning of the heart, brain, and some other organs result in oscillations in the ELF range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Over the last half century, Robert 0. Becker and others have done important research on the role of brain waves in healing. These studies have many implications for bodywork and movement therapies. Becker's work reveals one of the unknowns in the X-signal system of Manaka (see Ch. 4). Modern neurophysiology focuses primarily on the activity of less than half of the cells in the brain (Becker 1990a, 1991). The 'neuron doctrine' holds that all funtions of the nervous system are the result of activities of the neurons. Integration of brain function is therefore regarded as arising from the massive interconnectivity of the neurons. This view is incomplete because it ignores an evolutionarily more ancient informational system residing in the perineural connective tissue cells that constitut e more than half of the cells in the brain. Perineural cells encase every nerve fiber, down to their finest terminations throughout the body. The perineural system is a direct current communication system reaching to every innervated tissue. The perineural system establishes a 'current of injury' that controls injury repair. Historically, the injury potential was discovered before the discovery of resting and action potentials of nerves (Davson 1970). The current of injury is generated at the site of a wound, and continues until repair is complete. One function of the current is to alert the rest of the body to the location and extent of an injur y. The current also attracts the mobile skin cells, white blood cells, and fibroblasts that close and heal the wound. Finally, the injury current changes as the tissue heals, and therefore feeds back information on the progress of repair to surrounding tissues. Becker's research demonstrated that the current of injury is not an ionic current, but a semiconductor current that is sensitive to magnetic fields (the Hall effect). Semiconduction takes place in the perineuxal connective tissue a nd surrounding part s of the living matrix. Other tissues in the body are ensheathed in continuous layers of connective tissue: the vascular system is surrounded with perivascular connective tissue; the lymphatic system with perilymphatic connective tissue; the muscular system With myofascia; the bones with the periosteum. Conceptually, the living matrix encompasses all of these connective tissue systems, including the cellular and nuclear scaffolds within them (see also Ch. 15 and Fig. 15.5). It has been suggested that the current of injury is not confined to the skin, but is a general property of layers of cells, called epithelia (Oschman 1993). If this is so, a current of injury will arise in any tissue, epidermal, vascular, muscular, nervous, or bone, that is injured. Which systems are activated will depend on the depth and severity of the injury. This perspective is leading to a detailed explanation of how the body coordinates its responses to injuries of all kinds. Oscillations of the brain's direct current field, the brain waves, are not confined to the brain. Instead, they propagate through the circulatory system, which is a good conductor, and along the peripheral nerves, following the perineural system, which reaches into every part of the body that is innervated. Similarly, oscillations of the heart's electrical activity are not confined to the heart muscle, but are propagated through the vascular system, perivascular connective tissue, and living matrix to all p arts of the body. The measurable brain waves arise because of the rhythmic and synchronized spread of direct current through large populations of neurons in the brain. The field is relatively strong and partly coherent because it flows through massive numbers of parallel neurons in the vertically oriented pyramidal portion of the somatosensory cortex (see Kandel & Schwartz 1981). Becker's research shows that brain waves regulate the overall operation of the nervous system, including the state of consciousness. There is a neurophysiological basis for this concept. The brain waves cause the local fields around individual neurons to vary rhythmically. The local field, in turn, determines the sensitivity of the neurons to stimulation. When the local field is such that the neuron is ready to send a signal (called the threshold for depolarization), a small stimulus will cause the nerve to fire. When the local field is far from the firing level (far from threshold), a much larger stimulus will be needed for the nerve to be excited. Hence there is a rhythm in the excitability of ]nerve cells throughout the body. Sophisticated research using Microelectronics has confirmed that the probability of a nerve firing in the brain changes rhythmically in relation to the electroencephalogram (Verzeano 1970, Fox 1979). The significance of these phenomena to consciousnes s will be discussed in the next ch apter. Entrainment When considering the timing of any biological rhythm, the concept of entrainment is important. Physicists use this term to describe a situation in which two rhythms that have nearly the same frequency become coupled to each other, so that both have the same rhythm. Technically, entrainment means the 'mutual phase-locking of two (or more) oscillators'. For example, a number of pendulum clocks mounted on the same wall will eventually entrain, so that all of the pendulums swing in precise synchrony. For this t o happen, the pendulums must have about the same period, which is determined by their length. What couples the pendulums are vibrations (elastic or sound waves) conducted through the structure of the wall. The brain's pacemaker Brain waves are not constant in frequency, but vary from moment to moment. The 'pacemaker' or 'rhythm section' is located deep in the brain, specifically in the thalamus. The system is known as the thalamic rhythm generator or pacemaker (Andersen & Andersson 1968). Careful research is determining the cellular basis of the rhythms (Destexhe et al 1993, Wallenstein 1994). Calcium ions slowly leak into single thalamocortical neurons, which oscillate for 1.5-28 seconds, triggering and entraining the brain waves, which spread upward throughout the brain. Eventually the thalamic oscillations cease because of the excess calcium built up in the thalamocortical neurons. During this 'silent Phase/ lasting from 5 to 25 seconds, the brain waves are said to 'free-run'. It is proba bly during this phase that the brain waves are susceptible to entrainment by external fields, as will be discussed below. Eventually the thalamic oscillations begin again, after the cells have restored their calcium levels to the point where they are once again able to oscillate. The electroencephalographic waves spread not only throughout the brain, but throughout the nervous system (via the perineural system) and into every part of the organism. In this way, the brain waves regulate the overall sensitivitY and activity of the entire nervous system (Becker 1990a, 1990b). Entrainment of biological rhythms: more controversy This chapter is heading toward a discussion of the possibility that external signals, including signals projected from the hands of an energy therapist, can entrain brain waves during the thalamic silent, or free-run period. The reader should be aware that the entrainment of biological rhythms is a subject as controversial among biologists as the mechanism vs vitalism issue discussed in Chapter 1. The controversy is about whether biological rhythms are predominantly timed by 'internal clocks' or by 'externa l clocks'. While there are good arguments on either side of this issue, the current consensus among scientists is that biological clocks are mostly set by internal pacemakers, such as the thalamus, and that organisms are, for the most part, independent of natural energy cycles, such as those discussed below. However, the history of science has repeatedly demonstrated that scientific consensuses have a rhythm of their own, as ideas of one generation give way to new truths, based on new data. Most scientists and non-scientists alike take a firm position on one side or the other of this question. For many, it is obvious that life is part of a larger fabric, and that rhythms of the sun, moon, planets, and other celestial bodies must affect us (see e.g. Leonard 1978). For others it is equally obvious that any such effects, if they do exist, are minimal. For many scientists, there is strong bias against any concept that might be taken as support for astrology, a field that is widely frowned upon. Th ere are good reasons to suspect that a person's point of view on this subject is based less on logical analysis and more on their individual emotional and personality structure. This perspective will be addressed when energetic aspects of personality structure are examined (Ch. 8). Geomagnetic and geoelectric fields Evidence will be presented that the 'free-run' periods, when the brain waves are not paced by the thalamus, allow the brain's field to be entrained by external electric and magnetic rhythms, either natural or man-made. What is the source of natural electric and magnetic rhythms? The magnetic field of the earth, called the geomagnetic field, causes the compass needle to Point toward the North Pole. However, if you look carefully at a compass needle with a microscope, you will see that the needle is rarely still - it dances back and forth in a variety of rhythms. Some of these rhythms are diurnal (24 hour), some are much slower, and others are quite fast (in the ELF range). The last are called geomagnetic micropulsations. T hey are caused by a unique geophysical mechanism known as the Schumann resonance (see also Ch. 13). In the 1950s, a German atmospheric physicist, W. 0. Schumann, suggested that the space between the surface of the earth and the ionosphere should act as a resonant cavity, somewhat like the chamber in a musical instrument (Schumann 1952). Pressing the keys on a wind instrument changes the size of the cavity and therefore changes the frequency of the standing waves within that cavity. In a musical instrument, tones are generated when the musician blows over an orifice or reed, Energy for the Schumann resonance is provided by lightning. While you may be experiencing calm weather where you are now, there are, on average, about 200 lightning strikes taking place each second, scattered about the planet. To use the physics terminology, lightning pumps energy into the earth-ionosphere cavity, and causes it to vibrate or resonate at frequencies in the ELF range (see also Fig. 13.4). In the 1960s, Schumann's theory was confirmed (Galejs 1972, Balser & Wagner 1960). Lightning creates electromagnetic standing waves that travel around the globe. As electromagnetic waves, the Schumann resonance can be detected either as electric or magnetic micropulsations. The waves are reflected from the ionosphere, back to the earth, back to the ionosphere, etc. (Fig. 7.4). This 'skip' phenomenon has been widely studied, because it is the basis for long distance radio communication. Radio signals of cert ain frequencies can travel great distances because they are repeatedly reflected by the ionosphere and the earth's surface. The average frequency of the Schumann resonance is about 7-10 Hz- But when the ionosphere gets higher, the cavity gets larger and the resonant frequency drops. Rhythms of terrestrial and extraterrestrial origin alter the height and other properties of the ionosphere, and thereby alter the Schumann frequency in the range of 1-40 Hz. There are times when solar activity leads to magnetic storms that disrupt the ionosphere, and Schumann resonances cease. Some of the factors influencing the Schumann frequency ar e given in the legend for Figure 7.4. To summarize, the Schumann resonance is created by terrestrial activities, and is modified or modulated by extraterrestrial activities. In radio terminology, the signals are frequency modulated (FM). Evidence for entrainment by external fields The Schumann oscillations propagate for long distances and readily penetrate through the walls of buildings and into the human body. Schumann frequencies have considerable overlap with biomagnetic fields such as those produced by the heart and brain, but the Schumann resonance is thousands of times stronger. The similarity of a train of Schumann signals and an alpha brain wave are shown in Figure 7.5. Fig. 7.4 The Schumann resonance is a unique electromagnetic phenomenon created by the sum of the lightning activity around the world. Electromagnetic pulses from lightning travel around the earth, bouncing back and forth between the ionosphere and the earth's surface. At any given point on the earth, the Schumann resonance shows up as electric and magnetic micropulsations in the range of 1-40 Hz. The frequency and strength of the signals depend on the distribution of global thunderstorm activity, local mete orological conditions and the conductivity of the earth's surface at the point of observation. Bursts of Schumann pulses are easier to detect in fair weather, and occur more often during the day than at night. These terrestrial factors are, in turn, influenced by more distant extraterrestrial factors, such as solar and lunar position, sun spots, planetary positions, etc. (See Pressman 1970, Dubrov 1978.) (After Bentov 1976, Fig. 16, p. 145, with kind permission from Integra l Publishing.) A number of biologists have concluded that the frequency overlap of Schumann resonances and biological fields is not accidental, but is the culmination of a close interplay between geomagnetic and biomagnetic fields over evolutionary time (e.g. Direnfeld 1983). Hence researchers have examined interactions between external fields and biological rhythms. Organisms are capable of sensing the intensity, polarity, and direction of the geomagnetic field (Gould 1984). There is evidence that geomagnetic rhythms serve as a time cue in the organization of physiological rhythms (e.g. Wever 1968, Gauguelin 1974, Cremer-Bartels et al 1984), although this continues to be controversial. A variety of behavioral disturbances in the human population are statistically related to disturbances in the earth's electromagnetic field or to man-made interferences: * Friedman et al (1965) documented a relationship between increased geomagnetic activity and the rate of admission of patients to 35 psychiatric facilities. * Venkatraman (1976) and Rajaram & Mitra (1981) reported an association between changes in the geomagnetic field due to magnetic storms and frequency of seizures in epileptic patients. * Perry et al (1981) correlated suicide locations in the West Midlands, England, with high magnetic field strengths due to 50 Hz power lines. Many studies have demonstrated the probable entrainment of brain waves by external rhythms of natural and artificial origin: * Reiter (1953) measured reaction time, an important factor in traffic safety. Upon entering a cubicle at a traffic exhibition, visitors were asked to press a key. When a light came on, they were to release pressure on the key Their reaction time (i.e. the time between 'light on' and 'key release') was recorded for many thousands of visitors over a 2-month period. At the same time, the ELF micropulsations (Schumann resonances) were monitored. The micropulsations slow when a thunderstorm is approaching, and Reiter found that the subjects were slower to respond during such periods. When the micropulsations speeded up, into the range of alpha brain wave activity, reaction times were faster. * After the traffic exhibition, Reiter took his test cubicle to the University of Munich and lined the top and bottom with wire mesh connected to an electrical generator. He introduced artificial low level, low frequency signals similar to those of the earth's field. Under these controlled conditions, the effects of the fields on reaction time were comparable to those obtained during the exhibition. Moreover, subjects in the laboratory experiments repeatedly complained about headaches, tightness in the ches t, and sweating of the palms after several minutes of exposure to 3 cycle/second fields. When the headaches faded away, there was often a feeling of fatigue. These symptoms resemble the so-called 'weather sensitivity' complaints that some people have before the arrival of a thunderstorm. * Hamer (1968, 1969) pulsed subjects with low intensity artificial electric fields from metal plates on each side of their heads. Fields of 8-10 Hz speeded up reaction time, while slower oscillations of 2-3 Hz slowed down reaction times significantly. Similar results were reported by Friedman and colleagues in 1967. * In 1977, Beatty reported studies on the practical significance of brain wave entrainment for people such as air traffic controllers, who need to maintain an alert state for long periods. Subjects monitored a simulated radar screen, watching for certain targets to appear. In agreement with the findings of Reiter and Hamer, slower brain waves were correlated with slower reaction times and poorer performance in the task. * Over many years, Wever (1968) and colleagues at the Max Planck Institute in Germany observed hundreds of subjects who lived in two underground rooms that were shielded from external rhythms of light, temperature, sound, pressure, etc. One room also had an electromagnetic shield around it, consisting of a mesh of steel rods and plates that reduced the influence of geomagnetic rhythms by 99%. The rhythms of body temperature, sleep-waking, urinary excretion, and Other physiological activities were monitored. All subjects developed longer and irregular or desynchronized or chaotic physiological rhythms. Those in the magnetically shielded room developed significantly longer and more irregular physiological rhythms. In some experiments, artificial electric and magnetic rhYthms were pulsed into the shielding. Only one field had any effect: a very weak 10 Hz electric field. This field dramatically restored normal patterns to the biorhythm measurements. Each of these important but seldom cited studies concluded that biological rhythms can be entrained with natural and artificial ELF electric fields. Entrainment of brain waves can set the overall speed of responsiveness of the nervous system to stimulation. This is called reaction time, and is an easily measured parameter of consciousness. The results support Becker's contention that the pulsing DC electrical system (brain waves) set the tone of the entire nervous system. These studies do not mean that when a thunderstorm approaches, everyone will get drowsy and react slowly, and accidents will happen. Instead, they suggest that there is a statistically greater chance of slower reactions and more frequent accidents under these conditions. Geomagnetic pulsations do not affect everyone the same way. However, there is evidence that geomagnetic pulsations strongly entrain brain waves during meditation and other practices in which one 'quiets the mind' to allow the 'free-run' per iods to be dominated by geophysical rhythms. Mechanism of entrainment The internal pathways involved in the body's responses to external magnetic rhythms are shown in Figure 7.6. The pineal gland is the primary magnetoreceptor Between 20 and 30% of pineal cells are magnetically sensitive. Exposure of animals to magnetic fields of various intensities alters the secretion of melatonin, the electrical properties of pineal cells, and their microscopic structure (reviewed by Sandyk 1995). In addition, various animal tissues contain particles of organic magnetite. Two separate rese arch groups have now recorded magnetically influenced impulses in single neurons connecting magnetite-bearing tissues with the brain (reviewed by Kobayashi Kirschvink 1995). The question of whether living systems are sensitive to the earth's magnetic field has been bitterly controversial for more than a century. There are now a number of plausible and well-documented mechanisms for such interactions, and abundant evidence that they take place. Moreover, Becker's research has shown how geomagnetic entrainment of the brain waves can affect the entire nervous system at a very high level of control (i.e. the perineural DC system that extends throughout the body and has roles in reg ulating injury repair). In terms of an energetic paradigm for bodywork and movement therapies, there is no need for us to hypothesize that geomagnetic fields, modified by terrestrial and extraterrestrial events, entrain brain waves. Scientists frorn around the world have already done so, and continue to build solid supporting evidence. The next chapter explores how these concepts may apply in the therapeutic setting. Fig. 7.6 A summary of the pathways involved in magnetoreception, the regulation of brain waves and therapeutic emissions from the hands of therapists. Micropulsations of the geomagnetic field, caused by the Schumann resonance, are detected by the pineal and magnetite-bearing tissues associated with the brain. During the 'free-run' period, when the brainwaves are not being entrained by the thalamus, the Schumann resonance can take over as the pacemaker, particularly if the individual is in a relaxed or medit ative state (Schumann signals are thousands of times stronger than brainwaves). The brainwaves regulate the overall tone of the nervous system and the state of consciousness. The electrical currents of the brainwaves are conducted throughout the body by the perineural and vascular systems. The biomagnetic field projected from the hands can be much stronger than the brainwaves (Seto et al 1992) indicating that an amplification of at least 1000 times takes place somewhere in the body. Alternatively, the body may simply act as an effective antenna or channel for the Schumann micropulsations. The projected fields scan or sweep through the frequencies medical researchers are finding useful for 'jump-starting' injury repair in a variety of tissues (see Table 7.1 ). (Portions of this illustration are after Becker 1990b, with kind permission from Robert 0. Becker, MD.) (the following details about magnetic field emitted from hands and possible mechanisms of interactions) "Fields projected from the hands Chapter 2 documented how the movements of electricity within the hurrian body create biomagnetic fields in the surrounding space. Figure 6.2 shows the shape of the biomagnetic field around the body, as visualized in polarity therapy. There are good reasons (given in the legend to the illustration), to suspect that this is an approximate representation of the overall biomagnetic field of the body, recognizing that there will be local variations in the field related to activities taking place within the va rious tissues. For example, the inset for Figure 6.2 shows a representation of the detailed structure of the field around the head. In the early 1980s, Dr John Zimmerman began a series of important studies on therapeutic touch with a SQUID magnetometer at the University Of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver (Zimmerman 1990). The experiments were done with a SQUID detector of great sensitivity that had been designed to study some of the weakest of the human biomagnetic fields. These are called evoked fields; they are produced in the space around the head in response to external stimuli such as sounds or visual images (e.g. Reite & Zi mmerman 1978). A therapeutic touch practitioner and his patient entered a magnetically shielded chamber containing a SQUID detector. The practitioner held his hand close to the patient, and a baseline recording was made with the SQUID. Then the therapist relaxed into the meditative or healing state that is the focus of the therapeutic touch method. Immediately the SQUID detected a large biomagnetic field emanating from the practitioner's hand. The field was SO strong that the amplifiers and recorder had to be readjusted s o that a recording could be made. This was the strongest biomagnetic field Dr Zimmerman had encountered in his years of medical research using the SQUID. The therapeutic touch signal pulsed at a variable frequency, ranging from 0.3 to 30 Hz, with most of the activity in the range of 7-8 Hz. In other words, the signal emitted by the practitioner is not steady or constant, it 'sweeps' or 'scans' through a range of frequencies. One of the recordings is shown in Figure 6.4 The pulsations are interesting in relation to the experiences of energy practitioners, who often report a sensation of vibration or tingling during the period when the technique seems to be particularly effective. In Zimmerman's studies, non-practitioners were unable to produce the biomagnetic pulses. Recording sessions were repeated eight times and strong biomagnetic signals were recorded five times. Zimmerman's observations represent a profoundly important but preliminary line of investigation into energy medicine. A problem was that the biomagnetic field produced during therapeutic touch was so strong that it was out of the calibrated range of the SQUID magnetometer. This meant that it was not possible to quantify the signal strength. This difficulty was resolved in a study conducted in Japan: Seto et al (1992) confirmed that an extraordinarily large biomagnetic field emanates from the hands of practitioners of a variety of healing and martial arts techniques, including Qi Gong, yoga, meditation, Zen, etc. The fields were measured with a simple magnetometer consisting of two 80 000 turn coils and a sensitive amplifier. The fields had a strength of about 10 ^ -3 gauss, which is about 1000 times stronger than the strongest human biomagneti c fields (from the heart) which are about 10 ^ -6 gauss and about 1000 000 times stronger than the fields produced by the brain. Figure 6.5 summarizes the Seto experiment and shows a typical recording. As in Zimmerman's study, the biomagnetic field pulsed with a variable frequency centered around 8-10 Hz. The work of Zimmerman and Seto and colleagues has profound implications in terms of correlating ancient concepts of energy medicine with modern Science. Neither study documented that any clinical healing was taking place during the projection of energy, so further investigation is definitely needed. However, the evidence shows that practitioners can emit powerful pulsing biomagnetic fields in the same frequency range that biomedical researchers have identified for jump starting healing of soft and hard tis sue injuries. This implies that biomagnetism is one form of the elusive Qi energy or life force. The projected fields are so strong that they can be detected with a relatively simple magnetometer, indicating that it is a robust effect that should be easy to study If the effect is so robust, why was it not discovered before? The answer is that it was described before. In 1779, Franz Anton Mesmer wrote his famous description of the magnet-like sensation he and his patients experienced while he held his hands near their bodies (Mesmer 1948). When he invited physicians to witness his popular treatments of 'incurable' cases, the response was critical and hostile. Academic antagonism toward 'vitalism' hindered serious investigation of Mesmer's discoveries for more than 20 0 years. Attitudes are changing because, with a little training and practice, virtually anyone can experience the phenomenon Mesmer described. More and more people are having these experiences because of the increasing popularity of alternative medicine, including energy therapies. As the biomagnetic field extends some distance from the body surface, the fields of two adjacent organisms will interact with each other. This general effect is illustrated in Figure 6.6A. Likewise, during non-contact therapeutic touch and related methods, as well as during manipulative techniques of all kinds, the biomagnetic field of the therapist will penetrate into the body of the patient. This is shown in Figure 6.6B in which the lines of force of the biomagnetic field of the arm and hand have been s uperimposed upon an illustration from Chaitow's book on soft-tissue manipulation (Chaitow 1987). Infrared radiations SQUID research has enhanced our understanding of 'the body magnetic', but this does not mean that biomagnetism is the whole story of healing energy. Several studies have implicated infrared signals (heat) in therapeutic touch (e.g. Schwartz et al 1990, Chien et al 1991). This is important method because some practitioners of therapeutic touch and related methods do not experience Mesmer's magnet-like sensation, but rather a sensation of heat or warmth during their work. Research shows that masters of the Qi Gong technique can project measurable amounts of heat from their palms (so-called 'facilitating' Qi) that increases cell growth, DNA and protein synthesis, and cell respiration. Practitioners can also produce 'inhibiting' Qi, in which infrared energy is absorbed from the environment. This kind of Qi slows metabolism. References to more recent work on infrared and biomagnetic and QiGong effects can be found in an article from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in Ne w York (Muchmore et al 1994). A description of healing effects of QiGong can be found in a series of articles published for physicians (Walker 1994). One explanation for facilitating and inhibiting Qi is based on the fact that the circulation to the skin is influenced by the autonomic nervous system. Years of research into biofeedback shows that anyone can learn to control autonomic parameters, including skin temperature. For example, biofeedback regulation of skin temperature has been used to treat migraine headache. Figure 6.7 shows how changes in circulation alter skin temperature. The rates of chemical reactions and other processes are affected by ambient temperature, so a warm or a cool hand near another person can increase or decrease the rates of temperaturesensitive activities within their bodies. Some conclusions In the past, many conventional doctors accepted or at least tolerated therapeutic touch because it seemed harmless, but doubted that the method had any real value. Medical research is changing this picture. We now know that the various energy therapies, including both complementary methods and those approved for medical practice (PEMF devices), have many similarities in terms of their effectiveness in stimulating tissue healing, and in terms of the mechanisms by which they influence tissues. A common denomi nator is the production of pulsating magnetic fields that induce currents to flow within tissues. Infrared energy (heat) and other forms of energy are probably involved as well. As similar cellular and molecular mechanisms appear to be involved, the extensive research on the effectiveness and safety of PEMF devices, non-contact therapeutic touch, acupuncture (see Eskinazi 1996) and a variety of other energy methods tend to support each other. It is fascinating that practitioners of therapeutic touch and related methods produce strong biomagnetic fields that are not steady in frequency. The emitted field appears to sweep or scan through a variety of frequencies in the ELF range (see Figs 6.4 and 6.5). This is the same range of frequencies that biomedical researchers are finding effective for jump starting healing in a variety of soft and hard tissues. In later chapters we will examine the mechanisms involved In the production of these magnetic f ields, and the ways they affect the body. We will also explore the possible mechanisms by which practitioners are able to sense biomagnetic fields. snip Wound healing is a remarkable and intricate process, involving the integrated and cooperative activities of a variety of systems. Each wound is different, and the body's response must be precisely appropriate if structure and function arc, to be fully restored. Dynamic interactions take place between local and systemic processes. A wide range of physiological activities are activated, and all must be down-regulated when repair is complete. Some repair processes persist for weeks, or even longer, after an in jury. Until recently, the medical approach has been almost exclusively molecular. Researchers have looked for, and found, a variety of chemicals that influence the repair of tissues. The clotting of blood involves a cascade of reactions involving many different substances. Fibroblast growth factors stimulate division of the cells that lay down collagen, a major structural protein used in healing wounds. Hence healing can be promoted by adding natural growth factors, or genes for those growth factors, directly to a site of injury (e.g. Vogt et al 1994). It is easy to see how molecules can regulate the rates of cellular processes by activating or inactivating particular metabolic pathways. However, there is something missing from the picture. How can the ebbs and flows of regulatory substances provide a 'blueprint' for the elaborate architecture of cells and tissues and organs? snip Therapeutic entrainment Introduction Evidence has been presented that strong biomagnetic fields are projected from the hands of practitioners of therapeutic touch, QiGong, and other methods. In Chapter 2 it was suggested that repeated practice of various hands-on bodywork techniques might increase the size of brain areas devoted to movement and sensitivity of the fingers involved. This, in turn, could enhance the biomagnetic output from those areas of the brain, as it does in those who practiceESP 'readers,'output from the fingers, as the brai n waves are conducted to the fingers via the perineural and circulatory systems. Hence the arrangement shown in Figure 8.1 is ideally suited for coupling or entraining n g the biomagnetic rhythms of therapist and patient. If the therapist relaxes into the state of consciousness typical of those who practice meditation, therapeutic touch and QiGong, and other methods, it is likely that his or her brain waves will, from time to time, become entrained with the micropulsations of the earth's field. If the patient is also relaxed, both therapist and patient may become entrained with the eart h's field. There is remarkable documentation for this concept. In 1969, Robert C. Beck began a decade of research on the brain wave activity of 'healers' from a wide variety of subcultures around the world (Beck 1986). Beck recorded their electrical brain waves with an electroencephalograph (EEG). All the healers produced s1milar brain wave patterns when they were in their 'altered state' and performing a 'healing'. Whatever their beliefs and customs were, all healers registered brain wave activity averaging about 7.8-8.0 cycles/second while they were in their 'healing' state. Beck studied exceptional individuals who were famous or who had developed reputations as heale rs, psychics, shamans or dowsersESP 'readers', He studied a charismatic Christian faith healer, seers, ESP 'readers,an authentic Hawaiian kahuna, practitioners of wicca, Santeria, radesthesia and radionics. Most of these so-called 'sensitives' entered an altered state of consciousness and produced nearly identical EEG signatures, which lasted from I to several seconds. The obvious question is how did these individuals, unknown to each other and located thousands of miles apart, develop the same brain wave frequency during their 'healings'. Beck noted that, 'the subjects were practicing opposing disciplines, and came from totally disparate teachings, and held opposing viewpoints, and would barely acknowledge the existence or authenticity of practitioners outside their belief systems'. Beck performed additional studies on some of the subjects and found that during the heali ng moments their brain waves became phase and frequency synchronized with the earth's geoelectric micropulsations - the Schumann resonance. There is evidence for coupling of both cardiac and brain rhythms between two individuals in the same room, who are sitting quietly, facing each other, With eyes closed, without touching (Russek & Schwartz 1994, 1996). The electrocardiograms and electroencephalograms of both individuals are recorded, and the rhythms are analyzed for the presence of between-person cardiac-brain synchrOnization. Such synchronization is present, and it is enhanced if the subjects are connected electrically, such as by a wire he ld in the left hand of one person and the right hand of the other. This approach opens the door to a variety of quantifiable studies of the healer-patient relationships in terms of energy coupling. If there is entrainment of rhythms in two individuals who are not touching, what can we expect from commonly used therapeutic situations such as that shown in Figure 8.1? Taken together, the research summarized here points to a remarkable model that may explain the unusual emissions of Qi or 'healing energy' and other phenomena observed in a wide variety of energy therapies. What these practices have in common seems to be periodic entrainments of brain waves and whole-body biomagnetic emissions with the Schumann resonances in the earth's atmosphere. The Schumann resonance, in turn, is governed by terrestrial and extraterrestrial rhythms produced by cyclic astronomical activi ties. The result may be a whole-body collective oscillation, driven partly by the energy of higher frequency Froehlich oscillations (Ch. 4), entrained with geophysical fields, involving virtually all of the billions of collagen, membrane phospholipid, and contractile protein molecules throughout the body, and, possibly, the associated water molecules. What links brain electrical activity (as measured with the EEG), the biomagnetic emissions from the body (measured with magnetometers), and healing responses is the perineural direct current regulatory system described by R. 0. Becker. If these speculations are correct, the next question is what function coherent biomagnetic emissions would serve in healing. The healing power of projected fields may arise from their ability to entrain similar coherent rhythms in the tissues of a client. Perhaps such entrainment enhances the evolutionarily ancient communication and regulatory systems involved in wound healing and defense. Martial arts techniques appear to involve projecting fields at points in the body's energy system that are sensitive nodes in a solid state informational and power distribution system (Oschman 1993). The thalamus maintains the rhythms, and the 'free-run' periods allow the brain waves to be entrained by rhythmic micropulsations that are tied to terrestrial and extraterrestrial rhythms. It is during these free-runs that we extract information on rhythms taking place in our environment. Hence it may be necessary to expand our definition of 'information' in the context of healing. We have seen how medical devices and therapeutic hands-on methods inject 'Information' into cells and tissues, and we can now see how some of the Information content of these messages may relate to distant activities in the larger environment. An idea of this sort would have been very suspect a few Years ago, before the extensive research that has documented the exquisite sensitivity of a wide variety of organisms to environmental energy fields. For example, an important symposium held in 1974 and updated in 1977 (Adey & Bawin 1977) concluded that 'a striking range of biological interactions has been described in experiments where control procedures appear to have been adequately considered'. The existence of biological effects of very weak electromagnetic fields 'suggests an extraordinarily efficient mechanism' for detecting these fields and discriminating them from much hi gher levels of noise. 'The underlying mechanisms must necessarily involve ever increasing numbers of elements in the sensing system, ordered in particular ways to form a cooperative organization and manifesting similar forms and levels of energy over long distances.' The studies leading up to this conclusion have been particularly valuable in explaining the ability of animals such as homing pigeons to use geomagnetic fields in their navigation. Certainly, for those who use their hands to enhance the functioning of their fellow beings, the 'free-run' periods, when allowed to happen without intellectual processing, can give rise to moments of profound insight and deep healing. This is the 'healing state of mind' that is the goal of many healing and religious traditions. The thalamic relay oscillations resume from time to time. Thisis important physiologically because there are times when the Schumann resonance stops (as during magnetic storms, when the ionosphere is temporarily disrupted or even vanishes). Therapists often blame themselves for periods when their work seems less effective than usual, when the real 'problem' may be meteorological or astrophysical phenomena that are beyond their control. Therapists also need to be aware of aspects of their local environment, such as the conductivity) of subsurface soils, which can be an important factor in the 'reception' of Schumann resonances and other geophysical rhythms (see Ch. 13). -------------------------- end of article My comment: The above are divided into 3 parts. 1. Becker research and biophysics 2. Schumann Resonance 3. Details of scientific experiments on magnetic field emitted from the hands. One can focus them separately. Meaning if no one believes magnetic field can come from the hands. At least justify if Schuman Resonance can indeed affect the body. What do you think? - Consc |
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