If you are plugged into the world of alternative medicine, you have probably heard of"crystals"-- the title given to minerals (usually quartz) or fossilized resins which are believed to have beneficial health properties.
Holding crystals or placing them on your body is thought to promote physical, emotional and spiritual healing. Crystals supposedly do this by positively interacting with the body's energy field, or chakra. When some crystals are said to relieve stress, others purportedly enhance creativity or concentration. Unsurprisingly, scientists have carried out few conventional research on crystals. However one, conducted back in 2001, concluded that the power of those minerals is"in the eye of the beholder." In the study, which has not yet been published but was introduced in the European Congress of Psychology in Rome, 80 people filled out a questionnaire designed to gauge their degree of belief in"paranormal" phenomena. Afterwards, the research team requested everybody to meditate for five minutes while holding a real stone crystal or a counterfeit crystal made of glass. Afterward, the participants answered questions regarding the senses they had felt while editating with the crystals. Both the real and imitation crystals generated comparable sensations, and people who tested high in the paranormal-belief poll tended to experience greater sensations than people who scoffed in the paranormal. "We discovered that many people claimed that they could feel odd sensations while holding the crystals, such as tingling, heat and vibrations, if we had told them beforehand that this is what could happen," states Christopher French, a professor of psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London. "Quite simply, the effects mentioned were a result of the power of suggestion, maybe not the power of the crystals." A great deal of research shows how successful the placebo effect may be. "If people feel that a remedy will make them feel better, a number of them do feel much better after they have had the treatment, even if it is proven to be therapeutically worthless," says French. His take is one you would expect from a scientist. And yes, it's almost absolutely true to state that blue sandstones don't themselves have any of the mysterious health properties attributed to them . Nevertheless, the human mind is a powerful thing, and it is trickier to state flatly that crystals do not work, if you define"work" as providing some advantage. "I believe that the public and medical community's perception of this placebo is something which is bogus or fraudulent," states Ted Kaptchuk, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. But Kaptchuk's research on placebo indicates that its therapeutic actions can be equally"real" and"robust." While he has not studied crystals--and won't comment on their legitimacy or anything to do with alternative medication --Kaptchuk has written a therapy's built-in placebo effect can be considered a distinct aspect of its efficacy, which placebo-induced benefits should be encouraged, not disregarded. A 2008 BMJ analysis found that approximately half of the doctors surveyed reported using placebo treatments to help their patients. Ordinarily, a doctor would recommend an over-the-counter pain reliever or vitamin supplement, even though neither has been indicated for the patient's symptoms. Most seen the practice of prescribing placebo treatments as permissible, the authors reasoned. Holding a crystal, of course, isn't the same as consuming an Advil, also do not expect your doctor to recommend crystals in your next visit. From the standpoint of traditional medicine and evidence-based science, the existing research indicates they are akin to snake oil. But research on the placebo result indicates that snake oil can have benefits for people who believe. More more info, Click Here.
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October 2019
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