Lithotherapy: do stones really help get rid of diseases
Miscellaneous / / April 30, 2022
Perhaps, for complete happiness, you do not have enough amethyst.
What is lithotherapy
The word has two meanings. In a narrow sense, lithotherapy is a method of alternative medicine in which natural stones are used to treat diseases. In a broad sense, this is any use of mineral substances to influence the body, psyche, and human life. For example, to grant wishes or to attract success in a romantic relationship.
Lithotherapy was popularJ. M. Riddle Lithotherapy in the Middle Ages… lapidaries considered as medical texts / Pharmacy in History also in Middle Agesbut appeared much earlier. However, the demand for solving various problems with the help of the magical properties and vibrations of fossils does not fall even now.
At lithotherapy there isMethods of treatment with stones and minerals / Kamnetek different directions, but most often it means:
- Hot stone massage. Heated basalt is placed on different parts of the body.
- Treatment with semi-precious stones and crystals. It is assumed that minerals have vibrations that affect the body in different ways. Stones are applied to the chakras, worn on the body and “charged” with them. water.
- Radionics. Its adherents believe that electricity activates the healing properties of stones.
What do people hope for?
Hot stone massage is usually advertised as a way to relax. However, for marketing purposes, sometimes they sayHot stone massage - benefits and contraindications / Wday and the supernatural ability of minerals to “inform the body of what exactly it lacks.”
Lovers of crystals and semi-precious stones go further and promiseCrystals & Gemstones - Healing Properties people getting rid of most diseases. Each mineral has a long list of magical properties aimed at healing organs, psyche and energy at the same time.
For example, amethyst allegedly strengthens the endocrine and immune systems, treats arthritis and mental disorders, cleanses human blood and energy, improves hearing, strengthens bones, increases the activity of the right hemisphere, epiphysis and pituitary.
Also, according to the adepts of lithotherapy, amethyst “evokes inspiration, intuition, creativity and courage, transmutes the lower nature of a person into more perfect aspects of high potentials, purifies and restores consciousness, affects the chakras.
But supporters of radionics can sell home-made "wish generators" that provide not only health, but also success with the opposite sex, as well as an inexhaustible cash flow.
Naturally, all of the above is highly questionable.
What do scientists think about it?
Lithotherapy is considered a pseudoscientific theory. There are no peer-reviewed publications that would confirm that the stones have healing properties. Of course, there can be no such research on the fulfillment of desires and the opening of the chakras. But even the healing effect of crystals has not yet been proven.
For example, in America, very popularThe Trouble With Amber Teething Necklaces / The New York Times amber beads for teething. Allegedly, a child who sucks beads receives succinic acid from them, which relieves inflammation and pain. But scientists did not see the promised effect, but describedTeething Necklaces and Beads: A Caution for Parents / American Academy of Pediatrics several deaths: children choke on large beads or suffocate in their sleep due to a tangled chain.
The situation is even worse with radionics. American Cancer Society releasedAmerican Cancer Society complete guide to complementary & alternative cancer therapies recommendations in which he asks not to rely on her and not to waste precious time. Refusal of treatment leads to serious consequences, and the devices themselves can be harmful to health. And in 2008, the Food Control Service bannedClass 1 Device Recall VIBE / FDA in the USA, any biophotonic energy generators.
And only hot stone massage is beneficial. Of course, it does not cure diseases, but the combination heat and pressure soothes and relieves stress. As a result, the human condition getting betterH. Ghavami, S. A. Shamsi, B. Abdollahpoor, M. Radfar, H. R. Khalkhali Impact of hot stone massage therapy on sleep quality in patients on maintenance hemodialysis: A randomized controlled trial / Journal of research in medical sciences: the official journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.
Why lithotherapy helps some
Popularizers of pseudoscientific theories actively useE. W. Campion, Why Unconventional Medicine? / The New England Journal of Medicine cognitive distortions. They bring their methods under a supposedly scientific basis: they operate with existing physical concepts, giving them an esoteric meaning. For example, in physics, all bodies have energy, but this does not mean that stones can transfer it to a person. Healers willingly talk about the results achieved, but usually they relate to subjective feelings and are explained placebo effect. Therefore, when choosing a treatment, it is better to rely on scientific evidence, and not on reviews.
The only ones that lithotherapy definitely helps are its creators, healers and stone sellers. According to experts, in 2019 healing crystals have broughtDark crystals: the brutal reality behind a booming wellness craze / Guardian retailers over $1 billion. And for those who want to treat, there are many paid training courses that also feed their authors.
And a couple more examples. The creator of radionics, Albert Abrams, became a multimillionaire at the beginning of the 20th century, despite criticism of the method. 20 years later, an American physician and chiropractor Ruth Drawn rebranded, reanimated radionics and also earned. True, she was not punished, because diedThe Incredible Drown Case / Today's Health during a fraud trial. Employees of her company and the daughter who worked with her received different prison terms. The judge at the announcement of the verdict said: "This treatment helps no better than voodoo or witchcraft."
Nevertheless, new devices are still appearing that supposedly affect the aura and energy frequencies, and people bring their money to sellers in the hope of a miracle.
Should You Try Lithotherapy?
If you enjoy going for hot stone massages or collecting mineral jewelry, then by all means, keep doing what you love. But try not to succumb to the eloquence of charlatans who endow stones with mystical properties. You lose money and not get the desired effect. But the worst thing is that health problems can get worse while you waste time on useless procedures. Therefore, with real diseases, it is better to immediately consult a doctor.
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