Magnets are big business. Not the industrial kind but the sort sold to believers in the magical healing powers of magnets worn around the wrist. Particularly prone to this sort of claim are those who suffer chronic pain such as arthritis sufferers, who after years of taking pain-killers, long for some other solution. Unfortunately, magnets are not it.
Stewart Richmond, a research fellow in the Department of Health Sciences, at the University of York has just published the results of a tightly controlled clinical trial which found that they were all "ineffective in terms of pain, stiffness and physical function". No surprise to those who understand a bit about the human body and magnetism but this kind of research is essential in dispelling the magic theories of Woo.
In responding to the research, the Arthritis Research Campaign advised arthritis sufferers not to spend their money on such devices.
Bob Lloyd has studied in four universities and has degrees in Biochemistry, Mathematics, and Computer Science. After a long career in publishing, teaching, and software engineering, he is now retired and lives in Andalucia in the South of Spain with his wife and rather ancient cat.
