Magnetic therapy uses the pulse fields of magnets sent through a coil or relies on static fields from magnets placed on the body. According to the Sports Injury Clinic, magnetic therapy is a common alternative treatment for chronic conditions such as arthritis. Magnets sewn into clothes or worn as jewelry are sometimes marketed as being able to relieve hip pain due to osteoarthritis, but check with your health care provider before beginning this type of therapy.
History
Early evidence of the use of magnetic therapy dates to the 16th century when a physician named Paracelsus thought that magnetic fields might attract and eliminate the cause of pain. According to the American Cancer Society, doctors in the Middle Ages used magnets to treat everything from baldness to gout, arthritis and poisoning. The practice was popularized in the 1970s by researcher Albert Roy Davis, who claimed that magnets could cure a number of illnesses as well as kill cancer cells.
Expert Insight
By the year 2030, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts that nearly 67 million people will suffer from arthritis. The disease can cause debilitating stiffness of the joints, including immobility when the hip joints are affected. There is no cure for arthritis. Pain management and easing symptoms are the most the medical community can offer. The CDC reports that nearly 90 percent of arthritis sufferers turn to complementary medicine, such as magnetic therapy, for pain relief.
Efficacy
Magnetic therapy is considered alternative or complementary medicine and is not regulated by federal watchdog agencies. According to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, little scientific research supports the use of magnets for treating pain, although they are safe for most people to use. The verifiable evidence on the efficacy of magnetic therapy is slim and relies primarily on anecdotal information. In fact, say researchers at NCCAM, patients who reported pain relief from using magnets actually might be healing from other medical modalities they are undergoing.
Types
Magnets come in a wide range of strengths and applications. Magnets can be sewn into mattresses for continual hip treatments while you're sleeping. Proponents of magnets also claim that wearing a bracelet or a magnet in your shoe can alleviate hip pain. Magnets are measured in units called tesla and gauss. One tesla contains 10,000 gauss, or 10,000 G. Alternative magnetic therapy products typically range between 300 and 5,000 G, according to NCCAM.
Warning
Magnetic fields can interfere with other medical therapies, according to the Sports Injury Clinic. Magnets also can interrupt the efficiency of pacemakers and other implanted metal devices such as defibrillators. Women who are pregnant or people with tuberculosis should not use magnets either. Check with your doctor before using magnets to relieve your hip pain.
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