PEMF stimulation results in a higher O
muscle supply during exercise through increased O
release and uptake. Given the importance of oxygen uptake in sport activity, especially in aerobic disciplines ...such as cycling, we sought to investigate the influence of PEMF on muscle activity when subjects cycled at an intensity between low and severe.
Twenty semi-professional cyclists performed a constant-load exercise with randomized active (ON) or inactive (OFF) PEMF stimulation. Each subject started the recording session with 1 min of cycling without load (warm-up), followed by an instantaneous increase in power, as the individualized workload (constant-load physical effort). PEMF loops were applied on the vastus medialis and biceps femoris of the right leg. We recorded the electromyographic activity from each muscle and measured blood lactate prior the exercise and during the constant-load physical effort.
PEMF stimulation caused a significant increase in muscle activity in the warm-up condition when subjects cycled without load (
< 0.001). The blood lactate concentration was higher during PEMF stimulation (
< 0.001), a possible consequence of PEMF's influence on glycolytic metabolism.
PEMF stimulation augmented the activity and the metabolism of muscular fibers during the execution of physical exercise. PEMF stimulation could be used to raise the amplitude of muscular responses to physical activity, especially during low-intensity exercise.
Pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) are used as non-invasive tools to enhance microcirculation and tissue oxygenation, with a modulatory influence on the microvasculature. This study aimed to ...measure the acute effect of PEMF on muscle oxygenation and its influence on pulmonary oxygen kinetics during exercise. Eighteen male cyclists performed, on different days, a constant-load exercise in both active (ON) and inactive (OFF) PEMF stimulations while deoxyhemoglobin and pulmonary oxygen kinetics, total oxygenation index, and blood lactate were collected. PEMF enhanced muscle oxygenation, with higher values of deoxyhemoglobin both at the primary component and at the steady-state level. Moreover, PEMF accelerated deoxyhemoglobin on-transition kinetic, with a shorter time delay, time constant, and mean response time than the OFF condition. Lactate concentration was higher during stimulation. No differences were found for total oxygenation index and pulmonary oxygen kinetics. Local application of a precise PEMF stimulation can increase the rate of the muscle O2 extraction and utilization. These changes were not accompanied by faster oxygen kinetics, reduced oxygen slow component, or reduced blood lactate level. It seems that oxygen consumption is more influenced by exercise involving large muscle mass like cycling, whereas PEMF might only act at the local level.
The growing body of clinical and experimental data regarding electromagnetic field (EMF) bioeffects and their therapeutic applications has contributed to a better understanding of the underlying ...mechanisms of action. This study reports that two EMF modalities currently in clinical use, a pulse-modulated radiofrequency (PRF) signal, and a static magnetic field (SMF), applied independently, increased the rate of deoxygenation of human hemoglobin (Hb) in a cell-free assay. Deoxygenation of Hb was initiated using the reducing agent dithiothreitol (DTT) in an assay that allowed the time for deoxygenation to be controlled (from several min to several hours) by adjusting the relative concentrations of DTT and Hb. The time course of Hb deoxygenation was observed using visible light spectroscopy. Exposure for 10-30 min to either PRF or SMF increased the rate of deoxygenation occurring several min to several hours after the end of EMF exposure. The sensitivity and biochemical simplicity of the assay developed here suggest a new research tool that may help to further the understanding of basic biophysical EMF transduction mechanisms. If the results of this study were to be shown to occur at the cellular and tissue level, EMF-enhanced oxygen availability would be one of the mechanisms by which clinically relevant EMF-mediated enhancement of growth and repair processes could occur.
(2013) Non-Thermal Radio Frequency and Static Magnetic Fields Increase Rate of Hemoglobin Deoxygenation in a Cell-Free Preparation. (2013) Correction: Non-Thermal Radio Frequency and Static Magnetic ...Fields Increase Rate of Hemoglobin Deoxygenation in a Cell-Free Preparation.
Practitioners of Biofield Tuning assess health status of their clients by detecting off-the-body biofield perturbations using tuning fork (TF) vibrations. This study tested inter-rater agreement ...(IRA) on location of these perturbations.
Three Biofield Tuning practitioners, in randomized order, identified locations of the 4-5 "strongest" perturbations along each of 4 sites for the same series of 10 research subjects.
An Integrative Health and Medicine Center in La Jolla, CA.
Adult volunteers with no serious current illness and no prior experience of a Biofield Tuning session.
Practitioners used an activated 174 Hz unweighted TF to "comb" the same four sites per subject, located on the left and right sides of the base of the spine and the heart.
Practitioners identified and vocalized the distance from the body of perturbations along each site. Distances were recorded by a research assistant in the clinic room. No health information related to perturbation sites was discussed with the subjects.
Practitioners reported 6.3 ± 0.6 (mean ± standard deviation) perturbations per combed site per subject, with no significant difference among the raters. The overall level of IRA was low based initially on a first-pass, nonstatistical, analysis of results, with "agreement" defined within a tolerance of ±2 inches. In this approach agreement was 33%. More rigorous statistical analysis, including a statistical test using a Monte Carlo approach, strongly supported the conclusion of poor IRA.
IRA was low despite attempts to balance the real-world practice of Biofield Tuning with the constraints of research. For example, while IRA necessitates multiple assessments of the same subject, no information exists as to whether an initial assessment may affect subsequent assessments. Our study exemplifies the challenges faced when attempting to fit interventions with incompletely understood procedures and mechanisms into conventional research designs.
•Functional genomic and neurological correlates of mind-body practices are reviewed.•EEG and Neuroimaging correlates of mind-body therapies and meditation are reviewed.•Mechanisms of action by which ...mind-body practices influence health outcomes are discussed
A broad range of mind-body therapies (MBTs) are used by the public today, and a growing body of clinical and basic sciences research has resulted in evidence-based integration of many MBTs into clinical practice. Basic sciences research has identified some of the physiological correlates of MBT practices, leading to a better understanding of the processes by which emotional, cognitive and psychosocial factors can influence health outcomes and well-being. In particular, results from functional genomics and neuroimaging describe some of the processes involved in the mind-body connection and how these can influence health outcomes. Functional genomic and neurophysiological correlates of MBTs are reviewed, detailing studies showing changes in sympathetic nervous system activation of gene transcription factors involved in immune function and inflammation, electroencephalographic and neuroimaging studies on MBT practices, and persistent changes in neural function and morphology associated with these practices. While the broad diversity of study designs and MBTs studied presents a patchwork of results requiring further validation through replication and longitudinal studies, clear themes emerge for MBTs as immunomodulatory, with effects on leukocyte transcription and function related to inflammatory and innate immune responses, and neuromodulatory, with effects on brain function and morphology relevant for attention, learning, and emotion regulation. By detailing the potential mechanisms of action by which MBTs may influence health outcomes, the data generated by these studies have contributed significantly towards a better understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying MBTs.
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