Magnetic mattress therapy

Magnetic therapy mattresses have many claims made of them and, although none have been disproved, neither have any been verified with certainty. You should therefore decide upon the merits, or otherwise, of these mattress products carefully.

How they work

The idea behind magnetic therapy is very simple. Namely that there are (or can be) benefits in placing your body in a magnetic field for a prolonged period of time, e.g. overnight.

The way that this is done is by taking a mattress or mattress topper and incorporating small magnets in it at regular and symmetrical intervals. When someone sleeps on this mattress they then place themselves in a magnetic field which has a claimed positive effect on their body. The magnets cannot be felt through the mattress or topper.

This type of mattress is normally only deemed suitable for those who sleep on their backs and therefore have a balanced amount of the therapy spread across their bodies. People who sleep on their sides are not generally considered suited to magnetic mattress therapy because the magnetic field will not be consistent over their body, e.g. because each arm and leg will be at different levels they will experience different degrees of magnetism.

The claimed benefits

The claimed benefits of magnetic mattress therapy are many and there is no doubt that a large number of people attribute these mattresses to improved health and feelings of well being. However, there is no medical or scientific evidence to support these claims and whilst some seem plausible others can appear rather far fetched.

Here are some of the assertions made of the magnetic mattress.

• The magnetic field sooths and encourages sleep.
• It can cure insomnia.
• It improves circulation and the amount of oxygen in the blood.
• It can help in the relief of symptoms, pain or discomfort from arthritis, diabetes, fibromyalgia, high blood pressure and a number of other ailments and conditions.
• It can reduce cellular stress - which equates to being an anti-aging treatment.
• It can prevent the occurrence of arthritis.
• It can reduce or prevent snoring.
• It can change the body from being acid to alkaline.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does allow manufacturers of some magnetic products to state that they can provide some basic pain relief. This, however, is still a temporary permission.