The Effect of Johrei Healing on Substance Abuse Recovery: A Pilot Study

Alternative treatment with Johrei: A controlled randomized study evaluating seed physiological potential

BACKGROUND

Johrei, a noncontact healing therapy that purportedly channels "universal energy", is an easily taught technique with numerous positive reports of healing in human trials. However, studies on humans have been limited by small sample sizes, the placebo effect and baseline differences between groups. Overcoming some of these limitations, this study evaluated the effect of Johrei on the physiological potential of lettuce seeds.

METHODS

Lettuce seeds were subjected to thermal stress and then treated with Johrei before and after two years of storage. The seedling emergence percentage, emergence speed index, classification score, percentage of viable seedlings and root and shoot dry mass of the treated seeds were determined.

RESULTS

Stress-treated seeds treated with Johrei had a greater seedling emergence percentage than those not treated with Johrei (p<0.0001). Johrei also resulted in a greater emergence speed index (p<0.0001), a higher percentage of viable seedlings with higher classification score (p<0.0001) and greater root and shoot dry mass regardless of the storage duration (p<0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Johrei effectively preserved lettuce seed health, and the efficacy of Johrei can be assessed by evaluating its effects on the physiological potential of stress-treated seeds. Using live plants allows the influence of Johrei to be evaluated without interference from the placebo effect. Future studies should evaluate the influence of Johrei in primary aging processes in plants, such as cellular respiration by mitochondrial analysis, to gain insight into Johrei's mechanisms of action and enable inferences regarding similar cellular-level processes that occur in humans.

Johrei Effects on Water: A Pilot Study by Counting Drops

BACKGROUND

Water is a key ingredient in the creation and sustainment of life. Moreover, water may be a key vehicle in the processes of energy healing, such as in the preparation of homeopathic remedies and spiritual treatments. Given these properties, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether the application of Johrei to water could lead to significant changes in the hydrodynamic behaviour of the fluid.

METHODS

Four regular Johrei practitioners (P1, P2, P3 and P4) were selected for this study. Dripping water produced at the tip of a capillary was used as the hydrodynamic behaviour model. This behaviour was modelled mathematically, and tuning parameters φ4 and τ were used to assess significant differences in the dripping water samples that were subjected to Johrei compared with the samples that were not so treated. The tuning parameters were obtained using the Levenberg-Marquardt fitting algorithm. The data sets for each Johrei practitioner and the control experiment were analysed using ANOVA and a paired t-test.

RESULTS

The mathematical model exhibited an excellent fit to our data, generating correlation coefficients (r) greater than or equal to 0.999. Significant differences were observed in both τ (P1 and P2, P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively) and φ4 (P2, P < 0.01). As expected, no significant difference for the control experiment (without Johrei) was observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicated a statistically significant change in the hydrodynamic behaviour of water correlated with Johrei treatment for 50% of the participating Johrei practitioners.

Asymmetric activation of the anterior cerebral cortex in recipients of IRECA: preliminary evidence for the energetic effects of an intention-based biofield treatment modality on human neurophysiology

OBJECTIVES

Neurophysiologic studies of mindfulness link the health benefits of meditation to activation of the left-anterior cerebral cortex. The similarity and functional importance of intention and attentional stance in meditative and biofield therapeutic practices suggest that modulation of recipient anterior asymmetric activation may mediate the energetic effects of intention-based biofield treatments as well. The aim of the current study was to test this hypothesis by using a treatment modality known as IRECA (Istituto di Ricerca sull'Energia Cosmica Applicata).

DESIGN

Participants' electroencephalograms (EEG) were recorded over a 5-minute recovery period (subdivided into three 100-second intervals) while participants received genuine IRECA, placebo treatment, or no treatment, after completion of a cognitively demanding task.

PARTICIPANTS

21 undergraduate students (3 men and 18 women; mean age, 22.1 years). All were right-handed and none had a history of neurologic or psychological impairment.

OUTCOME MEASURES

(1) Alpha Asymmetry Index (AAI), a standard measure of anterior asymmetric activation of the cerebral cortex, defined as the average right hemisphere minus left hemisphere log alpha power of EEG recordings for homologous pairs of electrodes in frontal and prefrontal regions; (2) self-report measures of state anxiety obtained at baseline, before treatment, and after treatment, using a short form of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory.

RESULTS

In line with predictions, recipients of IRECA showed enhanced left-anterior activation of the cerebral cortex relative to placebo and no-treatment controls (as indicated by significantly higher and significantly positive AAI scores) during the first 100 seconds of treatment, and they reported greater overall reduction in state anxiety relative to baseline measures.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study provides preliminary supporting evidence for an intention-based biofield therapeutic modality offsetting the negative effects of stress via sympathetic activation of recipients' left-anterior cerebral cortex.

WITHDRAWN: Touch therapies for pain relief in adults

This review is out of date and has been withdrawn. The content of the review may be of historical interest to readers.

The editorial group responsible for this previously published document have withdrawn it from publication.

Health promotion and prevention strategies

Opiate dependency is a medical disorder that requires treatment intervention. Primary health care not only entails treatment of illness but also involves disease prevention and health promotion. Based on Pender's revised Health Promotion Model, a descriptive study comparing the health promoting behaviors/practices in abusing and recovering opiate-dependent drug users is analyzed. Using the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II, a comparative descriptive, exploratory, nonexperimental design study was conducted to identify key health-promoting behaviors in recovering opiate-dependent drug users. Prevention strategy recommendations are discussed, along with future research recommendations.

Effect of Johrei therapy on sleep in a murine model

CONTEXT

Sleep deprivation is an underrecognized problem that afflicts our society and can lead to reductions in vitality. However, vitality can be improved by Johrei therapy. We experimented on animals to distinguish the potential benefits of Johrei therapy independent of placebo effects.

OBJECTIVES

The central purpose of this study was to explore the sleep-promoting effects of Johrei in mice subjected to sleep interruption. The exploratory aim of the study was to determine the effect of Johrei on sleep as measured by tissue markers in the brain and electroencephalography-derived sleep in sleep-interrupted mice when compared with control mice. DESIGN, INTERVENTION, AND MEASUREMENTS: Mice (n = 45; C57BL/J6) were randomly allocated to one of five study arms with nine animals per arm: Johrei therapy alone, sham controls, negative controls, sleep interruption, and sleep interruption plus Johrei therapy. The amount of sleep was evaluated by measuring proportion of C-fos reactive neurons versus non-C-fos reactive neurons in the medial preoptic area of brain.

RESULTS

The proportion of C-fos reactive cells in sleep-interrupted mice that received Johrei therapy (14.5 ± 0.8%; sleep interruption plus Johrei therapy group) was greater than in sleep-interrupted mice (2.4 ± 1.3%; sleep interruption group) that received no such therapy (P < .0001). The sleep efficiency adjusted for baseline sleep in sleep interrupted mice that received Johrei therapy (sleep interruption plus Johrei therapy group; median 115%; interquartile range 68, 134%) was greater than mice receiving sleep interruption alone (sleep interruption group; median 89%; interquartile range 65, 110%; P = .07).

CONCLUSIONS

Johrei treatment results in better sleep as measured by proportion of brain tissue markers of recent sleep.

Effects of spiritual healing for women undergoing long-term hormone therapy for breast cancer: a qualitative investigation

BACKGROUND

Spiritual Healing is widely available and used, but is a neglected area for research and its biologic and psychologic mechanisms are not understood. The side-effects of long-term hormonal therapy for breast cancer are onerous and have been reported to lead to "drug holidays" that could diminish the long-term treatment benefits. It was investigated whether Spiritual Healing could support patients with breast cancer undergoing this treatment.

METHODS

The qualitative observation study took place in a specialist research facility in a general hospital. Spiritual Healing was provided by 4 healers registered with the National Federation of Spiritual Healers. Twelve (12) patients with breast cancer undergoing long-term hormone treatment and who found the effects onerous, self-referred themselves and were given ten weekly sessions of approximately 40 minutes each. Data collected included participant's daily records, direct observations noted by healers, the researcher's field diary and a one-to-one semi-structured interview.

FINDINGS

The positive effects of Spiritual Healing included alleviation of the physical side-effects of their treatment, increased energy levels, enhanced well-being, emotional relaxation, and re-engagement with precancer activities. Although 1 participant admitted considering a drug holiday prior to joining the study, none of the participants felt tempted to stop their hormonal treatments while receiving Spiritual Healing.

CONCLUSIONS

These qualitative findings indicate that Spiritual Healing has the potential to support patients with breast cancer in the maintenance of their long-term orthodox treatments. Further research is needed to test Spiritual Healing as a cost-effective complementary therapy, for those undergoing long-term cancer treatments.

Randomized expectancy-enhanced placebo-controlled trial of the impact of Quantum BioEnergetic distant healing and paranormal belief on mood disturbance: a pilot study

CONTEXT

Previous research has demonstrated the effects of ostensible subtle energy on physical systems and subjective experience. However, one subtle energy technique that has been neglected, despite anecdotal support for its efficacy, is Quantum BioEnergetics (QBE). Furthermore, the influence of paranormal belief and experience (either real belief/experience or suggested belief/experience) on subtle energy effects remains unclear.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the present study was to investigate experimentally the effects of distant QBE healing, and paranormal belief/experience, on mood.

DESIGN

A randomized expectancy-enhanced placebo-controlled design was used.

SETTING

Data were collected at the QBE Centre, Melbourne.

PARTICIPANTS

Participants were students from Deakin University and from the general public.

METHODS

Snowball sampling (ie, word-of-mouth) and convenience sampling using a ballot box placed in the university library.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Profile of Mood States-Short Form was used to quantify positive and negative mood states.

RESULTS

The QBE condition was associated with (1) significantly less Tension-Anxiety compared with the placebo and control condition; and (2) significantly less Anger-Hostility and Total Mood Disturbance compared with the control condition (but not the placebo condition). Furthermore, there was an interaction of condition and paranormal belief/experience with regard to Depression-Dejection, with believers assigned to the placebo condition scoring lowest on this Mood variable.

CONCLUSION

Findings suggest that the use of QBE by an experienced practitioner reduces mood disturbance. In addition, the placebo condition may have evoked suggestibility effects in believers, which would mean that they may be more likely than nonbelievers to believe that they were receiving healing, thus resulting in lower Depression-Dejection scores.

Effect of a Japanese energy healing method known as Johrei on viability and proliferation of cultured cancer cells in vitro

OBJECTIVES

The objective was to explore the effect of a Japanese energy healing method known as Johrei on the viability and proliferation of cultured human cancer cells in vitro.

DESIGN

A randomly selected 96-well plate or a culture dish of various types of human cancer cell lines in culture were exposed to Johrei treatment. For comparison purpose, an equal number of untreated or volunteer-treated cultures were chosen as the control group. Johrei treatment was repeatedly performed at appropriate time intervals over the course of the experiments. Cell viability was examined by a colorimetric assay with a Cell Counting kit. Morphological changes were analyzed by phase-contrast and time-lapse microscopy. Cell proliferation and early and late stages of cell death were also determined with the use of a bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) cell proliferation assay kit and an Annexin V-FLUOS Staining kit, respectively.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Quantitative data were presented as means±standard deviation. The outcome measures were the differences in viable cell numbers that remained under healing practice versus control conditions, and the statistical significance of differences in their mean values was assessed.

RESULTS

The viability loss of cultured human cancer cells in the Johrei group was significantly higher than that of either of the control groups, despite the fact that the responsiveness to Johrei varied with different cancer cell types. The proliferation rate of gastric cancer cells exposed to Johrei treatments for 72 hours was more significantly decreased compared with that of the untreated cells, whereas the extent of dying and/or dead cells in the Johrei group was more profound than that of the untreated cells.

CONCLUSIONS

These results provide evidence that Johrei treatment induces the viability loss of various cancer cells in vitro, mainly due to the increased cell death and the decreased proliferation.

Johrei, a Japanese healing technique, enhances the growth of sucrose crystals

The effect of Johrei treatment on the crystallization of sucrose from supersaturated solutions was studied in comparison with the crystallization in untreated solutions. This work was performed assuming that Johrei enhances the natural mechanisms of equilibrium restoration in biological and nonbiological systems. The crystallization in Johrei-treated solutions as judged by statistical analysis was found to be faster than the crystallization in untreated solutions. A discussion is presented about the mechanisms possibly involved.

Biofield therapies: helpful or full of hype? A best evidence synthesis

BACKGROUND

Biofield therapies (such as Reiki, therapeutic touch, and healing touch) are complementary medicine modalities that remain controversial and are utilized by a significant number of patients, with little information regarding their efficacy.

PURPOSE

This systematic review examines 66 clinical studies with a variety of biofield therapies in different patient populations.

METHOD

We conducted a quality assessment as well as a best evidence synthesis approach to examine evidence for biofield therapies in relevant outcomes for different clinical populations.

RESULTS

Studies overall are of medium quality, and generally meet minimum standards for validity of inferences. Biofield therapies show strong evidence for reducing pain intensity in pain populations, and moderate evidence for reducing pain intensity hospitalized and cancer populations. There is moderate evidence for decreasing negative behavioral symptoms in dementia and moderate evidence for decreasing anxiety for hospitalized populations. There is equivocal evidence for biofield therapies' effects on fatigue and quality of life for cancer patients, as well as for comprehensive pain outcomes and affect in pain patients, and for decreasing anxiety in cardiovascular patients.

CONCLUSION

There is a need for further high-quality studies in this area. Implications and future research directions are discussed.

Clinical trial: the effect of Johrei on symptoms of patients with functional chest pain

BACKGROUND

Patients with functional chest pain (FCP) represent a therapeutic challenge for practising physicians.

AIM

To determine the efficacy of Johrei as compared to wait-list in improving symptoms of FCP patients.

METHODS

Patients with chest pain of noncardiac origin for at least 3 months were enrolled into the study. All patients had to have negative upper endoscopy, pH testing and oesophageal manometry prior to randomization. Subsequently, patients were randomized to either Johrei or wait-list control. Patients received 18 Johrei sessions from a Johrei practitioner for 6 weeks.

RESULTS

A total of 21 FCP patients enrolled into the Johrei group and 18 into the wait-list group. There was no difference in symptom intensity score between Johrei group and wait-list group at baseline (20.28 vs. 23.06, P = N.S.). However, there was a significant pre- and post-treatment reduction in symptom intensity in the Johrei group (20.28 vs. 7.0, P = 0.0023). There was no significant reduction in symptom intensity score between baseline and at the end of the study in the wait-list group (23.06 vs. 20.69, P = N.S.).

CONCLUSION

This pilot study shows that Johrei may have a role in improving FCP symptoms; however, future studies are needed to compare Johrei treatment with sham Johrei or supportive care.

Touch therapies for pain relief in adults

BACKGROUND

Pain is a global public health problem affecting the lives of large numbers of patients and their families. Touch therapies (Healing Touch (HT), Therapeutic Touch (TT) and Reiki) have been found to relieve pain, but some reviews have suggested there is insufficient evidence to support their use.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the effectiveness of touch therapies (including HT, TT, and Reiki) on relieving both acute and chronic pain; to determine any adverse effect of touch therapies.

SEARCH STRATEGY

Various electronic databases, including The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED and others from their inception to June 2008 were searched. Reference lists and bibliographies of relevant articles and organizations were checked. Experts in touch therapies were contacted.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) or Controlled Clinical Trials (CCTs) evaluating the effect of touch on any type of pain were included. Similarly, only studies using a sham placebo or a 'no treatment' control was included.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Data was extracted and quality assessment was conducted by two independent review authors. The mean pain intensity for completing all treatment sessions was extracted. Pain intensity from different pain measurement scales were standardized into a single scale. Comparisons between the effects of treatment groups and that of control groups were made.

MAIN RESULTS

Twenty four studies involving 1153 participants met the inclusion criteria. There were five, sixteen and three studies on HT, TT and Reiki respectively. Participants exposed to touch had on average of 0.83 units (on a 0 to ten scale) lower pain intensity than unexposed participants (95% Confidence Interval: -1.16 to -0.50). Results of trials conducted by more experienced practitioners appeared to yield greater effects in pain reduction. It is also apparent that these trials yielding greater effects were from the Reiki studies. Whether more experienced practitioners or certain types of touch therapy brought better pain reduction should be further investigated. Two of the five studies evaluating analgesic usage supported the claim that touch therapies minimized analgesic usage. The placebo effect was also explored. No statistically significant (P = 0.29) placebo effect was identified.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Touch therapies may have a modest effect in pain relief. More studies on HT and Reiki in relieving pain are needed. More studies including children are also required to evaluate the effect of touch on children.