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Magnetism is a mysterious phenomenon to most people, and even many of us who have taken a few courses in college physics often don't feel we really "understand" it. In the 19th century, hucksters and scam artists were taking advantage of the public's ignorance of magnetism by offering fraudulent magnetic products to treat everything from baldness to impotence, and an even wider variety of magical wonders are being hawked over the Internet nowadays.

The purpose of this Web page is to examine the scientific validity of the claims for magnetic products, especially those related to water, in order to help counter some of the sales hype that is rampant in this field and has given it something of a bad name. Many of these claims relate to scientific principles that are frequently mis-stated or are simply wrong, but which may not be recognized as such by those whose command of chemistry and physics is lacking. It is hoped that this information will help consumers to make their own informed decisions about the validity of these products.

 

Magnetic water softening and scale control

There is a long history of the promotion of magnets to alleviate the "hardness" of mineral-containing waters, and particularly to control the deposition of scale in teapots, plumbing systems, evaporators, and boilers. There are now a large variety of devices on the market that claim to reduce scale deposition, and some claim to "soften" the water as well. The earlier devices mostly employed permanent magnets, but many now use alternating magnetic or electrostatic fields. The magnetic field surrounds the pipe at some point and penetrates it from all sides. This obviously limits its use to non-ferrous pipes such as copper or plastic.

Although magnetic water treatment (MWT) products have been promoted since the 1930's, they have not received very wide acceptance within the engineering community, and the question of whether or not they are effective is still very much open. The widespread marketing of MWT products to consumers via the Internet has done little to settle the issue.

What it's supposed to do

The purpose of MWT is of course to inhibit scale deposition; whether it can also "soften" the water in the sense of removing the ions of calcium and similar elements that form soap scum and leave deposits on evaporation is not clear.

Most descriptions of MWT don't claim to remove the hardness ions from the water (as conventional ion-exchange softeners do). Most commonly the lime scale solids are said to either deposit in a loosely adherent flake-like form, or to precipitate as small particles within the water itself instead of on metal surfaces. In either case, the precipitated material is carried along with the water.

But I see two difficulties with this explanation:

• If particles are actually precipitated, it should be possible to observe them, either by direct collection in a micropore filter or indirectly by light-scattering methods (nephthelometry), but there are no apparent reports of this.
• Further, once the scale-forming particles are removed, the water should still contain at least saturation levels of the hardness ions, so the water would by no means be considered "soft"; one would expect the metal ions would still form scums with soap, and they could still form scale when the water evaporates or is boiled in teakettles, etc.

Another common claim is that MWT causes calcium carbonate to precipitate as aragonite, a crystalline modification of CaCO₃ that is slightly less stable (and more soluble) than the much more common calcite structure. Some evidence for this has been reported in the literature[⇒]. But it is not clear that the physical properties of aragonite differ all that much from those of calcite.

Permanent magnets and alternating electromagnetic fields

Most of the permanent magnet devices employ a sequence of magnets, arranged so that the water passes alternately through magnetized and non-magnetized regions. This is probably based on the experiments of Kronenberg (see below) who found that a sequence of magnets was more effective. The alternating-current devices can presumably duplicate this effect with a single coil as shown at the right. Most of these use a frequency in the 100-1000 hz region. Some excite the coil with square waves rather than with sine waves in the apparent hope that of the large number of frequency components so generated, some will be more effective than others.

Instructions for building your own MWT device are available at this site (which also sells magnets.) This might make a nice Science Fair project!

 

Does MWT work?

Can MWT control scale deposition? Does it really soften the water? One might think that the question of whether magnetic water treatment is effective would by now have long been settled by scientific and engineering studies, but this is unfortunately not the case.

• Most of the reports (and there have been many) of the successful use of MWT have been anecdotal and lacking in quantitative data and proper controls.
• Most scientists who have looked into MWT remain very skeptical, as they tend of be of any field for which there is no obvious theoretical model and in which quantitative and reproducible results are hard to come by. (A very similar situation arises in studies of whether power transmission lines contribute to leukemia.) Scientists who might otherwise be qualified to investigate MWT also tend to be put off by the stigma the field has acquired due to the exaggerated claims made by some of its adherents and the widespread promotion of various worthless applications involving magnets.
• Most water-treatment engineers who have investigated magnetic water treatment (MWT) in controlled industrial settings report negative results. [see below]
• There are very few scientifically validated reports of successful MWT installations in the mainstream scientific and engineering literature. Given the potential economic benefits of a widely-applicable chemical-free softening process, especially in arid regions such as the U.S. southwest, one would expect a lot more scientific and engineering support.
• Many of the reports supporting MWT seem to be in rather obscure journals and conference proceedings. This may in part reflect the fact that water treatment is far from being a "leading edge" science— despite its importance and the fact that much remains unknown about the mechanisms of precipitation and scale formation.
• Manufacturers of MWT devices commonly offer simplistic or scientifically untenable explanations of how these devices work, giving the consumer who knows some chemistry little confidence in those who promote the product.
• Although MWT appears to be effective in some cases, the parameters of water composition, magnetic field strength, treatment geometry and flow rate that lead to satisfactory performance have never been clearly defined. Closer study often reveals that other factors (such as pH change) could account for the improvements that might otherwise be attributed to MWT.
• Commercial promotions of MWT devices tend to make excessively optimistic claims without offering credible supporting performance data. And when they do offer "case-studies", they are rarely thoroughly researched to engineering standards, and are frequently difficult if not impossible to verify. Some invoke the malevolent actions of the conventional water-softener industry (conspiracy theories are one of the favorite refuges of pseudoscience advocates of all kinds.) I myself have been accused (on certain Web pages) of being a secret employee of the Water Quality Association trade group !

Sometimes the subject of MWT reminds me of those Monty Python apartment towers that were able to stand up only as long as the residents had faith in them!

What's been written about MWT

Except for the LSBU source described immediatly below, most of these publications should be generally understandable by non-specialists. For more references that pertain to experiments on model systems which have appeared in the scientific literature, please see my water science page.

So, does MWT work? No clear answer!

For some users, MWT seems to be effective in controlling scale deposition; there are too many favorable anecdotal reports to dismiss it entirely. Looking at the carefully done studies on actual installations, the results are mixed. This suggests that the conditions under which MWT is effective are dependent on factors that are not well understood. Scientific studies on model systems suggest that magnetic fields can have subtle effects on water[⇒] and can affect carbonate precipitation[⇒], even though H₂O molecules are not paramagnetic. Some studies have shown that the presence of certain substances in the water can affect scale precipitation; these include iron ions, phosphates, silica[⇒], and oxygen.

Still, there is no scientific consensus about the mechanism of how MWT might work. This is not surprising; the entire process by which ions form precipitation nuclei is poorly understood. "Bare" ions do not exist in solution, but are protected by a hydration shell of loosely-attached water molecules and surrounded by an electric double layer of counter-ions. They do not simply come together to form precipitates. My best guess, based on the most recent literature, is that applied magnetic and electric fields might distort the double-layer in such a way as to promote nuclei formation, particularly if certain other ions or dissolved substances are present.

Some common misconceptions

 

MWT pseudoscience and hype

Instead of simply admitting that "we don't really understand how MWT works", most promoters of MWT devices feel compelled to peddle scientifically untenable "explanations". But some vendors do far worse by propagating absurd nonsense about MWT and its supposed benefits. One wonders if any of clowns who write this garbage have ever actually passed a course in physics or chemistry. Some evidence that they have not can be found in the following statements taken from various manufacturers' sites.

In the following examples, only a small selection of the nonsense found on MWT sites, claims that I consider false, misleading, or meaningless are denoted by "purple prose". Because many of these fringe-science companies come and go rather frequently, it's difficult to keep the links up-to-date. But the nonsensical claims they make seem to live on and are likely to turn up again. Links shown in {braces} are archived versions of the thankfully-now-departed.

Crackpot science,  impossible chemistry

Some agricultural promotions

It's little wonder that MWT has a rather tawdry reputation!

 

Magnetic effects on surface tension of water

The belief that magnetic fields can reduce the surface tension of water has become almost an urban legend that is widely promoted by various magnet merchants, despite the very small amount of evidence that has been amassed during the 100 or so years that the effects of magnetic fields on matter have been studied. Owing to the intense scientific interest in the properties and structure of water, one would expect that any convincing evidence that the surface tension of water can be influenced by magnetic treatment would make its way to one of the mainline chemistry journals. So far, this has not happened; what few reports there are tend to be in rather obscure publications which deal mainly with other fields and are probably not subject to review by water chemistry experts. Two recent articles illustrate this problem:

• Young I. Cho, a mechanical engineer at Drexel University, reported[⇒] a reduction in surface tension of up to 8% in hard water that had been treated by a 0.16 T permanent magnetic field; use of a 600-hz alternating field gave similar reductions. Unfortunately, this article does not provide enough information to assess the statistical validity of the results, which, it should be emphasized, do not apply to pure water. Also, this work depended on capillary rise observations, which although theoretically proportional to surface tension, do not actually measure it.
• A more recent study by Amiri and Dadkhah offers a good bibliography of earlier work in this field. Their careful study, which involved direct surface tension measurements (using a tensiometer rather than capillary rise), led them to conclude that the changes they observed were likely due to the effects of impurities, and that no meaningful conclusions about the effects of magnetic fields on surface tension can be drawn from existing studies, including those of Cho mentioned above.

Taking the most optimistic reports into account, it seems clear that the rather small magnitude of these effects makes them unlikely to be of significance in most practical applications. So until I see something that is more definitive, my own position is that

There is no convincing scientific evidence that magnetic treatment
can significantly reduce the surface tension of water

Claims that commercial devices bring about significant reductions in water surface tension or lead to the various benefits that might accrue from this effect should not be taken seriously in the absence of credible performance data.

Of course, this does not discourage this Danish company from selling a variety of magnetic devices for industrial applications that claim a 10% reduction in surface tension.

Magnetic laundry aids and surface tension reduction

There are a number of magnetic devices on the market that purport to increase the efficiency of laundry detergents, or even reduce the need for them entirely by making water "wetter" (reduce its surface tension), thereby allowing the water to more easily penetrate into fabrics and wash the dirt away. Virtually all of these promoters repeat the false claim, found again and again on Web sites, that a magnetic field will reduce the surface tension of water. Any high school student who can borrow a glass capillary tube and a small permanent magnet from the school science lab can easily demonstrate that this is pure rubbish. Neither this, nor the complete lack of any mention of this effect in the very extensive body of scientific literature on the interfacial properties of water, seems to have had the slightest effect on inhibiting the spreading of this lie by hucksters of all kinds.

Although one purpose of detergents is to reduce the surface tension of water so as to encourage it to spread evenly over a surface instead of forming droplets, the primary role of a detergent is to "solubilize" small particles of grease-like "dirt". Detergent molecules tend to be long chains that possess water-soluble properties on one end, and water-insoluble (oil-like) properties on the other end. Operating on the principle that "like dissolves like", the water-insoluble ends tend to embed themselves in the dirt particles so that the water-soluble ends stick out, disguising the particle as water-soluble and enabling it to be washed away. I am not aware that any claims that magnets can serve this function.

The best that can be said of magnetic laundry balls is that they help agitate the fabrics, but you can accomplish the same thing by dropping a rock into the washing machine. Otherwise, these devices are worthless.

See also this synopsis of the {CBC "Marketplace" program on magnetic laundry disk scams}

This one not only uses magnets, but also "far-infrared" and "negative ions" — you get three kinds of bunk for the price of one!

One major vendor warns of the supposed dangers of conventional detergents (they are, after all, "petrochemicals"!) One of their pages provides links to a report from an outside testing lab that, if genuine, gives all appearances of itself having been "laundered" in that no comparisons of the effectiveness of their magnetic balls are made with non-magnetic balls (or even with rocks!), or with conventional detergents.

An example of the errant nonsense that is sometimes employed to fool consumers into buying these worthless products is quoted in the left column below from a now-disappeared Web page. Similar claims can be found on many current sales sites. The parts I consider wrong, misleading, or meaningless are highlighted.

The hype (with original grammar!)	The facts
The effects of magnetic fields on water was discovered in the early 1900's by Danish Physicist Hendrick Antoon Lorenz.  He received the Nobel Prize in 1902 for his discovery of the effects of magnetic fields on water.	The 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded jointly to Lorentz (who was Dutch) and Zeeman for the discovery of the effects of magnetic fields on atomic emission spectra. (If Lorentz studied water, it was probably its magnetic susceptibility, which has nothing to do with magnetic water treatment.)
Water is a polar molecule, something like a little magnet.	Water is indeed polar but this has nothing at all to do with magnetism. The polarity is due to the higher nuclear charge of oxygen, which displaces the shared bonding electrons towards the oxygen. This leaves the oxygen with a partial negative charge and the hydrogen with a partial positive charge. Water has no paramagnetic properties.
In normal water, the positively charged hydrogen atoms are attached to neighboring negatively charged oxygen.  In fact, each oxygen is in close contact with 9 hydrogen's.	This statement confuses the bonding within H2O and the much weaker intramolecular hydrogen bonding that operates between molecules. Within H2O, each oxygen is permanently bonded to two hydrogen atoms. Connections between the hydrogen of one molecule and the oxygen of another are so weak that they are continually being broken by thermal motions and re-formed. Only in ice can one attribute a permanent structure to the water that extends beyond a single molecule.
This causes water to have a high surface tension so it sticks together.	Water does have a high surface tension, but this is not what causes water to "stick together"; both effects have their origin in the intermolecular hydrogen bonding (described above.) Surface tension is the work required to expand the area of the surface. The lower the surface tension, the more readily will a liquid penetrate narrow spaces as in a fabric.
Lorenz discovered that under the effects of a magnetic field, the polar molecules align and separate.  Thus making the water softer.	The "softness" of water refers to the absence of dissolved salts, not to low surface tension. I am unaware of any evidence that the surface tension of water is affected by a magnetic field. Anyone with access to a capillary tube and a magnet can test this for themselves, since capillary rise is proportional to surface tension.
Fifty years after Lorenz's discovery, scientists expounded on similar ideas, learning to manipulate water's structure with chemical combinations, thus the invention of laundry soap.	Soaps and detergents operate in two ways, namely by reducing the surface tension but also by forming tiny globules around hydrophobic "dirt" particles and effectively rendering them soluble-- a process known as emulsification. Soaps have been known since ancient times.
Using magnetic technology, The ... Laundry Ball changes the molecular structure of water with ionization instead of harsh chemicals.	Ionization? Where does this come in? Magnetic fields do not induce ion formation and they do not change molecular structures.
THE ELECTRONS SPEND MORE TIME AROUND THE OXYGEN AND LESS TIME AROUND THE HYDROGEN MAKING IT POSITIVE.  WITH THE MAGNETS, THE PLUS AND MINUS COMBINE CAUSING THE WATER MOLECULES TO STICK TOGETHER.	The first sentence is approximately true. The second is not. Moreover, don't we want the water molecules to NOT stick together?
The permanent magnets suspended in the ... Laundry Ball create a powerful magnetic field that aligns the water molecules, (hydrogen in one direction, oxygen in the other.)	Water molecules actually repel magnetic fields, and certainly cannot be aligned by them. Even if water were paramagnetic, thermal motions in the liquid would disrupt any alignment once the magnet moves away.
This alignment changes what is called the "surface tension" of the water, causing it to be extremely reduced.  The "drops" of water become so small and minute, they can easily penetrate into the fabric.	The low surface tension that promotes penetration of water into the fabric is just the opposite of the conditions required to stabilize "small drops". Smaller drops inhibit wetting of a surface!
When this happens, the water is considered "activated".  Along with this process, the minerals and salts suspended in the water become activated into an "ionic"  form, (charged particles), aiding in the cleaning process.	This kind of "activation" is not yet known to Chemistry! Further, the minerals are not "suspended", but are dissolved and already exist as ions. And the major ions of Ca and Mg tend to reduce the effectiveness of detergents.
During the 1970's the observation of effects of magnetic fields on water began in the U.S.  In 1984 , the institute of Electronic Engineers(IEE) recognized the new developments.  Early in 1984, Dr. Klaus J Kronenberg spoke at a conference on magnetism in St. Paul, Minnesota.	It's a bit much to state that his work was "recognized"; IEEE simply published the conference proceedings. Kronenberg's presentation can be found in IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol MAG-21 (5) Sept 1985. The paper offers no evidence for magnetic water softening.
The physical process used to cause this change in crystalline structure is provided by the use of magnetic induction fields, which when exposed to moving water, interacts with the water's electric dipole moment and applies a torque to the water molecule. The subsequent down stream effect of these coherently-oriented water molecules provides the electric potential which supplies the energy necessary to form the more complex crystalline form of calcium carbonate, called aragonite	The "torque" a magnet could apply to a water molecule would be far too minute to compete with ordinary thermal motions, which would in any case disrupt any temporary orientation even if it were to occur. There is no known way of utilizing electric potentials to cause the carbonate to precipitate as aragonite.

There is another "Laundry Disk" product that employs "special patented sophisticated ceramics" instead of magnets. According to the manufacturer, these magical ceramic particles

cause the water molecule to dissociate through an electrical phenomenon (destabilization). The thus "fractured" H2O molecule units are much smaller, enabling them to easier penetrate fabrics and dissolve dirt, resulting in the readily observable cleaning effect. When the ceramics are removed from the water, it returns to its normal electrically neutral state.

This promoters of this crackpot scheme appear to be somewhat confused about the meaning of "dissociation" in this context. Independent test results by U. Minnesota Water Resources Center and Consumer Reports (Feb 1995) do not support the performance claims of he manufacturer.

Yet another Laundry Disk product that does not use magnets makes the absurd claim that

Each disc contains electrically charged ceramic beads that create hydronium (H+) and hydroxide ions (OH-) in the wash water. The discs soften water for better cleaning,

Any student who as passed first-year Chemistry knows that these two ions, even if they could be magically created (they cannot), would instantly recombine into H₂O.

 

Sniggle.net's Laundry Ball Solution page is an interesting and amusing summary of laundry ball scams. Two other LB-debunking sites: here and here. The states of {Utah} and {Oregon} initiated consumer fraud proceedings against Tradenet Marketing, a Florida company that promoted a laundry ball device called "The Laundry Solution". FTC Consumer Alert - Wash Daze: Laundry Gadgets Won't Lighten the Load

Magnetic fuel treatment fantasy

Ever since there have been cars, various schemes for achieving miraculous increases in fuel mileage have been promoted to the public. (Who has not heard the folk-fiction that somebody's invention for running a car on water was secretly bought up by the oil companies?)

The usual schtick is that the molecules of gasoline and similar fuels are "clustered" together, and a magnet inserted in the fuel line will break up these aggregates, thereby allowing more even and efficient combustion. This is not only supposed to save fuel, but it also reduces the buildup of carbon in the cylinders and reduces pollution. Other hucksters offer devices that purport to use "far infrared technology" to achieve the same purposes. A 1998 review found virtually no convincing evidence for the efficacy of magnetic fuel treatment.

See the [U. K.] Auto Ass'n. warning on magnetic fuel treatment,
as well as the article {Gas-Saving Products: Facts or Fuelishness?}http://magnapak-magnetic-mattress-health-therapy.com/xcart/catalog/product_5_MagnaFlow_Magnetic_Fluid_Treatment__MF1.html at the U.S. FTC site.

Typical claims peddled to incredulous motorists maintain that magnets can

• break up [nonexistent] "clusters" of hydrocarbon molecules, thereby exposing the previously-shielded atoms to combustion;
• convert the hydrocarbons to "positive ions" which are more strongly attracted to the "negatively charged air molecules" (purportedly created by another magnet on the air intake);
• change the hydrocarbon molecule from its para [spin] state to the higher-energized ortho state.

None of these claims has any scientific basis and none has any credible experimental support. There is no scientific evidence that hydrocarbon (fuel) molecules can be modified in any way by application of a magnetic field.

This fact doesn't prevent this vendor from selling a device that can be used to treat both fuel and water which

"incorporates high-grade neodymium magnets in a unique bipolar, bi-axial method which produces powerful, resonating magnetic fields."

One purveyor of MFT poppycock makes the absurd claim that their magnetic device "puts a strong, positive charge into the fuel", and they even offer a set of three magnets for the fuel system, radiator water (!) and air intake (!!) The site makes numerous claims about fuel savings and emissions reduction, quotes many "testimonials" and even some performance data which I consider inadequately documented and find very difficult to take seriously. They claim that their magnets employ "mono-pole technology", which to me implies the use of monopolar magnets, although no such magnet is known to science; another page on the same vendor's site describes their fudging on this matter but offers no supporting evidence or references to what they refer to as "magnetic single focus".

Some other typical sites offer the following lies:

"In a similar way that water conditioned by heat (hot water) carries more energy and mixes with other substances more readily than cold water, fuel conditioned by a strong magnetic field carries more energy and mixes more readily with air resulting in a more complete combustion i.e. more energy and less waste from the same amount of fuel. The process of conditioning fuel through the introduction of a specific magnetic field is known as Ionization by Magnetic Induction (IMI)." {link}

"Better fuel atomization results in an increase in gas mileage up to 28%!!!"

A Pennsylvania company claims that their magnetic Fuel Conditioner works with gasoline, diesel, bunker oil, and natural gas, and that it will "enable your company to meet EPA clean air regulations without the tremendous cost of scrubbers and other expensive emission-reducing equipment." How are these results, unknown to science and technology, achieved?

[It] causes the naturally formed chemical associations (hydrocarbon clusters) to break apart into a single, potentiated molecular state. This single charged molecular state burns more uniformly and completely (efficiently) because the fuel has become fully atomized and ionized with oxygen.

{Experimental Magnetic Fuel Efficiency Boosters and Water Treatment Systems} is only one of many fantastic articles from the Orgone-Energy people, an outfit that celebrates the work of the notorious Wilhelm Reich.

Interestingly, an article describing a 2004 stock promotion claims that a 2003 report from the Rand Corporation concluded that that "a sufficient theoretical basis [for magnetic fuel treatment] exists to warrant entry into a comprehensive product testing program." It would be most interesting to see this report which is at odds with all known science.

It even works for natural gas!

And here is a "junk" U.S. Patent for magnetically (magically?) improving the fuel quality of natural gas— and here is where you can buy a device that is supposed to accomplish this unheard of feat!

Agricultural applications

Wholly cow!

Numerous sites promote magnet-based technologies for improving crop production, many based on the easily-disproved fiction that magnets can reduce the surface tension of water (see the stuff on magnetic laundry balls above.) One magnet merchant makes similarly extravagant (and to me, unbelievable) claims about how their misleadingly-named "single pole technology" magnets can greatly increase crop yields, cut water use and fertilizer costs. The site provides many "comparison" photographs, "testimonials", and mentions of "studies" too vaguely identified to allow verification. As expected, there are no references to supporting documents in the reputable agricultural or scientific literature. Statements such as

"the principle of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) lowers surface tension of water, creating greater solubility and penetration, which stimulates root systems. Over time, soil compacts, which restricts the root growth. Crop Booster-treated water de-clods and breaks up the compressed soil, giving the roots freedom to grow and absorb nutrients more quickly..

might sound impressive to folks whose scientific background has failed to inform them that

• magnetohydrodynamic effects occur only in gaseous plasmas and definitely not in aqueous solutions
• there is no credible evidence that magnetic fields can significantly alter the surface tension of water
• there is no connection between surface tension and solubility

Other pages at this site deal with magnetic treatment of plant seeds, lawn grass, tomato plants, cotton fields, etc.etc. My advice would be to check with your local Agricultural Extension Service agent before betting the farm on miracle magnetics.

See it for yourself!

This U-Tube video shows the amazing results that "magnetic water" allegedly had on strawberry crop yields in Australia.

Medical applications and pain relief

As with anything relating to health and wellness, there is a huge "alternative health" industry that is just as avaricious as the large pharmaceutical companies in its eagerness to separate consumers from their money. Among these are the magnet merchants who promote an amazing variety of devices that are purported to offer near-miraculous relief from pain (for which there is a very limited amount of credible evidence— see below) and cures of everything from cancer to baldness. Many of these products are listed by the FDA as "Fraudulent and Deceptive Medical Devices" subject to automatic detention on import, but this has done little to reduce the availability of these items to the credulous multitudes.

As is the case with so much quackery, much of the actual selling of these worthless products is done by thousands of independent dealers recruited by typically not-very-educated individuals who are as credulous as their customers. The more ambitious but unlettered can even purchase mail-order "Registered Magnetic Therapist" and similar degrees. But in recent years, this quackery has moved into the mainstream as Amway and the Canadian Shopper's Drug Mart chain have begun peddling this snake oil.

Most of the accounts of magnetic pain relief are not supported by credible scientific evidence, despite the extravagant claims of popular books such as "The Pain Relief Breakthrough: The Power of Magnets to relieve backaches, arthritis, menstrual cramps, carpal tunnel syndrome, sports injuries, and more."  The author, Julian Whitaker, MD, is a well-known quackery advocate who publishes a variety of health tabloids, magazines and newsletters in which he modestly bills himself as "America's #1 health advocate," "America's #1 health champion," and "the physician America trusts"-- which should be enough to raise the suspicions of any intelligent person capable of critical thought! A {bibliography on magnetic therapy} lists about a dozen similar books, many by M.D.'s having questionable motives and dubious scientific credentials. The only title by a recognized, published scientist is Henry Bauer's Science or Pseudoscience: Magnetic healing, psychic phenomena and other heterodoxies. See also the following:

• Magnetic therapy scams and scandals (Canadian Quackery Watch)
• Scam Alert: Magnetic mattress pads are a fraud, lawsuit claims (Sacramento Bee)
• Florsheim is sued for fraudulent advertising of its MagNeForce magnetic shoe
• QuackWatch site on magnetic therapy
• Magnetic and electromagnetic therapy article David W. Ramey published in Spring 1998 issue of The Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine.

A good example of the kind of crackpot pseudoscience that some vendors employ to hawk their wares to a credulous public is illustrated by these quotes from a site which offers the following misinformation:

• [Magnetic mattresses reduce] cellular stress level, which reduces oxidation (which is what aging is)
• Most people are too acidic and magnetic therapy makes the body more alkaline, which is very good for optimum health.
• Changing the structure of calcium molecules so that they do not build up on bones and joints, which is what causes most arthritis

There is one scientific paper I know of that offers credible evidence that magnetically-treated water might useful for dental care:
The effect of oral irrigation with a magnetic water-treatment device on plaque and calculus,
D.L. Watt et al, Journal of Clinical Periodontology 20(5) 314-317 May 1993. This double-blind study showed a significant reduction in calculus volume when irrigator devices had magnets installed. The authors suggest some possible mechanisms relating to reduced calcium and phosphate ion activity, but these don't seem very convincing. A summary of this article can be seen at this commercial site. Needless to say, many enterprises see no need to wait for verification of these results, and are breathlessly marketing magnetic oral irrigators to the public.

Many magnetic-cure hucksters try to tell you that the two poles (north and south) of a magnet produce different effects, and some even offer what they claim are "monopolar" magnets. They commonly confuse magnetic polarity with electric polarity (positive and negative.) Thus one site offers this misinformation, carefully tailored to mislead the science-challenged:

The negative field of a magnet is used most often to correctly stimulate (potentiate) and reorganize the electron (spin) charge which results in creating the healthy cellular charge state of a strong-negative potential.
The negative field is used in most treatments to help the body heal. When a cell’s electrical charge is elevated from its stressed, improperly charged state to a highly-charged negative state, the cell’s natural ionic forces
(little magnetic channels) are suddenly able to function properly and correctly metabolize all the necessary micro-nutrients.

Magnetic baldness prevention was the vision dangled by the now-departed MAG-SOL site which offered the hilariously simplistic argument that blood contains iron which is attracted by magnets, so the magnets embedded in this company's baseball caps will attract more blood to the hair follicles, producing a luxuriant growth. Right? Dead wrong!

There are thousands of sites hawking Ionized Bracelets as forms of "magnetic" pain relief even though these worthless devices don't even claim to contain magnets!

---

Magnetized water and magnetic quackery

The mere fact that "magnetized water" is a scientific absurdity does not prevent hundreds of hucksters from spewing out such rubbish as the following from the this "natural medicine" site :

• Every cell in the human body can be viewed as a small magnetic unit. This property is present in all organs. Each cell produce its own magnetic field. Any disturbance in this magnetic field indicates a disorder. This equilibrium can be restored-with the help of magnets according to many researchers.
• Technically, magnetism works because it increases the speed of sedimentation of suspended particles in water (and other liquids) and enhances conductivity and the process of ionization or dissociation of atoms and molecules into electrically charged particles. (New Scientist, June 1992.)
• Physics shows that chemicals change weight under the influence of magnetic fields. So does water. More hydroxyl (OH-) ions are created to form calcium bicarbonate and other alkaline molecules. It is these molecules that help to reduce acidity.
• Normal tap water has a pH level of about 7, whereas magnetized water can reach 7.8 pH after exposure to a 7000 gauss strength magnet for a long period of time. Cancer cells do not survive well in an alkaline environment.
• Magnet also affects the bonding angle between the hydrogen and the oxygen atom in the water molecule. Magnetized water causes  hydrogen-oxygen bond angle within the water molecule to be reduced from 104 to 103 degrees. This in turn causes water molecule to cluster together in groups of 6-7 rather than 10-12. The smaller cluster leads to better absorption of water across cell walls.

Environmental Science & Products  (whose Web site www.naturalizedwater.com has thankfully disappeared) offered up some equally ludicrous nonsense:

• "In many places on earth, water springs out enriched with certain minerals and magnetized in a natural way,  thanks to its way through different geological strata.
• "By 'magnetizing' or polarizing drinking water, those noxious 'lumps' will not build up,  and instead we see amorphous structures which are easily assimilated or discardable.  In addition to getting softer water, the water temporarily acquires new dissolving, anti-calcareous, relaxing and invigorating properties.
• "Magnetized water is beneficial in all cardiovascular disorders, from tachycardia, hypertension and hypertension, up to arthritis and limb paraesthesia.  The excessive sedimentation of cholesterol in the blood vessels is eliminated, resulting in a relief for the heart activity."
• "Using God's technology"

Nothing like invoking theology if all else fails!

This Colorado company hawks a liquid supplement which they describe as a "water-soluble liquid magnet" which they [falsely] claim acts by "inducing electrons into all the conductive elements of the body". They even have a junk patent that stands as a doleful testimony to the quality of examiners the USPTO is able to attract.

A Canadian outfit makes the following unfounded and ridiculous claims about the benefits of drinking "magnetized water":

• Reduces acidity and helps to regulate the body's pH level.
• Influences the autonomic nervous system.
• Beneficial for kidney ailments, gout, obesity, and premature aging.
• Helpful in internal cleansing of the body.
• Promotes healing of wounds and open sores when bathed in FEMO2 water.
• Dissipates toxic deposits within the body's   connective tissues.
• The oxygen level in magnetically treated water is   higher than the oxygen level of untreated water.
• Has a therapeutic effect on the body, especially the digestive, nervous and urinary systems.
• Magnetically treated water improves the taste.
• When water is magnetized, the surface tension is reduced for better cell absorption.

"Water is Paramagnetic …meaning that it holds a magnetic charge" is just one of many lies and misrepresentations to be found on sites that flog an elastic band containing several magnets that you are supposed to slip over a container of water, wine, milk, or juice in order to increase the "bioavailability" of the water– very similar to the equally nonsensical claims by the clusterquackpot merchants. To support these claims, they mis-cite a number of Nobel Prize winners and offer various references to the scientific literature which are incomplete or, in one case, do not appear to exist. To add to the hype, one can see pictures that purport to show how the "magnetized filtered water" increases the growth rate of plant, especially if the south magnetic poles face the water(!).

One health-quackery newsletter site attributes these claims to one Michael Pedersen, the president of Aquaspace Water Systems, laughably identified as "one of the world's foremost authorities on water" and a company called AquaSpace. To add to the hype, they have former astronaut Jim Lovell cheapening himself by endorsing their products.

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This Japanese/California company which boasts "a 100-year plan to become the largest wellness company in world history." offers a remarkably wide range of products to the alternative-health market through thousands of independent dealers. Their line of devices relating to magnetic quackery is probably second to none. Here you can get everything from magnetic bracelets to mattresses and shower heads. Few companies do a better job of integrating multiple junk sciences for multiple species, as evidenced, for example, by their magnetic dog-bed that employs "far-infrared technology".

For people who are concerned about their drinking water, this device employs a combination of "oxygenating activity, pi minerals, and magnetic field .. designed to re-create the conditions in the stream where pi water ("the water of life" } was discovered more than 30 years ago."

[It] features magnetic technology that was inspired by rainstorms ... Pure rainwater falls from clouds that contain a strong electromagnetic field - the source of lightning. Rain passes through this highly charged field of energy.

This device employs a pair of rotating magnets that subject the water to "a field of high energy". What this has to do with rain, streams, or nature is not explained. As if this were not enough pseudoscience, they claim that their "Pi technology uses far-infrared energy. Oxygenation technology that works like a mountain stream ... in the same way that water is oxygenated when flowing over the rocks in a natural environment."

 

 

Some scientific references to magnetics in pain management

There is some evidence that externally-applied magnetic fields can provide relief of certain types of chronic pain. A major difficulty in any such study is in eliminating the placebo effect which generally requires a double-blind protocol. Here are a few recent references to the scientific literature:

• "Magnets for patients with leg pain" M.I. Weintraub J. Am. Medical Assn 291(1) 43-44 (Jan 7) 2004.
• "Magnetic neuromedicine: an 'attractive' promise" by Frank Adams, a physician and neuropharmacologist, in the American Journal of Pain Management (AJPM), 1998;8:17-18. This article reports some positive clinical results and calls for more comprehensive studies.
• "Chronic submaximal magnetic stimulation in peripheral neuropathy: is there a beneficial therapeutic relationship? Michael Weintraub, AJPM 1998 8(1) . This study suggests that magnetic foot pads may relieve neuropathic pain in some cases. Detailed paper with many references.
• "Magnetic Mattress Pad Use in Patients with Fibromyalgia: A Randomized Double-blind Pilot Study".Journal of Back and Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation 13(1999) 19-31
• "Effect of oral irrigation with a magnetic treatment device on plaque and calculus" (J. Clinical Peridontology, 1993) reports positive results in what appears to be a well-conducted study.

An extensive compilation that summarizes over 300 literature references to medical applications of magnetic fields, both permanent and alternating, can be found at the Gary Null site. The range of ailments covered seems too great to be entirely believable, but some of the articles appear to be in reputable journals.

Magnetic chlorine removal

Chlorine is by far the most widely-employed agent for disinfecting municipal water supplies, and there is no question about its effectiveness in reducing water-borne disease. Unfortunately, this active element also reacts with some of the organic components present in certain water to generate small amounts of chlorinated products such as chloroform and chloramines which have been shown to be mutagens and may be carcinogens. Although there are no epidemiological studies that demonstrate an adverse effect of chlorinated water on human health, it is understandable that many people would prefer their drinking water to be chlorine-free, if only to reduce the unpleasant taste in localities where the chlorine content is especially high. This can usually be accomplished by activated charcoal filters, and in extreme cases, by boiling. Numerous vendors sell magnetic devices, often in the form of shower heads, that purport to remove the chlorine from the water. Their Web sites paint frightening pictures of the dire consequences of showering in water containing this poisonous element. Consider, for example, this breathless paragraph from one sales site, obviously intended for people the vendor considers so dumb that they will be impressed by all of the words being capitalized:

... but if you think chlorine is bad, consider a substance that had proven deadly to far more people: see the "Ban DHMO" (dihydrogen monoxide) Page! Chlorine, like any gas, is less soluble in hot water than in cold, so it is likely that some chlorine is released in a shower– although as one who often takes long, hot showers, I've never noticed it, even in places like Istanbul where the water is almost too highly chlorinated to be potable. However, it is not at all clear how a magnetic device can reduce the emission of chlorine, a gas that is completely unaffected by magnetic fields. One wonders where the chlorine is supposed to go!

Claims that magnets can remove chlorine or chlorine by-products from water are false.

As any high school Chemistry student should know, chlorine, Cl₂, contains no unpaired electrons and is therefore not attracted by a magnet. The same is true of chlorine by-products.

Other dubious uses of magnets

Magnetic wine enhancement

The Perfect Sommelier "improves virtually any wine in less than 30 minutes.  It will bring out the maturity and subtlety that the vineyard intended.  Replace the cork with the Sommeliers' top and place the bottle of wine on the stand.  In 30 minutes a remarkable change occurs due to the strong magnetic field created by The Perfect Sommelier." I have corresponded with the proprietor who seems quite sincere, but I can't help but be quite skeptical!

A more recent product is the Bev Wizard Wine Enhancer whose promoters claim (with no supporting evidence) that the magnetic field causes negatively-charged tannins to coagulate. See this Decanter article on this dubious device.

Shooter Buddy claims to be a magnetic wine-aging accelerator.

"The Earth’s magnetic field helps create the great taste of fresh fruits. During the long growing season, fruit is held in a relatively constant position in relation to the Earth’s magnetic field, aligning the liquid particles much like tiny compass needles. This natural balance gives fresh picked fruit its smooth, natural flavor.

Effects of magnetic fields on microbial metabolism. Some references to this topic can be found in U.S. patent 5318045 for the use of magnets in bioremediation processes.The applicants show some experimental data indicating that a N. pole can materially alter the efficacy of certain types of bacterially-mediated oxidation of pollutants. No references to published studies are given.

Juicer jiggery-pokery

Several manufacturers offer juice-producing machines that incorporate magnets, which they variously claim, without any supporting evidence, to mellow the taste [link], to enhance the stability of the juice [link], or generally to maintain the freshness of fruit and vega table juices. A typical false claim is that the magnets

add more positive ions and vitality to minerals in the juice. ... the magnets are creating positive ions... Bioceramic particles, produced by far-infrared technology, also emit positive ions. The magnets recharge the bioceramic material and the bioceramic material recharges the magnets. ...many of these positive ions go into the juice. These additional positive ions add more vitality and longevity to the life of the minerals, reducing oxidation and keeping the juice fresher longer. [link]

Fast-freezing foolishness

ABI, a Japanese outfit, offers a Cells Alive System (CAS) whose purpose is to improve the industrial-scale fast-freezing process by inhibiting the growth of ice crystals that tend to break down cell walls when foods are frozen. The idea is to employ a magnetic field to allow the food to be supercooled (that is, cooled below the freezing point without forming ice), and then turning off the field causing the ice to form so rapidly that only very small crystals are able to grow. A fine idea, except for the fact that I know of no evidence that a magnetic field is able to alter the freezing point of water. The CAS promotion claims that the magnetic field acts by aligning "the magnetic moment of the electrons" — which strikes me as scientific nonsense, given that all 10 electrons in H₂O are paired so that the molecule has a zero magnetic moment. A 2006 article in a South African food processing magazine describes the process in more detail, but confuses the issue by invoking the use of an alternating electric field as well (which should have the same effect as a microwave oven) and making the unlikely claim that a glass of water frozen by this method will not break.

Some really goofy schemes and scams

Found on the Balanced Lives site (the purple prose is all nonsense):

The earth's magnetic field naturally charges water in lakes, wells, and running streams. Water that passes through your city water treatment plant is transported through underground piping which causes the water to lose its magnetic energy; therefore treating water by passing it through a magnetic field will restore the natural energy and balance. It also rids the water of memory. There are systems available that magnetize the water as it comes into the faucet. These are known as point of use or point of discharge systems. ... Magnetized water tastes sweeter and has more clarity; promotes a more alkaline pH in the body; is beneficial to wounds and burns; has a beneficial effect on digestive, nervous and urinary systems; revitalizes the body; provides positive effect on the nervous system; has been beneficial for kidney ailments, obesity and premature aging, and may help relieve discomfort. ... Magnetic water controls scale buildup in pipes and plumbing. Magnetic water has a positive effect on plant growth. Magnetic water is more solvent and has a lower surface tension, so nutrients in the water are absorbed more readily. Use on agricultural crops results in improved quality of the plants with a reduction in the use of fertilizer.

NESI (Natural Environmental Solutions Inc. of Las Vegas, Nev, whose Web site, thankfully, recently disappeared) offered to "Magnetically enhance your body's natural energy" -- In addition to the usual water and fuel conditioners (including a magnetic showerhead that "Has Been Proven To Consistently Remove Over 90% Of Free Chlorine", (starting every word with a capital letter presumably makes this more authoritative!) they offered a variety of Bio-Magnets that "magnetically enhance your body's natural energy", such as "Plaque fighting magnetic toothbrushes" ("Get teeth whiter and eliminate unslightly build up"), magnetic coffee cups, magnetic insoles (your choice of all-north or bipolar) and a Quartz Crystal Simulator ("High voltage stimulation ideal for on the spot use" ?!) .. or, for your dog, magnetic pet collars and a magnetic pet bed.

"Charged" water

This is really a separate subject, but the purveyors of at least one magnetic device appear not to understand that there is a distinct difference between "magnetized" water (impossible) and electrically "charged" water (also impossible!), or more likely they hope that the suckers who come to their Web site will be sufficiently ignorant to miss this point. The left column contains some paragraphs we found a few years ago on their Web site; the parts that are incorrect, untrue, misleading or scientifically absurd are highlighted. Wholly-Water is not the only outfit that has hawked such schlock to the general public.

Why do I waste my time on this stuff? Chemistry is my favorite subject, and I hate to see it misused to confuse, mislead or defraud the public.

Stephen Lower is a retired faculty member of the Dept of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University Burnaby / Vancouver, Canada

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.