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THE BRITISH INSTITUTE OF MAGNET THERAPY |
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Home study course in magnet therapy This course is divided into six segments of approximately equal size. It is designed to be completed in six months, and assumes approximately one hour’s study for five nights each week. In addition, candidates are required to prepare an essay of at least two thousand words for each segment, and though this depends on individual volition and ability, this exercise should take around five to ten hours. Candidates may submit essays in neat handwriting (black ink, one side only), though computer-prepared copy (e.g. Windows Word) is preferable, and diskettes may be accepted in a variety of pre-agreed formats. The Course notes are provided in hard copy format only, and may not be copied or provided to third parties. Submissions should be photocopied by candidates before posting, since the Institute cannot take responsibility for lost documents or manuscripts. Essays are automatically enrolled in the BIMT Student Prize, and candidates are required to assign their work to BIMT in case of subsequent publication. Normally this would only be done with the student’s agreement. For the 2005/6 Certificate Course the six segments are as follows: 1. The History and Literature of Magnet Therapy: duration, number of applications, and field strengths used in main uses. 2. Physics and Biology of magnetic field bio-effects: techniques 3. Applications, part one: Circulatory and Immune-related Conditions 4. Applications, part two: Muscular-skeletal Conditions 5. Electropollution 6. Mechanisms of interaction. For each segment a set of printed Notes is supplied, and access provided to a restricted, downloadable database website for computer-skilled applicants. Essays for each segment should be submitted within 30 days of the end of segment date, and normally will be marked and returned within 30 days thereafter. No higher level educational skills in physics or biology is required, though candidates are advised to acquire recommended textbooks on these subjects, and a copy of Magnetotherapy Proceedings is supplied free to each candidate. WHAT YOU RECEIVE AS A BIMT CERTIFICATE CANDIDATE… Course materials Each segment of the course is accompanied by printed course materials unique to this course. These valuable references will enable you to refer to the entire repertoire of research, techniques of application, where to find the specific magnets needed, and constitutes an indispensable source of reference materials for student and therapist. Free Coghill Supermagnets Candidates will be expected to familiarise themselves with static magnets and their fields and applications. Accordingly each candidate is provided free of charge with six SuperMagnets from Coghill Research Laboratories, with a retail value in excess of £225-00. These may be used for research purposes, loaned to subjects or sold to the public and arm the reader with a complete and detailed overview of the ways EM fields and radiation can affect human life both beneficially and adversely. They do not however carry the usual 60 day money back guarantee, but are marked to show North pole and their individual gauss rating is shown on them. Free publications Each Candidate is given one copy of "Something In the Air", a 400 plus page book detailing every aspect of bioelectromagnetics and its emerging importance from the viewpoint of a biologist. This book was hailed in 1999 by the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine as one of the most important books in the whole of complementary medicine. Other free books given to candidates include Electrohealing (Thorsons, 1992) and the Gaia Book of Magnet Therapy, a lavishly illustrated but practical book for layperson and practitioner. Together these works provide a clear non-technical introduction to magnet therapy and electropollution. The research library Over the last decade we have acquired a formidable library of thousands of research reprints, books, conference proceedings and other publications from the peer reviewed literature in hard copy form, and a reference list enabling searches by topic, author, year, journal or title. Candidates will have access to this vast body of knowledge, enabling them to research quickly any problem arising from their practice. Hard copies of studies held by the library are made available at reasonable copy charge, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Acts. Free webpage The Institute has developed a comprehensive 150-page website visited by hundreds interested in bioelectromagnetics from over forty countries every week. Each candidate who wishes can have details of his/her practise listed in a separate subpage, linked electronically to the BIMT site, a useful promotional tool for those lacking in computer skills who nevertheless recognise the importance of a world wide web presence. New research on magnet therapy or even the results of the candidates own research projects can be posted for attention by a global audience. SEGMENT ONE: a) History and literature of magnet therapy The history of this science goes back thousands of years. While most people interested in the topic are familiar with the rudimentary history, few have accessed the vast research efforts of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, largely ignored by establishment science until now. This segment provides an annotated references list of the most important studies, thumbnail sketches of the early protagonists of magnet therapy and their discoveries. A comprehensive and critical overview of the existing literature is also provided, equipping the student to propound the strengths and familiarise him/herself with the gaps in current research. The work of later pioneers of the science, Andy Bassett, Madeleine Barnothy, William Philpott, William Pawluk and others is reviewed. There are now several dozen books published on the topic of magnet therapy, whose authors originate from India to New Zealand. These are critically examined and compared. Also the main studies are discussed to support mechanisms of interaction and the specifics of magnet application. Moreover the counter-arguments sometimes advanced by those denying the efficacy of this therapy are examined in detail. Main areas of use This section explains the six main areas where the use of magnet therapy is an appropriate adjuvant in medicine: Vasodilatation Spasmolysis Analgesia Accelerated healing Anti-inflammation Anti-oedema The possible role of magnet therapy in leukaemia cancer tumour regression, and immune related deficiencies is also reviewed. SEGMENT TWO The Physics and Biology of Magnet Therapy Without a basic understanding of the physics underlying electricity and magnetism any therapist is working in the dark. Moreover physics by itself is wholly insufficient to understand what happens at the interface between the physical energies of electricity and magnetism and the sophisticated processes inherent in even the simplest living organisms. This segment refreshes the memory of those with physics and biology backgrounds and places these disciplines in the context of magnetotherapy. It explains why chronic exposure to some fields and radiations can be adverse to health, whilst others are beneficial. How many nanoTesla are there in 17 Gauss? Is 200 MicroWatts per square centimeter the same as 2 Watts per metre? If the electric field is 20 Volts per metre, what is the magnetic field at 900 MegaHertz? How appropriate is SAR to bioeffectiveness? And what is SAR anyway? What does a magnetic field do to an electric field? The physics of bioelectromagnetics can be baffling. This segment is not difficult for the non-scientist, but is aimed to clarify the subjects and apply them in an understandable way to the therapy. After grasping the basics the student is led gently through the technical units and how they are compiled, so that technical terms are fully understood, and can read and explain the meaning of the technical literature with greater confidence. What is happening when a magnetic field is applied to the living cells of our bodies? How do our bodies use their own endogenous electric fields to coordinate the trillions of its cells? What is transmembrane signal transduction? How is cytosolic calcium affected by a magnet? What effects do magnetic fields have on enzymes? Or on brain rhythms? The biology of this science is unfolding before our eyes, and new discoveries emerge at every new bioelectromagnetics conference. In this segment students will become acquainted with not only the fundamentals but also with the state of the art. SEGMENT THREE Circulatory and immune related conditions a) Red blood cells and platelets Static magnetic field effects on blood flow and how they improve the bioavailability of oxygen are among the most clearly proven bio-effects in magnet therapy. The basics of organic respiration via red blood cells and its variations and their implications for health are described. The vital roles played by oxygen in such processes as oxidative phosphorylation are described against a background of general metabolic and bioelectromagnetic studies already in the literature. This segment lists and describes in detail those studies confirming this benefit, and the lessons they provide for specific applications. Disorders of circulation are among the most common ailments of today, from varicose veins and gout to acute cardiac infarction. What may and may not be accomplished using magnets, and the field strengths, duration of applications and their number derived from clinical studies are set out for the practitioner and student alike. Contraindications are discussed. b) White blood cells and cellular immunology A second vital role of organic blood cells is cellular immune defence by means of the white cells. Here too there is a role for magnet therapy, and this is expounded in simple terms for the student not familiar with immunology. One of the most enduring facets of laboratory studies of magnetic fields is on the human peripheral blood lymphocyte, where hundreds of studies permeate the literature. The student is led gently through these and their import for magnet therapy. Immune related disorders have during the last century become a large proportion of disease in industrialised countries, from AIDS to arthritis, and many of the familiar disorders of today are auto-immune in nature. SEGMENT FOUR Applications: Muscular-skeletal conditions a) Problems with bones The human frame is a bony skeleton which carries the soft tissues and organs. Multiple fractures of these bones is commonplace as a result of the automotive and other methods of transport, of organised body contact sports, war, and a variety of other perils of modern life. Not only the long bones but also complicated fractures of articular bones are often involved. This segment describes the remarkable advances made in the healing of non-union fractures using pulsed magnetic therapy, and how these techniques can also be applied to pets and animals in a veterinary setting. Another area of concern for the middle aged is the onset of osteoporosis, where calcium levels in bones are gradually being depleted with age. There is a role for magnet therapy in combating this disorder of old age, and the science and literature of this important aspect of therapy is expounded. Problems with muscles Turning next to the muscles, a variety of problems with these are an increasing feature of our more sedentary lives. Many of us work more in offices, drive cars to and from work, and watch more TV than we care to admit in the evenings, rather than carry on energetic exercise, all of which has a deleterious effect and can lead to muscular problems as diverse as upper limb disorder, gout, cramps, aches, and a variety of other muscular-related pains. This segment takes the student through the lactic-pyruvic acid exchange system, the way muscles create and use energy, the metabolic pathways from glucose to adenosine triphosphate, and how magnet therapy can help in sports injuries, muscle pains and related problems such as tennis elbow, frozen shoulder, tenosynovitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, RSI, and general myalgias and asthenias. A special section of this segment is devoted to treating the pain of arthritis and rheumatism. SEGMENT FIVE ELECTROPOLLUTION It is of little use alleviating health problems when the patient then returns to a malign environment occasioned by exposure to electropollution. Since the advent of telecommunications and the electricification of our domestic, commercial, and industrial environments the entire world is now permeated with a myriad kinds of electromagnetic fields and radiations. Establishment science has for long tried to avoid this uncomfortable fact by obfuscation, procrastination of studies and research, and by outright denial, but a close reading of the scientific evidence is persuasive and reluctantly being admitted by regulatory authorities, who still at this time shrink from proper standard setting. This segment teaches the student the various kinds of electropollution, reviews the evidence, and how to evaluate and mitigate their effects. High voltage powerlines have traditionally been the focus of suspicion, but pollution can arise not only within the home from power frequency appliances but also from the radiations of nearby cellphone and TV or radio frequency masts and transmitters. There is also evidence that excessive use of cellphone handsets may have serious implications for health. All these topics are dealt with so that the student becomes conversant with the symptoms of electropollution, its mechanisms of interaction, and how best to deal with them in an increasingly technological environment. SEGMENT SIX Mechanisms of Interaction: the larger basis of healing Those arguing against the possibility that magnets can have biological effects will expect to find little opposition because they feel confident in their physics of weak fields in relation to ionisation, arguing that chemical reactions are not possible from such low levels of energy, and the student must be able to argue his corner. This concluding segment recites the many examples in the natural world where sensitivity of living creatures clearly indicates that such weak fields and radiations are perceived and responded to, implying mechanisms at work as yet little understood. The segment therefore draws together the entire background of magnet therapy and places it in a global context. Only with the benefit of this additional understanding can the therapist hope to deal effectively with individually complex patient problems, to recognise the limits of magnetotherapy, to become aware of its effects on other modalities being employed such as surgical, radiative or pharmaceutical interventions, and to consider the situation of his patient holistically. Doctors can never heal their patients: they can only set up conditions whereby the body can best heal itself. By a better understanding of the energetic basis of healing mechanisms the therapist can achieve the best therapeutic results for his/her patient. This final segment attempts to describe the energetic side of organic life, based on science rather than speculation, and so completes the students basic training in magnetotherapy. Only subsequent practice, however, and years of experience with this new and exciting medium, will complete his or her education. COURSE FEES The BIMT Certificated Home Study Course in Magnetotherapy costs £500-00 (US$750) payable forty percent on enrolment, with the balance due monthly over the ensuing four month period. Certificates will not be issued to students who have not completed their payments. The Diploma costs £150-00, payable at the outset of the project, and is awarded on completion of an agreed project deemed by the examiners to be of a standard suitable for peer reviewed publication. Projects must include practical research, and mere literature reviews are not normally acceptable as projects except where translation is from foreign languages of research not presently available is the main aim. There is no oral interview, but the progress of work is monitored by a supervisor during the project. Candidates seeking admission to the courses should write in the first instance setting out a brief description of their academic and career details to: British Institute of Magnet Therapy, Lower Race, Pontypool, Torfaen, NP4 5UH Tel: 01495 752122 Fax: 08717 502642 email bimt@cogreslab.co.uk Principal; Roger W. Coghill MA (Cantab.) C. Biol. MI Biol. MA (Environ. Mgt.) |
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