medicinal effects of copper bracelets - scientia press

1/21/2015 Medicinal Effects of Copper Bracelets - Scientia Press

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Scientia Press

Science and History for the Discerning Reader

From Kenneth J. Dillon, Intriguing Anomalies: An Introduction to

Scientific Detective Work[1]. Notes, bibliography, and images can befound in the original. For a brief overview, see “Ten Key Points about

Medicinal Bracelets[2]“.

Chapter 4

The Science of Medicinal Bracelets

The vision inspiring the study of medicinal bracelets is of an attractive,simple, easy-to-use, safe, naturally effective kind of medicine, one youcan wear on your wrist. Medicinal bracelets also have much to teach usregarding the deeper patterns of physiology and nutrition.

The case for medicinal bracelets seems self-evident. Everyone shouldrecognize that a medicinal bracelet that could, for instance, suppresspain in arthritis would convey highly attractive benefits. Instead ofhaving repeatedly to purchase drugs with inevitable side effects andthen dose them correctly, one could simply make a one-timeacquisition of a bracelet and wear it with almost no further thought.Minimally invasive, the bracelet would possess the beauty of jewelry

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and eliminate the risk of children overdosing on their parents’supplements. For poor people in developing countries, a bracelet thatprovided iron and zinc could help solve major problems of health in aneat and satisfactory way. And bracelets can encourage much betterpatient adherence than oral medications because they are easy to wearand enjoy an image of a benign natural remedy.

Scientists, too, should be eager to study the effects of medicinalbracelets, for they constitute a very intriguing anomaly. Why do theywork for some people and not for others? What are their mechanismsof action, indications, and side effects? What could be done to improvetheir design? What actually happens in the skin as it absorbs thesubstances from the bracelet, if indeed it does? Is there anyphysiological change connected with circumventing thegastrointestinal tract? What can medicinal bracelets tell us about thehistory and functioning of the human body? What can they teach usabout nutrition in general? Do magnets on bracelets provide anybenefit, and how might that occur?

Alas! Negative factors have conspired to obscure this vision, so thatmedicinal bracelets exist in a limbo of neglect and disdain, even whiletens of millions of people worldwide wear them and many wearersswear by them. These negative factors include:

the blinkered conservatism of some medical doctors, quick to ruleout new approaches and even to stigmatize them;the low-tech nature of medicinal bracelets, far removed from thecutting-edge, highly sophisticated work of most scientists. Thereluctance of most scientists to work on medicinal bracelets makesit difficult to put together strong grant proposals;the egregiously unscientific claims of some vendors;the generic, low-price nature of medicinal bracelets, which makes



them of little interest to drug and device companies;the lack of support from a major therapeutic discipline withthousands of practitioners like Traditional Chinese Medicine.Medicinal bracelets can be found in Ayurvedic medicine; but thosetraditionally contained known toxic metals like lead, so they havecorrectly been downplayed; andthe timidity and negligence of funding agencies.

Ideally, science should deal with such an intriguing, little-exploredsubject as medicinal bracelets with a series of well-designedexperiments that can provide a factual basis for testing hypotheses andbuilding up a body of evidence and theory. In reality, though,pathetically little funding is available for work on subjects likemedicinal bracelets. Still, several clinical trials give us some data towork with.

Fortunately, scientific detective work can contribute to developingtheory and evidence that can nurture and develop the field ofmedicinal bracelets. A theoretical approach is well-suited to piecingtogether a picture of how bracelets work, what they can and cannot do,how to optimize them, and what they tell us about the functioning ofthe human organism. Obviously, scientific detective work alone willnot suffice; at some point thorough clinical testing will be needed.

Transdermal Micronutrition

All methods of absorbing microminerals are not created equal. Thereis intriguing evidence, as we will see, that microminerals that areabsorbed transdermally, ion by ion, have superior action and fewerside effects than microminerals taken by oral supplementation, viamuscle injection, or intravenously.



Typically dispensed from a copper bracelet that forms the cathode, themost useful transdermal microminerals are iron and zinc. This form ofTransdermal Micronutrition (TDM) has many potential applications:

iron supplementation, including in special indications such asboosting iron levels in iron-deficient malaria patients, whereoral supplements are under suspicion of actually feeding theparasites, though there is contrary evidence. In a clinical trial ofiron supplementation and malaria in Tanzanian infants,ordinary iron supplementation adequate to replenish stores didnot increase susceptibility to clinical malaria in infants butlowered by a third the rate of severe anemia, a common cause ofinfant death, accounting for 27 percent of infant deaths in onehospital. Iron from a TDM bracelet might do even better;in the case of treatment of an anemic cancer patient with TDM,one can hypothesize that the tiny trickle of iron and zinc ionsthat crossed the skin would immediately be sequestered by thered blood cells and would serve to provide a steady stimulus tothe immune system. So in theory the iron would not beavailable to feed the growth of tumor cells, unlike the situationwith such interventions as oral iron supplements or Total IronDextran. TDM’s other fundamental effects on metabolism mightalso play important roles in making it a valuable adjuvanttherapy in cancer with significant anemia and/or zincdeficiency;in the treatment of zinc deficiency among poor children indeveloping countries;Transdermal Micromineral Immunostimulation (TMI) as anadjuvant therapy in many infectious diseases. While it seemsvery likely that TDM zinc would perform as an excellentimmunostimulant in individuals with zinc deficiency, it is notclear whether using a zinc-containing TDM bracelet with zinc-



replete patients would have a beneficial effect. However, it ispossible to hypothesize that supplying additional zinc via thetransdermal route would indeed provide effectiveimmunostimulation even in zinc-replete individuals. Thiswould, of course, greatly expand the TDM bracelet’s range ofeffectiveness, to the point that it could be employed as anadjuvant for large numbers of individuals in dozens ofindications;in the area of environmental medicine, where the bracelet’sion-substitution effect can help reduce the impact of manykinds of toxic substances; andin certain neurological and psychiatric indications, where zinccan boost levels of serotonin and serve itself as aneurotransmitter in a natural way that has few or no sideeffects.

According to a theory of TDM that relates it to evolutionaryphysiology, TDM exploits a capability that human beings haveinherited from distant ancestors. Its action suggests that in certaincircumstances human beings can exhibit behavior reminiscent ofmedusa and polyp stages (see below); and that the transition betweenthe two can convey certain unusual benefits, especially in the area ofgynecology and obstetrics. TDM’s abilities to bypass the liver and toprovide a steady supply of micronutrients differentiate it fromgastrointestinal feeding and help explain some of its effects.

Iron-Deficiency Anemia

Iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) is the world’s leading micronutrientdeficiency and, in the developing world, the second most seriousnutritional problem after hunger itself. Iron deficiency is responsible



for over 85 percent of the estimated 2.1 billion anemic peopleworldwide (other contributors to anemia are deficiencies of folic acid,protein, vitamin B-12, vitamin A, and copper as well as thalassemia,hemoglobin variants, infection, and inflammation).

IDA can lead to fatigue, learning disabilities, mental retardation,stunted growth, physical debility, decreased body temperatureregulation in adult females, increased incidence of low birthweightand premature infants, increased prevalence of maternal death atdelivery, and reduced resistance to infection. Iron-deficiency statusmakes an individual much more vulnerable to environmental toxicsubstances, including heavy metals, pesticides, industrial chemicals,and radioactive materials. One can speak of Disease-InducedSusceptibility to Toxic Substances (DISTS) whereby an infected orotherwise diseased individual’s normal functioning andimmunological defenses are undermined by environmental toxicsubstances that are of a completely different origin than the primarydisorder-a kind of toxic piling-on that could play as important a role asthe original disorder in causing morbidity or mortality.

IDA is a significant health problem in rich countries such as the UnitedStates, where some 8 percent of adult females and 1 percent of adultmales are affected. And it is a very major problem in many developingcountries, e.g., in India, where hundreds of millions of individualshave IDA and many pregnant women suffer from severe IDA, withconsequent deleterious effects on their fetuses.

Iron deficiency results from dietary deficits, unmet needs duringpregnancy and childhood, blood loss (from menstruation andparasitical disease ), and chronic states such as infection,inflammation, and vitamin A deficiency. Many efforts have been made



to combat IDA. Fortification of foods, supplementation, and emphasison dietary intake of iron have had significant success in reducing theprevalence of IDA in rich and middle-income countries. In recentyears, these programs have had some impact on IDA in poor countriesas well. Still, hundreds of millions of people live beyond the reach ofsuch programs, and many people remain vulnerable to iron deficiencyand IDA even in rich countries. The programs themselves can berather expensive and hard to implement in poor countries. Certainapproaches (e.g., supplementation) encounter problems withadherence and risk the danger of abuse (poisoning of children whoswallow their parents’ iron pills). Injections of iron can help in somecases; but they can have side effects and are relatively expensive andunappealing to many. Lastly, some sufferers from IDA simply cannotabsorb iron via their gastrointestinal tracts at the requisite rate toattain and maintain iron-replete status.

Many public health attempts to correct iron deficiency in developingcountries have fallen short of their goals. The most salient singlecause of the failure of supplementation programs is unwillingness totake prescribed iron tablets on account of untoward side effects. Newonce-weekly iron tablets have helped in this regard. Efforts to fortifyfood are very worthwhile; but there remains a need to investigate newtreatment modalities that can correct this major, worldwide publichealth problem.

It is very common, especially in developing countries, for individualswith infectious diseases to have iron deficiency or iron-deficiencyanemia. Iron plays a critical role in the biochemistry of the immunesystem-for instance, as a cofactor for enzymes such as mitochondrialaconitase and ribonucleotide reductase. It appears to influence theproliferation of T cells, and it contributes to the production of several



reactive oxygen species in macrophage-mediated cytotoxicity.Cytokines boost the uptake and storage of iron inmonocytes/macrophages, thus contributing to hypoferremia duringinfection. In addition, iron and nitric oxide are intimately related;many of NO’s effects occur via the inhibition of iron-containingenzymes, while NO synthase is a haem-containing protein. In anIndonesian study of 41 patients with active tuberculosis, hemoglobinlevels were found to be 13 percent lower than in 41 healthy controls.24 of the TB patients had anemia, compared with 9 of the controls.

Thus, ensuring an optimal supply of iron can play a significant role inboosting immune defense.

Zinc Deficiency and Zinc Therapy

Zinc deficiency (ZD) is associated with stunting of growth, metabolicdisorders, behavioral disorders, slow wound healing, and poorimmunity. ZD is hard to diagnose because no one laboratory test orcombination of tests is decisive in every case. As a result, theprevalence of ZD is not known. However, many patients with chronicinfectious diseases have ZD.

Given zinc’s presence in more than 80 enzymes, it is not surprisingthat zinc plays a critical role in immunity, though that role is not fullyunderstood. Zinc’s ability to form strong, readily exchangeable, veryflexible ligands with the side chains of organic molecules makes ituniquely effective at the catalytic site of these enzymes. Unlike iron,whose redox properties involving the shift between Fe (II) and Fe (III)can cause severe oxidant damage in oxygen-rich environments, zinc isnot associated with oxidant damage and in fact can, in variousenzymes, diminish it. Oral zinc supplementation can have a significant



immunostimulatory effect and has proven value in the prevention andtreatment of infectious diseases. However, no research appears tohave been done on the transdermal absorption of zinc, nor is therepublished information comparing various modes of delivering zinc inorder to determine the optimal one.

The ratios of zinc to iron and copper have physiological significanceand are clearly of concern in that the three minerals dynamicallycompete with each other and with calcium, manganese, and othermicrominerals for absorption from the gastrointestinal tract. Itappears that a high copper:zinc ratio can have deleterious effects. Andthe need for maintaining a balance between iron and zinc is evident.

In general, the discovery and elucidation of the role of zinc innutrition and medicine have been a big success story. By nowthousands of journal articles have created a broad, solid foundation ofunderstanding of the biochemistry of zinc. Its immunostimulativeaction is well defined, though much work remains to be done.

Iron and zinc possess crucial advantages over cytokines and hormonesas immunostimulants:

in terms of evolution, iron and zinc preceded cytokines andhormones, and they are more fundamental constituents of thebody, including in the sense that zinc is a key component ofmany cytokines and certain hormones (e.g., thymosin);iron and zinc play roles in a very wide variety of proteins,arguably making them more ubiquitously active than anycompeting biochemical immunostimulant; andiron’s essential role in hemoglobin enables its supplementationin deficiency states greatly to boost the functioning of red bloodcells and thereby the supply of oxygen to immune cells. In



addition, theory and evidence support the view that the redblood cells play other roles in immunity as well-specifically inimmunosurveillance and the chemiluminescent stimulation ofwhite blood cells.

Copper Bracelets

What about the bracelets’ copper? Copper bracelets generally cause noside effects other than easily reversible discoloration of the skin and,in people with metal allergies, skin irritation. So their potential forconveying therapeutic effects is deserving of the most carefulinvestigation.

Copper is an important human trace element. Some 75-150 mg arepresent in healthy adults, with a daily turnover of 2-3 mg. In humans,copper plays a role in some 30 enzymes, including the critical enzymessuperoxide dismutase–SOD (a suppressor of the leading reactiveoxygen species superoxide) and ceruloplasmin (an antioxidant thatkeeps copper and iron ions from creating oxygen radicals;ceruloplasmin is also important for the uptake of iron intohemoglobin). In the (blue) blood of some crustaceans, coppersubstitutes for iron to form cyanoglobin. Aside from the rare geneticdisorder of copper overload (Wilson’s disease), humans can store anduse a rather large amount of copper without any deleterious effects,though oral intake of some copper compounds can cause nausea andvomiting. However, significant overdoses can cause a range ofdamaging effects, including hepatomegaly and cirrhosis of the liver.Copper is abundant in a variety of foods, including legumes, nuts,seeds, and shellfish.

Available in two main isotopes and two states of oxidation (+ and +2),



copper is absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract via the samemechanism as zinc, and it readily substitutes for zinc and iron in thebody because of its similar location in the periodic table (i.e., thesimilar configuration of its electrons). In turn, silver (and perhapsgold) can substitute for copper in enzymes like ceruloplasmin. So ionsubstitution plays a significant and not fully understood role in coppermetabolism, and thereby in its medicinal effects.

Copper in the History of Medicine

To anyone familiar with the long history of copper in medicine, thenotion that copper bracelets can convey beneficial effects should notseem surprising. In ancient Egypt, various copper compounds wereused to hasten wound healing, treat headaches and epilepsy, andsterilize water. Copper acetateâknown as verdigrisâbecame theantiinfective of choice in Greek medicine, and Roman medical treatisesrecommended a number of copper compounds for a range of skin,neurological, and inflammatory disorders. Copper was used in ancientIndia and Persia to treat lung disorders, while the Aztecs used it,perhaps in a gargle, for “heat of the throat”. In India copper foundextensive use for treatment of skin and internal disorders. In ancientChina a law prohibited the use of paper money in bars and prescribedthat payment be made with copper coins, for hygienic reasons.

One difficulty in assessing these reports, of course, is that manypractitioners simultaneously used a half-dozen other compounds inaddition to copper.

The renowned Renaissance physician Paracelsus treated inflammatoryand autoimmune diseases with copper, and he held that copper was aneffective treatment of parasitical disorders.



During the 1800s, certain French and German physicians used coppercompounds extensively and conducted intriguing epidemiologicalstudies. J.G. Rademacher found that copper hammerers were healthierthan workers in other industries; but his treatments with oral coppercompounds frequently led to nausea and even vomiting, so he had tomix them with cinnamon and wine. Rademacher treated with coppercompounds a range of neurological and rheumatic disorders as well asherpes and warts.

In his book MetallothÃ©rapie (1871), Victor Burq showed that workersin the copper industry had suffered far lower death rates during thecholera epidemics of 1865 and 1866 than workers in other industries.Burq used both oral copper and copper or copper/zinc (brass) braceletsto treat hysteric paralysis, migraines, and anemia. Italian physiciansalso determined that inhaled copper dust swiftly corrected the anemiasof chlorotic girls who took jobs in the copper industry.

A copper-based potion of the Swiss physician Koechlin, based on aChinese original, was widely used in Central Europe to treat a range ofskin, neurological, and infectious diseases including tuberculosis. A.Luton conducted clinical studies in which he successfully used copperto treat pulmonary tuberculosis. Eventually, Bayer and othercompanies marketed copper-based intravenous and oral medicines forthe treatment of tuberculosis, and Bayer’s Ebesal came into use as atreatment of arthritis.

In other words, over the course of thousands of years many medicalpractitioners have used copper to treat a wide range of humanailments. Their claims of success are not just anecdotal. They includeevidence from clinical trials and epidemiological studies as well asdocumented case studies. However, the quality of much of the



evidence does not meet modern standards, so more studies must bedone to define and validate the effects, side effects, and mechanismsof the various copper compounds in various indications. Also, almostall of the reporting refers to oral or, more recently, intravenouscopper, which may or may not be relevant to transdermal copper.

Advantages of Transdermal Copper

Given their wide range of potential medicinal applications, copperdrugs encounter the same issues that other such broad-spectrumapproaches confront. They have intriguing historical evidence andabundant testimony on their side, but their generic status means thatfew companies are attracted to develop and market them because ofthe difficulty of obtaining strong patent protection. In addition, manymedical doctors and researchers are skeptical of such wide claims,while such generally useful interventions represent a threat topharmaceutical corporations. Moreover, generics like copper are notespoused by any specific ethnic or philosophical group, and thereforelack the network and sustained support needed to overcome obstaclesand eventually win their way into standard use. As a result, they tendto slip through the cracks, with the curious outcome that they maypossess considerable unappreciated value. Copper drugs–andparticularly copper bracelets–possess special interest and high valuefor their scientific connection to fundamental mechanisms ofbiochemistry and for their potential as a broad-spectrum adjuvanttherapy.

Copper bracelets show more promise than dietary copper and oralcopper compounds for several reasons:

Gastrointestinal disorders disrupt copper absorption;Age-related physiological changes reduce absorption;



Binding of gastric or dietary ligands, e.g., by grain-basedphytates (high in soy products), can hinder uptake;Chronic inflammation reduces absorption;An inappropriate diet (e.g., high dairy content) can reducecopper intake;Regional dietary deficiencies can lead to low copper; andVarious oral copper compounds can cause nausea and evenvomiting.

A frequent objection to the notion that bracelets can provide copper innutritional or medicinal (i.e., drug-like) amounts arises from the sensethat the skin is not the normal, correct means for food absorption. Butbefore the evolutionary development of the gastrointestinal system,the skin was the only means of obtaining food. So the transdermalfeeding route is correctly considered as an alternative, more ancientsystem of nutrition. This perspective also can help overcome theassumption that the skin serves primarily as a barrier. In fact, the skincan serve as a barrier or as an entry way into the organism, dependingon the circumstances.

A recent addition to understanding is the theoretical insight that thered blood cells constitute the dermal optic photoreceptor and (viaabsorption of biophotonic emissions) photoanalyzer that withultrahigh sensitivity identifies and analyzes potential food on or nearthe skin. In turn, this property makes much more believable theperception that microminerals on the skin can penetrate by both pushfactors (iontophoresis and chemical penetration enhancers) and bypull factors (hunger in general, Hidden Hunger for microminerals indeficiency specifically, and disease processesâself-medication). Itseems reasonable to assume that the rate of absorption of copper froma bracelet depends on the condition of the bodyâthat in cases of



copper, zinc, or iron deficiency, the body will absorb copper at ahigher rate. A similar pattern of higher absorption seems to hold forchronic disease states where the disease process itself, typicallyimmunological/inflammatory or tumorous, requires a supply ofenergy. In healthy people, in contrast, absorption will be much sloweror possibly will not occur.

Copper bracelets discolor the skin as the blue-green copper depositsthere. However, this discoloration can be washed away with soap andwater over the course of a day or two, and there is no evidence that itharms the skin, though in a people with metal allergies copper cancause contact dermatitis.

Over the past two billion years, the action of increasing amounts ofdioxygen in dissolving copper’s sulfide bonds made copper initiallyinto a very available poison, so eukaryotic cells and particularly thoseof mammals and algae had to evolve mechanisms to sequester, buffer,and eventually use copper in enzymes. As a result of this successfulevolutionary development, copper replaced iron in several roles andbecame a key player in human physiology. This process made copperan unusually safe metal compared with many others. Thus it is notsurprising that, in the vast majority of indications, there is noevidence that copper bracelets cause any significant side effect otherthan the two minor ones noted above. In this sense copper braceletsconstitute a rare and remarkable phenomenon in pharmacology.However, both copper and zinc are counterindicated in Alzheimer’sdisease.

Mechanisms of Action

Many mechanisms of action have been proposed for the effects of



copper bracelets:

There is none:Â all effects are imagined;Psychological: the placebo effect explains the results, andtherefore believers are more likely to obtain favorableoutcomes. Walker and Keats found that, in contrast tocontrols, previous users with rheumatic conditions feltsignificantly worse when not wearing their copper bracelets,while 14 refused to go without them during the trial. Even ifcopper bracelets are found to have a biochemical effect, itmight still be accompanied by a psychological one. Apsychological impact could be achieved in part via thespecific action of copper in the brain as well as by a generalplacebo effect In addition, other psychological effects couldclearly play a role. Genetic, cultural, dietary, andenvironmental factors could also predispose a person torespond more fully to the presence of the bracelet;Physical vibrations and related phenomena: a recent MayoClinic study found that proprietary “ionized” copper/zincbracelets were no more effective than standard ones formuscle and joint pain relief, though both were effectiveabout three-quarters of the time. This finding did not,however, rule out the possibility that ordinary elemental andmolecular vibrations and other physical phenomena such asthe corona effect of the ends of the bracelet might conveysome medicinal benefit. In addition, the use of highlyconductive copper and easily magnetized iron mightinfluence the outcome. Finally, any magnetic aspects of thebracelet might be felt not only on the very sensitive surfaceof the skin but also in the center of the bracelet’s circle, i.e.,in the middle of the wrist, as in an electrical motor



arrangement. Such effects might be related to the manyexperimental findings that copper wires stimulate thegrowth of plants;Copper ions are components of enzymes (superoxidedismutase, ceruloplasmin, etc.) that reduce reactive oxygenspecies, provide iron for the formation of hemoglobin inerythrocytes, help form collagen for wound healing, andotherwise improve the body’s functioning;Medicinal amounts of copper are absorbed differentially byinfectious microorganisms and thereby poison them (asidefrom mammals, algae, and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria,living organisms tend to be highly vulnerable to copperpoisoning), while in inflammatory states the differentialabsorption of copper by activated immune cells tends toimpede their metabolism and suppress their overactivity;The provision of copper may optimize the use of iron andzinc in the immune system and otherwise;Simply correcting hidden copper deficiency can helpoptimize the body’s resistance to disease;Copper can compete with toxic minerals for absorption andphysiological use, thus reducing their harmful impact andmaking them more likely to be eliminated. These includecadmium and lead, andâas noted aboveâthey may alsoinclude silver (and perhaps gold) from jewelry worn byanemic individuals, which can substitute for copper inceruloplasmin and thereby disrupt delivery of iron for theformation of hemoglobin;In certain anemic and sick individuals, there is a transdermalfeeding response that activates an ancient physiologicalsystem in the body and conveys a powerful tonic andimmunoprotective effect. In other words, all copper is not



created equal. Receiving it across the skin may provide extrabenefit quite aside from direct entry into the blood thatevades the obstacles associated with the gastrointestinalroute. The body may hoard its stored and orally ingestedcopper while avidly absorbing copper from a bracelet for usein healing itself; andIn certain hard-to-define categories of individuals, copperhas a beneficial effect for reasons not understood at present.This would explain why some arthritis sufferers appear tobenefit from copper bracelets while others do not.

This list should be taken as provisional. No doubt, other explanationsmight be devised. Several might pertain in any individual case.

One objection arises at times: how can we know that minerals fromthese bracelets actually penetrate the skin? Australian scientists whostudied the question found evidence suggesting that copper from thesebracelets does penetrate the skin and can have an ameliorative effectin rheumatoid arthritis. In particular, habitual wearers of copperbracelets strongly favored copper bracelets over look-alike anodizedaluminum bracelets in a clinical trial. Indeed, copper and zincdispensed by the bracelets may have more profound effects on thedestructive progress of rheumatoid arthritis than do non-steroid anti-rheumatic drugs (NSAIDs), which are only good for reducing pain. Ineffect, this means that copper/zinc bracelets may be a Disease-Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drug (DMARD) like methotrexate. One mayhypothesize that, in the right circumstances, the bracelets have acapacity for slowing or stopping the progress of the disorder that isroughly equal to that of methotrexate, the current drug of choice, yetwithout the (generally minor) side effects of methotrexate.



As a point of comparison, careful studies have been done of theabsorption of various copper-based drugs. The results of these studiesthus far indicate that the drugs are absorbed and have a therapeuticeffect, even though the mechanisms of this effect are not clear.

If copper bracelets are effective, either as NSAIDs or as DMARDs,against rheumatoid arthritis, then they may also prove effectiveagainst the entire range of autoimmune disorders, including asthma.

Five Case Studies

1. A 39-year old woman with a history of anemia and fatigue put on acopper bracelet with iron (steel) inserts. Within one day of starting towear the bracelet, she reported that the skin on the shoulder of thearm with the bracelet had become very dry and rough. She said she felthungry yet did not want to eat. She was able to read for hours insteadof being unable to concentrate. After two days of wearing the bracelet,she reported that she felt in an unusually elevated mood and contactedthe researcher to ask whether the bracelet had some special ingredientin it. After the third day of wearing the bracelet, she removed itbecause she felt so euphoric that she feared doing something foolishin public. With the bracelet off, her fatigue and inability to concentratereturned.

2. A female medical researcher around 40 years old had complainedthat, after skipping lunch or fasting at midday during Lent, sheregularly had hypoglycemic headaches in the late afternoon. When shewore the bracelet, however, she reported that there was no sign ofheadache. When she stopped wearing it, the headaches returned.

3. An elderly woman had longstanding, painful arthritis refractory to



all medications; the arthritis had twisted and gnarled her fingers. Shewore a copper/zinc bracelet for 18 days with no effects. On the 19thday, her pain disappeared and she could wiggle her fingers for the firsttime in years.

This third case suggests that there is a loading effect in which copperand especially zinc were taken across the skin and filled a deficiency-probably the common zinc deficiency of old age. The same braceletproved less effective on other elderly persons, and a pure copperbracelet was completely ineffective in a dozen cases. Provisionally, itappears that the effective principle in “copper” bracelets for thetreatment of arthritis might actually be zinc; that it works best in caseswhere the inflammation is restricted to a small area (in this case, theknuckles); and that it works by supplying zinc (and perhaps copper) incases of deficiency, leading to the formation of antioxidant enzymesand otherwise modulating the immune system.

4. A 60-year old male with hepatitis C wore a copper/iron bracelet for10 days. The iron caused skin irritation on his wrist. He reported noother effects. On the tenth day, he fell into a depression (a “bluefunk”). So he took the bracelet off. Within 30 minutes his mood hadimproved to normal. One explanation is that, although his hemoglobinlevel was somewhat below normal, it was sufficiently high that theiron and copper absorbed through the skin entered his brain andcrowded out the zinc, leading to depression. Once he removed thebracelet, the zinc level in the brain quickly rebounded.

5. A 70-year old semi-retired male engineer in good general healthreported that he had had tremor in his hands, but nowhere else, for 25years. He recalled his father having had the same tremor. A generalpractitioner had diagnosed this engineer’s case as familial tremor. He



had also heard it termed “anticipatory tremor”-it occurred mainlywhen he moved his hands to undertake some action. Over time thetremor had gained in amplitude. When he held a piece of paper, he hada hard time reading because his hands would shake. When he lifted upa briefcase, his hand would “go wild”, with jerks of a full inch back andforth. However, the tremor was not so bad as significantly to disrupthis manual activities at work. He is right-handed. The tremor is worsein his left hand than in his right at a ratio that he estimated as 3:2.

Out of curiosity and without having any notion of treating his tremor,the engineer began to wear 24 hours a day on his left wrist a copperbracelet with two 1 mm diameter NdFeB magnets on the inside of eachend (=4). One week later, his wife remarked that his hands hadstopped shaking. He did not know of any other reason for this than hiswearing of the bracelet. He reported that the amplitude of the tremorhad dropped by approximately 80% in typical situations. But when hebecame nervous or, for instance, was carrying his briefcase, the tremorwas only reduced by approximately 33%. The reduction in tremoroccurred in both hands. He did not observe any other effects exceptthat he had to wash off the green copper that appeared on his skin.

Related Phenomena

In recent years dermal patches have been used to deliver vitamins,drugs, and other non-mineral substances on a sustained basis to theskin. However, it does not appear that anyone has successfully appliedthis approach to micromineral nutrition.

The Traditional Chinese Medicine practice of moxibustion (moxa),whereby a dried herb (Artemisia vulgaris) is crumbled, piled on theskin, and burned, runs parallel to the transdermal micronutrition



process using a bracelet that operates on an electrochemical principle.No one has persuasively explained the mechanism of moxibustion; buttelling evidence supports its effectiveness in, for example, turningfetuses in the womb in order to avoid breech delivery. One explanationof moxibustion is that neither the inhalation of the smoke nor theparticular herb used is as important in conveying its results as are theiontophoretic effect of the warming of the skin, the provision of asource of nutrients (the herb), and the consequent entrainment of thephysiological changes associated with transdermal feeding. This viewassumes that moxibustion operates via a physical signaling effect thatwould occur regardless of the identity or chemical composition of thedried herb that is burned on the skin during the procedureâanassumption that would require careful investigation to prove ordisprove.

If TDM and moxa share the same mechanism(s) of action, it meansthat TDM may have action in some or all of the unusual indications formoxa.

As a passive iontophoresis device, the TDM bracelet also fits into thewell-established art of iontophoresis, considered by some to be thebest way to facilitate the transport of drugs across the skin. The sameresults could presumably be achieved by spreading iron and zinc (inoxide or carbon/calamine configuration) particles in a paste on theskin, then applying positive and negative electrodes (activeiontophoresis) to induce the skin to open its lipid barrier.Iontophoresis has many benefits as a drug delivery system:

It overcomes the barriers presented by the proteolipids ofthe stratum corneum, the skin’s natural biologicalmembrane;Transdermal route bypasses gastrointestinal degradation



and hepatic metabolism, thus preventing variation in theabsorption and metabolism of the drug;It eliminates the need to remember to take the medication,thereby improving compliance;It avoids the trauma associated with subcutaneous orintravenous injection;It may decrease adverse side effects related to oral andparenteral administration; andIt permits rapid termination of the medication.

The apparatus and procedure for active iontophoresis tend to be a bitcumbersome, while there is a minor risk of burns. Iontophoresis alsogenerally requires a visit to a practitioner. The TDM bracelet’s simple,passive character overcomes these deficiencies and is considered to bea key advantage.

How a Bracelet Works

In the treatment of IDA, a typical medicinal bracelet consists of acopper matrix that serves as the cathode and an iron component thatbecomes the anode. The redox interaction of these two elements in thebracelet creates an electrochemical cell that reaches into the skin. Inkeeping with the hierarchy of the electrochemical or galvanic series,the less reactive/more noble metal copper will be conserved in thebracelet while the less noble of the pair, the iron or zinc, will loseelectrons to it in an oxidation reaction and be deposited in ionic forminto the solution, i.e., into the sweat on the skin and the fluidsbeneath the skin. In effect, it is the application of the concept of asacrificial anode to micronutrition, with the beneficial effect shiftingfrom the conservation of the cathode to the dispensing of the anode.The same processes would occur with many other pairs of elements,



e.g., silver and zinc.

Preliminary casual tests of the TDM bracelet suggest that it has noeffect on persons with iron-replete status. On those with irondeficiency, however, the effect appears powerful. For instance, theskin on the shoulder of the arm with the bracelet can become very dryand rough, suggesting a response that goes back to the time whenhuman ancestors were swimming about in the primeval sea. This wasbefore there were such appendages as arms, so any sensation at thewrist would be attributed to the shoulder or flipper area. Such a seacreature floating about might eventually land on some spot which, viaits skin, could provide a continuous flow of nutrition and energy. Inresponse, the creature would anchor itself to this location and undergoa transformation. This would involve shifting at least in part from agastrointestinal to a transdermal source of nutrition. In other words,the Transdermal Micronutrition phenomenon suggests that in certaincircumstances human beings retain a capacity for shifting from amedusa-like stage to a polyp-like one.

In effect, TDM can be termed the Original Feeding System (OFS) ofhuman beings. Before the development of the gastrointestinal tract,the OFS was the only source of nutrition humankind’s distantancestors had. What mechanisms controlled it and where they werelocated are not known. It is possible that in the brain a distinct centercontrols the OFS, or that different pathways link the skin and thegastrointestinal tract to the same brain center. Yet presumably theOFS existed long before there was a brain. An important goal ofresearch in this area is to determine whether shifting from thegastrointestinal mode of eating to the transdermal one entrains othereffects as well-for instance, neuro-psychological ones such as changesin appetite.



To trigger the TDM response, three factors seem essential:

A state of deficiency;A source of energy, in this case the electrochemical reactionon the skin’s surface; andThe supply of a much-needed nutrientâiron.

When these factors are simultaneously present, a signal is sent to theskin to open up its lipid barrier and absorb the nutrient. One importantpotential implication of this is that, once the transdermal feeding iscompleted and the individual becomes iron-replete, the process willpresumably switch itself off. If this is true, then TDM for IDA does notrun the danger of leading to excessive absorption andhemochromatosis. It is not yet proven that no significant amount ofiron will penetrate the skin in cases when subjects have normal ironstatus.

At any rate, according to this hypothesis, unless these three factorsare present, the device will be inactive and little or no TDM will occur.So spreading a paste with iron powder in it onto the skin will have noeffect because there is no source of energy to send a signal to thebody.

Two further characteristics of this phenomenon deserve note.

First, TDM is typically continuous, in contrast to gastrointestinalfeeding, which is intermittent. Continuous TDM may thus send adifferent signal to the body. During gastrointestinal feeding the bodycan never feel sure that it will have another meal soon. In contrast, the“anchoring” to the bracelet in TDM offers a continuous, secure flow ofnutrition and energy, especially if it is worn 24 hours a day. It sends asignal to the body that the individual as well as a possible fetus will



receive a reliable supply of the much-needed nutrient.

Second, the iron and zinc in TDF move directly into the blood withoutfirst passing through the liver and undergoing sequestration there.What exact effect this might have is not clear. In theory, it is differentfrom, and conceivably more powerful than, the effect of iron and zincobtained through the gastrointestinal route. Whether and how itmight differ from injected or infused iron and zinc are not known.Plausibly, injected/infused iron and zinc have a stronger effect thanoral iron and zinc because they are completely and immediatelyabsorbed by the blood and tissue, while transdermal iron and zincenjoy this advantage and in addition the advantage of triggering theprimitive transdermal feeding response. Of special interest is thepossibility that slow, steady transdermal absorption of iron and zincmight permit the body to distribute them with ideal precision, so thatfar lower doses would be required than via any other route, and thelikelihood of side effects would be correspondingly low. However, suchsmall amounts of iron and zinc, while perhaps fully protective, mightnot suffice to correct overall iron or zinc deficiency status. To avoidthe danger that eventually iron and copper from the bracelet couldblock the supply of zinc to the body, it is advisable to include zinc inthe bracelet or to provide oral zinc supplementation when the braceletis worn for more than a few days.

The particular ratio of the copper and iron in the alloy, theirdeployment throughout the bracelet, and the shape of the bracelet allare variables that need to be experimented with in order to arrive at anoptimal solution. Other variables such as temperature, the polarizationbehavior of the electrochemical couple, the conductivity of theenvironment, the composition and motion of the solution, protectiveskin surface films, the presence of microbes, the development of



oxygen pockets leading to passivation, the thermal history of the alloy,and the relative surface areas of interacting elements furthercomplicate the picture. In ongoing corrosion, the shift of half-cellpotentials toward each other as a result of corrosion (polarization)ensures that the rate of corrosion changes over time. All these make itdifficult to predict and control flow rates of iron across the skin.However, the apparently self-regulating nature of the process and theuse of natural, essential micronutrients tend to reduce the need for theprecision that is so important in the provision of drugs from dermalpatches.

Whatever role various complicating factors might play, theelectrochemical forces operating by themselves according to thesimple model of an electrochemical cell appear adequate for explainingmost of the dispensing and absorption phenomena.

The rate of the electrochemical reaction and hence of the deposition ofiron by a TDM bracelet can presumably be enhanced by magnetizing it,by raising its temperature, or by running a tiny battery-operatedcurrent through it. But none of these is thought essential, and in factthey could detract from the clarity of understanding of themechanisms of action. A TDM bracelet is, as noted, a passiveiontophoresis device. The same effects could presumably be achievedby spreading iron particles in a paste on the skin, then applyingpositive and negative electrodes (active iontophoresis) to induce theskin to open its lipid barrier. But this would be a clumsy method andmight run the risk of burns. As noted above, the TDM bracelet’ssimple, passive, close-to-Nature character is considered to be a greatadvantage.

A major application of the bracelet is in the treatment of micronutrient



deficiencies, primarily iron and zincânot as an iron supplement forhealthy, well-nourished, iron-replete people, for which purpose it isprobably ineffective anyway. The TDM bracelet also has an applicationas a form of prophylaxis for children exposed to toxic substances in theenvironment. When the child is iron-replete, the bracelet may beinactive; but in the event that the child’s iron and zinc status shouldbegin to decline, the device would tend to activate and correct thedeficiency, thereby protecting the child against increased vulnerabilityto ambient toxic substances.

In this ion-substitution application, TDM can play a significant role inprotecting hundreds of millions of children (and adults as well) inurban and industrial areas of developing countries who are exposed tolead, other heavy metals, chemicals, and radiation. In particular,research has shown that ingestion of paint and house dust is a muchsmaller source of lead poisoning than the lead-laced dirt along heavilytraveled roads where vehicles use leaded fuels. So TDM can become ashield against lead poisoning of children living in cities throughoutthe developing world, where leaded fuels will be used for decades tocome.

Transdermal Micromineral Immunostimulation

A typical TDM bracelet is made of 100-percent food-grade copper. Intoit can be inserted food-grade iron and zinc/carbon (calamine) disks onthe inner surface of the bracelet. The disks are rounded on the top,which rises above the surface level of the copper matrix and thuspresses itself slightly into the skin to ensure maximal contact. Eachbracelet contains perhaps six iron disks and two zinc ones, and theratio of inner surface areaâat least initially-is 6:3:1 ofcopper:iron:zinc. The disks can be tapped into machined indentations



slightly smaller at the aperture than the disks so that they fit snuglyyet are removable. Many configurations of the bracelet are possible.Here is one: [IMAGE]

As the above discussion suggests, there is a “pull” factor of theTransdermal Feeding response as well that acts in concert with theelectrochemical “push” factor. Whether the skin also generatesenzymes and acids to enhance the corrosion of the bracelet is not clearand represents a very good target for research.

A typical application of TMI would be as an adjuvant therapy in thetreatment of HIV. For instance, TMI could be added to the currentbatch of protease inhibitors to lower the dose of drugs required tosuppress the disease.

Another approach would be to employ a bracelet to dispense zinc andiron as a holding therapy for early-stage HIV patients that wouldlengthen the time before they would need to start taking a regime ofprotease inhibitors. It is conceivable, especially in initially iron-and/or zinc-deficient individuals, that TMI could be a highly effectivemonotherapy of a given infectious disorder.

In theory, it would be possible to use an all-iron and zinc (and carbon)bracelet, doing away with the copper matrix. But the leaching effectwould be less active, less subject to understanding in terms of anelectrochemical couple, and so less amenable to regulation. Rustwould also become a larger problem.

A zinc-only version of the bracelet (from a copper matrix) should beused for patients iron-replete or with iron overload.



Transdermal Micromineral Immunostimulation via the TDM braceletappears to offer several noteworthy advantages over otherimmunomodulatory technologies:

feeding such critical rate- and function-limiting ingredients as zincand iron transdermally to a wide range of immunoenzymes andother proteins will in theory outperform treatment with one orseveral cytokines by a considerable margin;as mineral nutrients, zinc and iron are likely to convey much morelong-lasting effects; andTMI promises to solve the critical problem of distribution ofimmunomodulatory substances that has long plagued thebiotechnology industry. This point can be formulated as the TMIParadox:Using bracelets to dispense iron, zinc, and copper appearsimprecise and even crude compared with advanced biotechimmunomodulatory interventions, yet the Transdermal Feedingsystem distributes transdermal microminerals ion by ion, withsuperb precision, while many high-tech immunomodulatoryapproaches encounter problems in distribution that reduce theirefficacy and lead to side effects.

At present, this TMI Paradox remains a provisional theoreticalconstruct that requires thorough investigation.

Other Potential Applications

As with adding magnets or an electric current, it is easy to imaginea multiplicity of embodiments for the electrochemical principle ofTDM: necklaces, rings, earrings, armbands, anklets, dermalpatches, etc. So, too, the TDM bracelet can be made to dispensemany other minerals besides iron and zinc (for instance, Cr, Sc,



and I), as well as a wide range of natural substances and certaindrugs embedded or attached to the anodic mineral. A bracelet onone arm can dispense one micromineral while a second on theother arm dispenses another. However, experience teaches severalhome truths:few of these imaginative approaches come to fruition;even if one were able to dispense selenium or vanadium or someother ultratrace element into the skin, getting the dose right wouldbe exceedingly difficult and so the danger of overdose would becorrespondingly high;similarly, applying the TDM principle to various kinds of jewelrycomplicates the issue of dose and opens the door to overdoses;there are competing ways of dispensing drugs through the skinthat are probably superior to the TDM bracelet; anddispensing iron and zinc from a bracelet in an optimal mannerpromises to convey excellent medical benefits, so it makes sense tofocus on getting this task right before considering more exoticones.Still, it is true that the TDM bracelet has other potentiallybeneficial applications.

TDM in Neurology and Psychiatry

After many years of neglect, the study of how microminerals affectthe brain has become a subject of intense interest among a growingnumber of researchers. While excessive iron has been found to dodamage to neurons and all metals are counterindicated inAlzheimer’s disease and trauma, there are reasons to believe thatproper dosing of iron, zinc, copper, and other minerals can haveexcellent effects in overcoming deficits and in treating certainconditions. Thus far all the microminerals used have been



dispensed via oral supplements, muscle injections, or intravenousinfusions. Judging by the possible advantages of transdermalmicrominerals in other indications, we may hypothesize that TDMwill prove more effective than current methods of applyingmicrominerals in neurology and psychiatry.

The most obvious initial target would be to test zinc dispensedfrom a TDM bracelet as a glutamate-like neurotransmitter and ameans of boosting levels of serotonin, a zinc-based molecule, inthe treatment of depression. In effect, TDM zinc would competewith serotonin reuptake inhibitors such as Prozac and Zoloft. Itspotential advantages:by entering the biochemical processes of serotonin formation at afundamental level, TDM zinc would be equal or superior to SSRIs interms of effectiveness;if one would add iron to the bracelet, TDM zinc/iron might enhancethe overall well-being of a given patient by correcting anemia thathad tended to reduce the supply of oxygen to the brain;a bracelet dispensing both zinc and iron might also activate thephysiological change from a gastrointestinal to a transdermalfeeding mode, with potential psychological benefits that go beyondthe serotonin boosting factor;by altering and optimizing the brain’s mix of chemical ingredients,TDM microminerals may be curative and thus avoid the burdens oflong-term dosing;properly dosed TDM zinc would presumably have fewer sideeffects; andit would be much less expensive.In addition, there may be ways of using the TDM bracelet in specialindications such as to reduce craving in certain obese people,alcoholics, and drug abusers. In effect, the hypothesis would be



that one component of craving may be a “Hidden Hunger” formicronutrients generated by certain brain cells; and that thisdemand would constitute an iron- or zinc-deficiency state. Whateffect iron and zinc absorbed transdermally might have on thesetarget brain cells is a subject worth investigating, but the morelikely effect would be the physiological impact of the shift fromgastrointestinal to Transdermal Feeding mode.

In general, the use of transdermal micronutrition in variousbranches of medicine, including in complex, chronic syndromes, isa scientific frontier deserving of thorough exploration.

Side Effects

Over time, an iron-dispensing TDM bracelet rusts and spreadssome of this rust onto the skin. To enhance the effects of thetreatment, any iron present on the surface of the skin can berubbed into the skin on a daily basis before the residue is cleanedoff. But the rust will also dirty blouses and shirts. And it can detractfrom the beauty and appeal of the bracelet as a piece of jewelry.Weekly polishing with a steel brush nicely removes scale and rust.Correctly maintained (mainly by avoiding excessive bending), thebracelet will last for three years or more.

A TDM bracelet can employ a wide copper band and relatively smallsteel and/or zinc/carbon (calamine) disks to minimize thepossibility that rust will leak out of the area underneath thebracelet in the course of daily use. Users should remove thebracelet when taking a bath or shower and wash off theaccumulated rust. Experience in several casual tests of a prototypesuggests that rust is a minor issue; but the wearer should avoid



white, long-sleeved shirts and blouses that might be stained. Toavoid staining sheets while wearing the bracelet at night, subjectsmay wish to wrap a piece of washable or disposable cloth aroundthe outside of the bracelet.

Iron and rust from the bracelet may discolor light skin in a mannerakin to that sometimes observed in subcutaneous iron injections,though to a much milder degree. Zinc and copper from the braceletmay also stain the skin, as with standard copper bracelets, eventhough as the protected cathode the bracelet’s copper will be lessliable to leach. Zinc is hardly noticeable on various colors of skin.Again, daily washing should minimize any coloration effect,including the green of copper.

The wearer may also shift the bracelet from one arm to another andup and down the arm every few days to ensure that no single patchof skin might become stained or irritated by excessive amounts ofiron and copper. However, perhaps 10 percent of wearers, mostlywomen, will develop an allergic reaction to various metals on theskin; most of them will choose to stop wearing the bracelet. Insome commercial bracelets nickel and other non-nutritive metalscan exacerbate this effect.

Since iron overload is such a prevalent, harmful fellow-traveler insyndromes like hepatitis B and C, a special zinc-only (i.e., zincdispensed from a copper matrix) version of the bracelet isrecommended for iron-replete and iron-overload individuals. It isconceivable that the absorption of this zinc and a tinyaccompanying amount of copper could cut down on the absorptionof oral iron and thereby reduce potential damage from ironoverload, though careful monitoring of iron status will be required



to determine whether this effect actually occurs.

A potentially significant side effect of the use of the bracelet couldbe in the interaction of the iron with other competing essentialminerals in the body, which could lead to unintended deficienciesin them. This is thought to be unlikely for copper because somecopper will inevitably corrode from the bracelet despite thesacrificial anode effect of the iron and zinc in preserving the copperintact. Competition with calcium can be counteracted by taking oralcalcium when long-term use of the bracelet is contemplated.

Another potential problem is that iron supplementation can feedmicrobial infections.

A recent review cited a series of studies that led to the conclusionthat this was not a concern in non-malarious regions. In malariousareas in the tropics, the author concluded that ironsupplementation, especially in high doses, did indeed lead tomorbidity from malaria and also from respiratory infections inchildren infected with malaria. One recommendation was toevaluate the effects of much smaller daily doses of ironâif possible,in combination with zinc. Clearly, the bracelet has considerablepotential in this important indication, given the otherwise verydeleterious effects of IDA and the prevalence of malaria in manyparts of the developing world. The protective effect of very lowdoses of iron and zinc continuously delivered via the skin anddistributed with precision may overcome the otherwise potentiallytragic dilemma of whether or not to treat with iron. In particular,iron from the bracelet will be less likely to accumulate in the poolsof intra-erythrocyte iron used by Plasmodium falciparum or of theextracellular non-transferrin-bound iron that can be used by



infectious agents in HIV and tuberculosis. In the laboratory andclinical studies of the potentially harmful consequences of iron onthe course of microbial infections, an excess of iron, whether inbody stores or in ongoing absorption, seems to have been theculprit. So the dose of iron is important.

The Silver-IDA Corollary

In the course of research on IDA, the hypothesis has arisen that asignificant and perhaps decisive factor in its prevalence andseverity in certain countries is the use of silver jewelry byindividuals with a tendency toward low iron status. In particular, inIndia hundreds of millions of people suffer from iron deficiency tosome degree or another. Most of these are adult females, but theyinclude many children and some adult males as well. At the sametime, hundreds of millions of people also wear silver jewelry,primarily in the form of anklets but also as belts, bracelets, rings,earrings, etc. In earlier times, many adult males wore silveranklets; but now this is considered effeminate, so that it isprimarily adult females and some children who do so.

In a country where there are many poor people who are vulnerableto malnutrition anyway and where many people are vegetarians bychoice or by necessity, it is not surprising that many people areiron deficient (though well-nourished vegetarians have little risk ofiron deficiency). What is remarkable is that such a very highproportion of the population suffers from iron deficiency; that inmany cases it is inordinately severe; and that it has provenstubbornly resistant to treatment by supplementation, foodfortification, agricultural intervention, and nutrition education.



Two explanations have been offered: the prevalence of hookwormand the heavy use of milk and other cow products by alactovegetarian population (calcium in milk being a kind ofantagonist to iron). But hookworm seems too narrow anexplanation, while consumption of cow products seems too broad:why do these women and children have iron deficiency and notothers who drink milk? So it makes sense to look for anotherexplanation, perhaps one that works in tandem with malnutrition,hookworm, and/or cow products.

As a close analogue of copper, silver can be dispensed by selectiveleaching from an anklet just as copper is from a copper bracelet.Within the body, silver has been demonstrated to occupy many ofthe same sites as copper. Thus the argument would be that, in thebody of a malnourished person (or perhaps a pregnant one), atrickle of silver from anklets would be deposited on the skin andabsorbed, enter into the bloodstream, andâbefore beingexcretedâsubstitute for copper and thereby keep it from formingceruloplasmin, which is essential to iron utilization.

Ceruloplasmin constitutes less than 3 percent of body stores ofcopper, which are very small in the first place. Thus a fewmicrograms of silver daily might occupy enough sites inceruloplasmin ordinarily occupied by copper to create or deepeniron-deficiency anemia. An assumption is that incoming copper(and hence presumably silver) is directed preferentially to theformation of ceruloplasmin rather than to storage locationsbecause of ceruloplasmin’s vital role in iron metabolism.

Whether the stoichiometry of the trickle of silver would suffice toplay this role; whether the silver might have other deleterious



effects; and what the relative influences of such subclinical silverpoisoning and malnutrition might be are subjects for study. Otherpossible explanations are that the silver reduces the body’s demandfor iron that otherwise would be absorbed through thegastrointestinal tract; and that the body lumps silver into the samecategory as copper and thus responds to a “copper” overload that isactually largely silver by sequestering iron in the liver. Perhaps allthree factors are operative. Thus far the possible role of silver hasbeen overlooked for many reasons-mainly that malnutrition hasappeared to be such a palpable cause of IDA.

It is conceivable that silver plays such a role in the fetus as well.Subtle brain damage could also result from the concentration ofhigh levels of silver, yet be ascribed to other causes. The wearing ofsilver jewelry by Indian babies could continue this pattern, so thatin effect silver would be present throughout the life cycle inwomen, though not necessarily at levels generally considered toxic.Absorbed silver could also have long-lasting effects in males evenafter they stopped wearing silver jewelry because of the cumulativedose or because of susceptibilities to other toxic substances thattheir consequent iron-deficiency status may have induced in them.

Silver jewelry is also common among certain peoples in Africa andis worn widely throughout the entire world. In many cases, it canbe presumed to be innocuous. An iron-replete person would lackone of the three prerequisites for TDM noted aboveâa deficiencystatusâand so could presumably wear silver jewelry without anyadverse effect. However, it is possible that silver from jewelry couldplay a role in IDA and other syndromes in rich and middle-incomecountries as well as in the developing world. Gold jewelry couldlikewise be implicated because gold is also an analogue of copper,



though as a more noble metal gold is less subject to corrosion.Gold’s cost also makes its use in jewelry, especially by poor peoplewith malnutrition, much less prevalent. Platinum fits this pattern,too.

Thus the hypothesis that silver jewelry may be implicated in IDAcan be viewed as a corollary of the general theory of TransdermalMicronutrition. At the very least, in light of the dimensions of theproblem of IDA, the possibility that silver jewelry plays a roledeserves to be carefully studied, if only to be ruled out.

Magnetic Bracelets

The other common operative principle of medicinal bracelets is touse them to treat the body with some form of energyâmagnetic,electrical, “ionic”, and so on. For our purposes, we will discussmagnetic bracelets as a surrogate for these other types.

Typically, magnets are placed near the ends of a copper bracelet sothat they are in close contact with the veins on the inner side of thewrist. While many observers see a placebo effect at work, some tryto explain the effects of the bracelets as caused by the magnetsstimulating the red blood cells, with their high iron content. Howexactly this stimulation might work seems unclear, but it isreasonable to expect that the magnets operate very much like lightin Biophotonic Therapy, discussed in later chapters.

According to a recent review article, 13 out of 21 studies reported asignificant analgesic effect from static magnets; 11 out of 15(73.3%) of the better quality studies demonstrated a positive effectin neuropathic, inflammatory, musculoskeletal, fibromyalgic,



rheumatic, and postsurgical pain. But in many of these cases, themagnets were applied directly to the painful area. Here we aremore interested in action-at-a-distance from a bracelet. A trial ofmagnetic bracelets in osteoarthritis of the hip and knee with 194subjects aged 45-80 provides useful findings. The researchersfound that wearing a standard strength (170-200 mTesla) staticbipolar NdFeB magnetic bracelet reduced pain scores more (11.4%with a 95% confidence level) than with a non-magnetic (dummy)bracelet. They left open the question of whether it was a placeboeffect or a specific physical one, and they proposed no mechanismsof action. But they noted that the strength of the magnetic fieldplayed a significant role because a third group that wore braceletswith a weaker magnetic field (21-30 mTesla) were no moreeffective than the dummy ones. It is possible that copper and othersubstances corroded from the bracelets, entered the skin, and had amedicinal effect; but the study did not examine this question.

These findings are, of course, of considerable interest. Furthersuch trials can provide corroborative or corrective evidence. And itwould be a great interest to do comparative trials of bracelets withiron and zinc vs. magnetic bracelets, as well as bracelets thatcombine both principles. A useful hypothesis would be that thetransdermal micromineral and magnetic principles, if provided inan optimal manner, convey approximately the same benefit, whilecombining the two would convey greater benefit, though it is notclear how much greater.

Therefore, although our discussion has focused in much greaterdetail on transdermal microminerals, the concept of “energizing” amedicinal bracelet, whether with a magnet or some other means,has delivered promising results and deserves further investigation.



A Call for Research

How could we develop a better scientific understanding of theeffects of medicinal bracelets?

First, we need to conduct more clinical trials on a range ofindications, including prophylaxis against environmentalchemicals, toxic metals, and radioisotopes. Copper and copper-zincbracelets should be tested against oxidative stress inatherosclerosis and other cardiovascular disorders. Thedisappointing results of clinical trials of antioxidant vitamins incardiovascular disorders were predictable because no antioxidantvitamin acts inside arterial walls. Copper-based antioxidantenzymes do.

Second, (safe) stable isotope studies can help track copper, zinc,and iron throughout the human organism over time and provide afar finer sense of their interactions and effects. To date, there hasnot been a single stable isotope study of transdermalmicrominerals.

Third, sophisticated epidemiological studies of workers in copperindustries compared to those in other metal industries couldprovide highly interesting data regarding the potentially veryimportant prophylactic effect of transdermal copper against bothinfectious and autoimmune disorders.

The bottom line:all true scientists, whatever their credentials and positions, shouldapplaud and support investigation of the mechanisms and actionsof bracelets containing copper, zinc, and iron as well as magnetic



ones;individuals with arthritis and anemia, especially if they wear silveror gold jewelry, should consult their medical practitioners aboutthe advisability of wearing a medicinal bracelet; andpeople concerned with exposure to environmental pollutants orinfectious diseases should consider wearing a copper bracelet. Thisis particularly true for smokers and people with respiratorydisorders. Copper-based superoxide dismutase in the lungs is acritical component of defense against oxidative damage.

Comments

This chapter can serve as an example of a net assessment approachto solving a scientific problem. In contrast to a criminal case suchas that of the Anthrax Mailer, where the main goals weresimpleâidentify a specific individual and prove that indeed he wasthe culpritâdeveloping a better scientific understanding ofmedicinal bracelets does not result in a single answer. A netassessment, as in intelligence analysis, can convey to us amultidimensional picture of the subject that can become the basisfor further research, including clinical studies. While this chapterfalls well short of being a comprehensive treatment, it probes intoenough issues surrounding medicinal bracelets to yield newinsights and perhaps even scientific discoveries.

As is well known, the multiplication of hypothesesâe.g., thoseregarding the mechanisms of action of copper bracelets-can helpan investigation to avoid an overly narrow set of possible solutions.So this technique possesses intrinsic value, even if many of thehypotheses turn out to be wrong.



Other hypotheses can play the role of linking the subject topossibly related phenomena, thereby adding to the richness andplausibility of the entire discussion. For instance, the Silver-IDAhypothesis connects medicinal bracelets and transdermalmicronutrition to the well-known, widespread anemia in SouthAsia.

Likewise, through the generation of concepts one can hope to sparknew ideas and increase the power of hypotheses. Thus the notionthat human beings may, in certain circumstances, displaycharacteristics of medusa and polyp stages retained from ancientancestors deepens the meaningfulness of the hypothesis thattransdermal micronutrition (with its own concept of the OriginalFeeding System) can provide a special benefit going beyond itsmere nutritional value. So, too, the concept of Disease-InducedSusceptibility to Toxic Substances (DISTS) boosts the rationale forusing medicinal bracelets.

Analogies also can prove helpful. The analogy between medicinalbracelets and the practice of moxa (moxibustion) in TraditionalChinese Medicine may shed light on both, especially because thebody of clinical findings regarding moxa thereby becomes availablefor comparison.

Whether these hypotheses, concepts, and analogies might be borneout by careful testing remains an open question. But they afford theresearcher some tools that can be used to pry open the variousmysteries of medicinal bracelets. So it is a way of performingscientific detective work by asking lots of questions and makinglots of provisional guesses. Hardly conclusive, and not likely to winapproval from peer reviewers; but appropriate for the early stage of



1. http://www.scientiapress.com/intriguing-anomalies

2. http://www.scientiapress.com/ten-key-points-about-medicinal-

investigation where medicinal bracelets now are found.

A final note: thus far zinc has proven itself far more amenable tobeing dispensed from a bracelet than has iron. Even though onecan achieve excellent effects with iron in certain circumstances,skin irritation and staining of skin and clothing representformidable barriers to acceptance by many people. So in the longrun the various arguments and experiments on iron in the chaptermay prove to have mainly scientific interest, though it may alsoturn out that substantial numbers of people can benefit fromtransdermal iron and will not be deterred by what they deem minorinconveniences. At any rate, it is possible that the goal of treatingiron deficiency anemia, which provided the original impulse for theinvestigation of medicinal bracelets, may forever elude us. Yet itstill will have played an important role by leading us to understandand deploy copper, zinc, and magnets in an optimal andscientifically based manner.

*****

See also:Â Essential Tremor Treated with Copper Bracelet[3].

Kenneth J. Dillon is an historian who writes on science, medicine,

and history.Â See the biosketch at About Us[4].

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