chaLLENgES FOR PREcLINIcaL INVESTIgaTIONS OF hUMaN BIOFIELD MODaLITIES

Preclinical models for studying the effects of the human biofield have great potential to advance our understanding of human biofield modalities, which include external qigong, Johrei, Reiki, therapeutic touch, healing touch, polarity therapy, pranic healing, and other practices. A short history of Western biofield studies using preclinical models is presented and demonstrates numerous and consistent examples of human biofields significantly affecting biological systems both in vitro and in vivo. Methodological issues arising from these studies and practical solutions in experimental design are presented. Important questions still left unanswered with preclinical models include variable reproducibility, dosing, intentionality of the practitioner, best preclinical systems, and mechanisms. Input from the biofield practitioners in the experimental design is critical to improving experimental outcomes; however, the development of standard criteria for uniformity of practice and for inclusion of multiple practitioners is needed. Research in human biofield studies involving preclinical models promises a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying the efficacy of biofield therapies and will be important in guiding clinical protocols and integrating treatments with conventional medical therapies. iNTroducTioN The concept of a human biofield has its origins in many different cultures over thousands of years with the development of numerous types of biofield therapies, but only recently has Western science begun to evaluate these practices for their possible therapeutic potential. Ancient concepts state that human beings are not just flesh and blood but also emit and are infused with a form of energy. Illnesses are believed to arise from blockages, depletion, or imbalances in the flow of this energy throughout the body. The human biofield energy medicine modalities include acupuncture, external qigong, Johrei, polarity therapy, pranic healing, Reiki, and therapeutic touch (TT). These therapies involve the transmission of some form of purported “energy” either through the therapist (the conduit) to the recipient to stimulate the restorative potential or via the human biofield within the patient to promote health. For more than 50 years, preclinical models have been attractive to experimentalists interested in understanding the mechanisms underlying the efficacy of human biofield modalities. Some of the earliest compelling experiments in the West came from a research laboratory at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, in the 1960s. Bernard Grad, PhD, and colleagues reported that a biofield practitioner was able to influence the germination of plant seeds and wound-healing in mice.1-3 Since then, numerous other biofield modalities have been studied, including external qigong, Johrei, Reiki, TT, healing touch, polarity therapy, and pranic healing, among others. The experimental models tested have also been expanded to include cells and even molecules. For example, results have been reported indicating that external qigong treatment can reduce phosphorylation of the protein molecule myosin in a cell-free system.4 Much of the appeal of preclinical models is that they presumably exclude psychosocial elements. Thus experimentation using these models has the potential to dispel the prevailing consensus within the academic medical community that the power of suggestion or expectation underlies the efficacy of biofield therapies. This report offers perspectives on challenges facing scientists and physicians in biofield research and develops strategies to more effectively realize the potential of preclinical models for advancing the scientific understanding and exploration of biofield modalities. We will first briefly address previous research, then begin to address questions that remain unanswered in preclinical investigations, and finally discuss some of the current challenges in the field. HiSTorY of WeSTerN Biofield STudieS The foundation of Western biofield research can be traced to the pioneering work of the late biologist Grad at McGill University. In carefully controlled experiments using biofield practitioners with healing abilities, Grad found that it was possible to influence the germination of plant seeds, the growth rate of plants, and the “curing” of seeds that had been shocked by saline solution and measure the ability of biofield treatments to reduce goiter and stimulate wound-healing in mice.1-3 Since Grad’s pioneering work, there have been innumerable preclinical studies. Early compilations of these studies5,6 often cluster previous work by the reVieW arTicle challenges for preclinical investigations of Human Biofield modalities Gloria Gronowicz, PhD; William Bengston, PhD; Garret Yount, PhD