But the 21 people treated with sham magnets said their pain dropped only from 9.9 to 8.4. Some proponents suggest that magnets boost circulation, bringing more blood and nutrients to the targeted area. That's the theory advanced by Ted Zablotsky, M.D., President of BioFlex Medical Magnetics, a firm that sells magnets for medical uses. The lead researcher from the University of Houston study, family physician Carlos Vallbona, M.D., raised a different possibility. But the bottom line is that no one understands how magnets could act as medicine.
Many experts remain unconvinced by the research done to date.
So they don't yet add up to scientific evidence. Plus, some studies on magnets have been negative, but nobody ever seems to hear about those. Nineteen patients with heel pain wore insoles containing magnetic inserts. Fifteen others wore identical insoles without the magnets. After four weeks, the two groups reported the same amount of relief.