title: Clinical Studies of Biofield Therapies: Summary, Methodological Challenges, and Recommendations.
abstract: Biofield therapies are noninvasive therapies in which the practitioner explicitly works with a client's biofield (interacting fields of energy and information that surround living systems) to stimulate healing responses in patients. While the practice of biofield therapies has existed in Eastern and Western cultures for thousands of years, empirical research on the effectiveness of biofield therapies is still relatively nascent. In this article, we provide a summary of the state of the evidence for biofield therapies for a number of different clinical conditions. We note specific methodological issues for research in biofield therapies that need to be addressed (including practitioner-based, outcomes-based, and research design considerations), as well as provide a list of suggested next steps for biofield researchers to consider.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego; and Center for Integrative Medicine, University of California San Diego; and Consciousness and Healing Initiative, San Diego (Dr Jain).
authors.forename: Shamini
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jain
authors.affiliation: Consciousness and Healing Initiative, San Diego; and The Institute for Integrative Health, Baltimore, Maryland (Dr Hammerschlag).
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hammerschlag
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego; and Center for Integrative Medicine, University of California San Diego; and Center of Excellence for Research and Training in Integrative Health, University of California, San Diego (Dr Mills).
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mills
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston (Dr Cohen).
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Noetic Sciences, Petaluma, California (Dr Krieger).
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Krieger
authors.affiliation: Institute of Noetic Sciences, Petaluma, California; and California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, San Francisco (Dr Vieten).
authors.forename: Cassandra
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vieten
authors.affiliation: Institute of Noetic Sciences, Petaluma, California; and Departments of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Urology, and Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Iowa, Iowa City (Dr Lutgendorf).
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lutgendorf
keywords: Biofield; Reiki; biofield therapies; clinical trials; energy medicine; hands-on healing; healing; healing touch; integrative medicine; therapeutic touch