Biofield & Biofield therapy research

A biofield therapy is, “a non-invasive, complementary, and alternative medicine (CAM) practice that involves manipulating the body’s supposed “subtle energy fields” (biofields) to promote healing, reduce stress, and improve well-being” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al). Biofield therapies are now being studied, and taken more seriously by many scientists world wide…which is incredibly exciting. You are probably familiar with more biofield therapies than you think some of the popular ones include: reiki, sound healing, qigong, healing touch, etc.

Biofield studies originated from a combination of ancient energetic healing practices and early 20th-century scientific discoveries regarding electrical and light emissions from living organisms. Formally, the term “biofield” was coined in 1992 by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to define a, “massless field, not necessarily electromagnetic, that surrounds and permeates living bodies” (Google. (2026). Gemini (March 2 version) [National Institutes of Health (NIH)]. https://gemini.google.com/).

Biofield studies give us new terminology and new research to support the benefits of these practices. These studies not only look into the benefits, but are attempting to understand the mechanisms behind how they work…which is a tall order. One issue in particular with this field, is the lack of agreed upon definitions. Many of these therapies involve the movement, manipulation, or interaction of “energy” or “subtle" energy”, but there is no agreed upon definition for what exactly this ‘energy’ is. We can measure the psychological and physiological changes present in the practitioner providing the healing and the patient receiving the healing, but understanding the base mechanisms of what is happening requires much more research of interdisciplinary studies. Understanding what is going on here involves experts in areas of physics, biology, chemistry, medicine, psychology, etc. This is not a chemically based interpretation of the body, so this will involve looking into understanding multiple aspects of not just the human body, but aspects of the universe.

There are many difficulties that come with trying to create what would be considered legitimate studies around these practices, due to many factors such as: funding, double blind procedures, definitions, practitioners, styles (in person and distant), and other variables. Not only do biofield studies face practical difficulties in their research, but also in the already associated correlations and stigmas surrounding this work. This research requires us to expand our minds and the possibilities of what we have established as truth in the recent centuries. It requires us to be truly scientific, and demands us to not allow ourselves to fall into what Dr. Gary Swartz (professor of psychology, medicine, neurology, and psychiatry and surgery) so perfectly puts as: “pseudo-skeptics”.

“True skeptics not only know that they don’t know something for sure, but they are genuinely open to changing their minds and growing in light of new evidence. In a deep sense they are humble and open minded. Pseudo-skeptics often are typically disbelievers, they are firmly entrenched in believing no about certain things. Although they may claim that they are open to new information, they typically react with strongly unfriendly, if not hostile criticism when their beliefs and assumption are challenged by new ideas and evidence” (Dr. Gary Swartz, as cited in McKusick, 2014, p. 6).

Not only are we dealing with these issues stated above, but there seem to be social-political issues surrounding this topic as well, all of which I will not be discussing in this article. On one side we have an entire paradigm shift occurring in medicine some of whom are harshly refusing, while on the other side we have a group of healers who are sometimes over-claiming to know the mechanics by which healings are happening or lacking in the area of ethics or professional manners. There is an issue with over-governance in one area, and zero governance in another. Each side shutting each-other down, creating more hostility amongst the two groups.

Along with the stigma of it being non-scientific, or not an effective treatment, there are also religious beliefs or lack there of that further drive the stigma around these types of treatments. There are extremes on both ends of this point. One side fearful that these modalities are witch craft, going against the bible or taught rules, or sinful in some kind of way due to their supernatural nature and are therefore almost completely, if not completely shut off to them. The other side fearful that these modalities do imply some sort of universal connection, source, creation energy, that is bigger than ourselves that we do not understand and that by being involved in these modalities whether in study or in practice implies something about your character and the philosophies of your life, or implies that you are un-scientific, fraud, or for lack of a better word a joke amongst your colleagues. These are deeply imbedded personal issues that like it or not, we have to admit have impacted every area of society and are often attached to extreme emotions, traumas, or closed minded pathways built for self protection.

We also have an issue around not recognizing indigenous culture roots of this medicine. The basic philosophies surrounding these complimentary forms of medicine have been here long before the modern day, they are not sudden discoveries coming from our imaginations, but deeply rooted truths in many ancient cultures. While our understandings of the mechanics behind the modalities might be new and deserve recognition and appreciation in their own right, the basis for this research needs to be honored from the roots of where it came from. If we had respected these roots and taken them seriously to begin with, we might be much further along in our research and implementation than we are today. It could have changed the field of medicine, had we taken these modalities seriously to begin with.

Our medical system today is not built to implement complimentary forms of medicine, practically via coding through insurance and the pharmacological model or psychologically around the pre-conceived notions and fears surrounding this field. Luckily, as I stated above, the paradigm is changing. It is not about ostracizing one group or the other, it is about integrating the amazing world of modern medicine and the amazing world of complimentary medicine to understand that healing is holistic, and involves many perspectives and tools. Each have their place with particular issues, and could be even more powerful if utilized alongside one another. This will not only require foundational changes in all fields, but a re-training of society on what healing could mean and what it could look like.

”A key issue in increasing awareness of this area of study is educating healthcare workers and the general public about biofield theory and research. Because biofield therapies do not involve the use of invasive agents like medication, needles, or supplements and because they invoke concepts that are somewhat foreign to many allopathically trained physicians, discussion around stimulating a healing response by working with energy fields often elicits responses that the entire field of study is fraught with pseudoscience. A significant challenge for this field of study is presented by otherwise well-meaning practitioners and advocates who describe or utilize ill-designed scientific methods to “prove” that their method of healing works. These efforts increase barriers to conducting this work. However, in many cases, the barriers are more due to a general lack of conceptual knowledge about biofields and the need to explain hypotheses about biofields in a manner that can be understood and to ensure that people are educated on the state-of-the-evidence and most salient gaps in the research” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

To understand biofield therapies and where the research is currently at, it’s important to understand the biofields relationship with the body. The body is full of electrical functions some of which to name a few (in a very oversimplified way) include: our nervous system conducts electrical signals, the collagen within our body acts as a semiconductor, our emotions are electrical-chemical events, our blood carries a charge, our bones are semi-conductive/transduce electricity, our brainwaves are electrical frequencies, our heart is an electrically driven oscillator. Those are just some examples to show you just how bioelectric our system is! So it might seem weird to talk about the body in terms of electricity or magnetic fields…but it really is a bioelectrical system on so many levels.

Biomagnetic fields are weak magnetic fields produced by the electrical current activity in the human body. Cells, tissues, organs, etc. produce these fields within the body. The heart generates the strongest biomagnetic signal within the body. This field not only interacts with us, but with those around us and we are impacted by fields outside of us in return. The heart’s magnetic field can be measured several feet out from the body. “Compared to the electromagnetic field produced by the brain, the electrical component of the heart’s field is about 60 times greater in amplitude and permeates every cell in the body” (McKusick, 2014, p. 92-93). The heart radiates this field outside the body to the space around us and can be measured by HRV (heart rate variability). This emanating field is dynamic, changing based on our emotional state (HeartMath Institute). These fields can be measured by SQUID sensors (superconducting quantum interference device), which has provided us more detailed information about how far these fields travel.

Zooming in on the body, we understand everything within it creates some sort of weak biofield, the strongest source of this within our body is the heart. The heart has a sort of wisdom of its own, containing approximately 40,000 neurons.
"This "heart brain" is composed of approximately 40,000 neurons that are alike neurons in the brain, meaning that the heart has its own nervous system. In addition, the heart communicates with the brain in many methods: neurologically, biochemically, biophysically, and energetically. The vagus nerve, which is 80% afferent, carries information from the heart and other internal organs to the brain. Signals from the "heart brain" redirect to the medulla, hypothalamus, thalamus, and amygdala and the cerebral cortex. Thus, the heart sends more signals to the brain than vice versa” (Alshami AM). From research done of this “little brain”, it has been found that the heart is a key moderator in pain perception throughout the body. Methods that utilize vagus nerve stimulation, and heart-coherence can assist in the bodies perception of pain due to the fact that these methods target the heart.

Our emotions translate to electrical patterns and frequencies, and our emotions have a direct correlation to states of coherence within our body. The heart produces either coherent or incoherent frequency patterns based on the emotions a person is feeling. A coherent frequency is ordered, consistent, clear, and in phase. When our bodies achieve states of coherence, we are at our best. In this state, our nervous system, heart, and brain synchronize. We experience better cognitive function, emotional stability, and other psychological benefits. Love, appreciation, gratitude, “flow state” cause the heart to produce coherent frequencies, allowing the body to function more effectively, whereas frustration, anger, stress, etc, can cause incoherent frequencies and disruption and stress within the body.

This does not mean that we shouldn’t be feeling particular emotions, or imply that there are good or bad emotions in the moral sense - in fact it implies the opposite! What this means is that it is even more important that we find ways to integrate all of our emotions, and find healthy ways to deal with anger, frustration, stress, shame. If we do not, they have biological and chemical implications on our bodies and on those around us. The more we lock them away and lack integration, the more “issues” they will cause. I put “issues” into quotations, because these stored emotions that are causing physiological or psychological issues are only causing issues because we have ignored them and deemed the consequences of that as issues that are outside of our control. When we view all emotions as intelligent, having jobs within our system, it allows us to feel into all the emotions without judgement, and course-correct our lives with the wisdom we can gain from the integration of the emotions. Allowing ourselves to learn from our mistakes, and move forward with less moral injury in our lives towards ourselves and others. When we can accept ourselves more fully and come into wholeness with all our emotions, all the parts of ourselves, we can then enter into states of coherence more frequently and navigate the thicker emotions with greater clarity. Emotions, however are just one part of our bodies system.

You have probably put together by now, as humans we have a fundamental bioelectric system. The electric communication system of our body is incredibly complex. The biofield, “…is “a complex, dynamic, and weak electromagnetic field that both surrounds and permeates the human body. It acts as a field-based regulator of physiology and biochemistry, functioning as a “blueprint” that coordinates life processes and reflects an individual’s state of health.” - Dr. Beverly Rubik NIH

Biofields are not limited to just our bodies. Any living thing emits a biofield- the planet has an incredibly complex system of magnetic fields. So on top of our own magnetic field, and that of others, we are also interacting with the planet’s- which we will not be getting into here. It is also important to understand that “‘biofields’ do not just apply to ‘biofield therapies’ but rather are relevant to the mechanisms by which mind and body interact to promote healing responses (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

The electromagnetic properties within each part of us are contributing to complex frequencies that permeate the body and can change overtime. Electromagnetic bioinformation plays a crucial role in regulating functions within the body, and this information is encoded within the frequencies emitted in our biofield. You can think of our biofield like the sheet music to the entire orchestra. When there is a disruption within our system- or a note playing out of tune, that in theory is reflected within our biofield- the extent of this is still being researched. Then on top of that- our sheet music only translates our inner orchestra, but interacts with everyone’s else’s sheet music and orchestra as well. You can see how complicated this can become.

It has already been shown in research conducted at HearthMath that our emotions impact the state of our biofield. Furthermore, studies have suggested that this biofield can be impacted by other individual’s biofields and conscious intention. Both of these can lead to an altering of our biological and physical states. When researching this particular area, HeartMath found that when people were able to maintain the coherent state of mind, that they were less effected by fields of others emanating around them. Implying that when we have a strong foundation of our emotional inner world, our biofield is less impacted by the biofields of others.

One area of study is focusing on the effect and ability humans possess to be impacted by the energetic field emitted from the heart.

...The results of these experiments have led us to conclude that the nervous system acts as an antenna, which is tuned to and responds to the magnetic fields produced by the hearts of other individuals. My colleagues and I call this energetic information exchange energetic communication and believe it to be an innate ability that heightens awareness and mediates important aspects of true empathy and sensitivity to others. Furthermore, we have observed that this energetic communication ability can be enhanced, resulting in a much deeper level of nonverbal communication, understanding and connection between people. We also propose that this type of energetic communication between individuals may play a role in therapeutic interactions between clinicians and patients that has the potential to promote the healing process. From an electrophysiological perspective, it appears that sensitivity to this form of energetic communication between individuals is related to the ability to be emotionally and physiologically coherent. The data indicate that when individuals are in the coherent state, they are more sensitive to receiving information contained in the magnetic fields generated by others. In addition, during physiological coherence, internal systems are more stable, function more efficiently and radiate electromagnetic fields containing a more coherent structure (Heartmath Institute). The level of successful energy-communication varied once the physical touch was removed, and individuals were separated by greater distances

So not only does the strength of our own inner coherence impact our susceptibility towards being impacted by other’s biofields, but it also can connect us to deeper states of empathy and awareness of others. Implying, that it is not through some sort of secret formula that we gain abilities that might appear supernatural, but through cultivating an inner state that is coherent.

So let’s talk about the placebo effect. Many people wonder if CAM therapies are just really masked placebo effects- that it doesn’t really do anything we just believe that it does, so it does. To be clear if it isn’t already, we need more research. Nothing in this article aside from results of the studies completed are for sure. However….

What has been suggested about the placebo effect so far in studies of CAM therapies is as follows; “Current data suggest it is unlikely that biofield therapies are reducible to placebo responses alone, but like other forms of mind-body medicine interventions and biomedicine in general,60,61 biofield therapy may intentionally harness the patient’s conscious and unconscious expectancies and desires in synergy with the treatment being delivered to enhance outcomes” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

So, to be clear the placebo effect is always a factor in all forms of medicine- and that is not a bad thing. If our belief in the medicine will increase our positive outcomes, that is great. What you believe about your treatment, like many other traditional medical treatments, will impact the quality of your healing and experience of the treatment, but it does not appear that CAM is operating on the placebo effect alone.

So what are we looking for when we study CAM modalities? This is one of the barriers with studying these modalities. We don’t fully understand how they work- so what do we look for? We have to start generally and work our way into more detail until we have a better idea of how these modalities are working- though I will point out just because we don’t understand the mechanism does not mean they do not work or are not important modalities. Nor does it mean that they can not be studied.

”There has been confusion, by both researchers and funders, regarding the need to include analysis of potential mechanisms in early stage clinical studies of biofield therapies. As with other controversial healing modalities, there is pressure to demonstrate “biologically plausible mechanisms” of biofield therapies. We argue that elucidating mechanisms, while important in helping to understand and even improve upon a therapy’s effects, is not essential for conducting rigorous and potentially informative clinical trials of any therapy…exploration of potential moderators and mediators of treatment may lead to better empirically based hypotheses for testing mechanisms of biofield therapies.” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

We do not fully understand chronic pain issues, yet here are thousands of people dealing with chronic pain to seemingly no end in sight. Our lack of fully understanding chronic pain does not mean we do not study it, treat it, and do what we can to navigate it. Our lack of full understanding also does not negate from the fact people are experiencing chronic pain. Thousands of years of civilizations and cultures have used these modalities without understanding the exact mechanisms of how they work and have still reported experiential success. Maybe we are once again, finally returning to a time where more and more people are beginning to take these modalities seriously enough to study and move them slowly into mainstream.

It is important to remember that biofield studies, may, and in my opinion, will most likely be inclusive of multiple different fields. In fact, I would argue that as we move forward as a society our next evolutionary jump will necessitate the need for emotional maturity, and interdisciplinary study and application. Which means, understanding the mechanisms of what is happening is a tall order that will take many great minds across multiple fields working together to connect research that has already been completed, and the research that needs to be done.

“A key hindrance to understanding potential mechanisms of biofield therapies is the absence of a reliable measure of the purported biofield emanations from the practitioners. While there have been a few reports regarding emanations from certain practitioners,54–56 creating a systematic method to examine such bioenergetic signals is a crucial step to better understand the physiological basis of biofield therapy. The development of systematic methods examining bioenergetic signals from practitioners may help us better understand, for example, whether the efficacy of the healing interaction is directly proportionate to the strength of the biofield emanation, to a particular pattern of biofield emanation, or whether there are other factors apart from or in addition to bioenergetic signaling that significantly contribute to the outcomes of the practitioner/client encounter. As interested engineers and scientists further develop techniques to measure emanations from practitioners at different electromagnetic frequencies, it will be of interest to determine whether specific patterns of bio-energy emanation are predictive of better healing outcomes. At the same time, there are potential pitfalls from assuming that electromagnetic emanations are the sole explanation for the experience and practice of biofield therapies,50 as they would not account, for example, for the results of distant healing studies carried out in electromagnetically shielded environments (see Radin et al, this issue) 57, 58” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

While we don’t fully understand what is happening or how, that has not stopped the studies from happening and the results reported from them are promising.

“In terms of current biofield therapy research, several studies have examined more “global” biomarkers such as HRV and/or single measures of cortisol or natural killer cell cytotoxicity as outcomes either in healthy or specific clinical populations.12,13,16,18,29,38–41,43,65–68 Such markers were chosen for ease of acquisition/feasibility and potential relevance to the clinical population being studied. Reported changes in these specific outcomes suggest that biofield therapies have positive effects on physiological processes of clinical relevance” (Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, et al).

There have been many studies of CAM practices that have reported general improved tracked markers, and improved positive outlooks reported by participants such as with: anxiety, depression, stress, blood flow, heart rate, connection, peace, pain perception, inflammation, pain, and PTSD.

One study, The Effects of Singing Bowl Sound Meditation on Mood, Tension, and Well-Being: An Observational Study, showed many positive results. The foundation of this study goes as follows: “Heart disease, diabetes, addiction, and mental health issues have all been linked to stress and tension”, and, “poor mood and elevated anxiety are linked to increased incidence of disease”, this study wanted to focus on how sound meditation could effect anxiety, pain, mood, and spiritual well being (Goldsby, T. L, et al).

“Following the sound meditation participants reported significantly less tension, anger, fatigue, and depressed mood...Feeling of spiritual well-being significantly increased across all participants” (Goldsby, T. L, et al). The authors noted many benefits to sound meditation along with the significant positive patient results: low-cost technology and a low learning curve for patients being two positives for easy integration for clinical use. Patients reported decreased pain, decrease mental anxiety, increased spiritual connection, along with measurable effects of lowered blood pressure and heart rate. A similar study was done using singing bowl therapy with metastatic cancer patients, and chronic spinal pain patients, and many positive results were reported. “Improvements in distress, positive and negative affect, anxiety, depression, fatigue, tension, anger, confusion and vigour were reported, as were improvements in blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, peripheral capillary oxygen saturation, cutaneous conductance, and anterior-frontal alpha values” (Stanhope, J., & Weinstein, P. ).

Along with sound, distance healing and in person energy healing has been studied. One particular study was a randomized, placebo-controlled, three parallel-groups, double-blind, and single-center with subjects who have one or more psychological and mental symptoms. The conclusion was that, “The distant (virtual) biofield energy healing therapy significantly improved psychological and mental health-related symptoms without affecting safety concerns, and improved overall health and quality of life.” (Trivedi MK, Branton A, Trivedi D, et al). Another randomized control trial of in person reiki healing was done, and reached similar conclusions. “The existing meta-analysis and systematic review suggested that Reiki therapy positively impacted quality of life. Therefore, it was recommended that patients with cancer, surgical patients, chronic illnesses, and the general population receive acute Reiki therapy sessions (≤ 20 min) or Reiki therapy with sufficient frequency (≥ 8 sessions) and duration (≥ 60 min) to enhance their quality of life” (Liu K, Qin Z, Qin Y, Li Y, et al).

In short, studies show that these modalities are working, but we don’t fully understand how, and more studies are needed. Overall the two areas that have received the most research with biofield therapies, are cancer and pain, showing positive results in using biofield therapies. So far, another benefit of biofield therapies is that there are considered low risk, with very few, if any ever negative side effects.

So overall, this topic is incredibly complex…but also incredibly exciting. There are many trails ahead of us that will force us to readjust, and ask ourselves how we want to move forward with this knowledge. It will require integration, paradigm shifting ideas, and new foundations built across multiple areas. We are at a pivotal shifting moment in the story of the science social arena. What people have known and practiced for thousands of years is finally being taken seriously, and more than just taken seriously, validated. We have a long way to go, but we are finally starting.

Sources

• Jain S, Hammerschlag R, Mills P, Cohen L, Krieger R, Vieten C, Lutgendorf S. Clinical Studies of Biofield Therapies: Summary, Methodological Challenges, and Recommendations. Glob Adv Health Med. 2015 Nov;4(Suppl):58-66. doi: 10.7453/gahmj.2015.034.suppl. Epub 2015 Nov 1. PMID: 26665043; PMCID: PMC4654788.

• Rubik B, Muehsam D, Hammerschlag R, Jain S. Biofield Science and Healing: History, Terminology, and Concepts. Glob Adv Health Med. 2015 Nov;4(Suppl):8-14. doi: 10.7453/gahmj.2015.038.suppl. Epub 2015 Nov 1. PMID: 26665037; PMCID: PMC4654789.

• Stanhope, J., & Weinstein, P. (2020). The human health effects of singing bowls: A systematic review. Complementary therapies in medicine, 51, 102412. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2020.102412

• Goldsby, T. L., Goldsby, M. E., McWalters, M., & Mills, P. J. (2017). Effects of Singing Bowl Sound Meditation on Mood, Tension, and Well-being: An Observational Study. Journal of evidence-based complementary & alternative medicine, 22(3), 401–406. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156587216668109

• Trivedi MK, Branton A, Trivedi D, Mondal S, Jana S. Effects of distant biofield energy healing on adults associated with psychological and mental health-related symptoms: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study. Health Psychol Res. 2024 Aug 15;12:122225. doi: 10.52965/001c.122225. PMID: 39267816; PMCID: PMC11392496.

• Liu K, Qin Z, Qin Y, Li Y, Liu Q, Gao F, Zhang P, Wang W. Effects of Reiki therapy on quality of life: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Syst Rev. 2025 Mar 27;14(1):72. doi: 10.1186/s13643-025-02811-5. PMID: 40148929; PMCID: PMC11951753.

• McKusick, E. D. (2014). Tuning the human biofield: Healing with Vibrational Sound Therapy. Simon and Schuster.

• Alshami AM. Pain: Is It All in the Brain or the Heart? Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2019 Nov 14;23(12):88. doi: 10.1007/s11916-019-0827-4. PMID: 31728781.