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Q: Health benefit of Rock Salt/ionisers - Answers by 10/03/06 ( No Answer,   2 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Health benefit of Rock Salt/ionisers - Answers by 10/03/06
Category: Science
Asked by: ds1976-ga
List Price: $60.00
Posted: 08 Mar 2006 18:09 PST
Expires: 07 Apr 2006 19:09 PDT
Question ID: 705159
I am looking for scientific research to back the claim that rock salt
- when gently heated (for example when used as lamp material or candle
holder) has a positive health benefit. It supposedly generates
negative ions which counteract positive ions (released from electrical
equipment). I need to find research, articles, papers, publications,
studies etc from REPUTABLE sources (i.e. well known and respected
scientists and/or institutions) with full publication details and
access to copies of the studies (preferably via a weblink).
I have already looked and found research by Mc Diamond and Albert
Krueger into the impact of negative ions on health and concentration,
but did not locate the exact quotes from within their studies that
confirmed the benefits of negative ions and therefore ionisers.

Request for Question Clarification by hedgie-ga on 10 Mar 2006 23:13 PST
I find your question contradictory:

  " you want SCIENTIFIC research " which would " back the  certain claims " .

 But scientific method only allow questions like: what is the effect of
 (given composition of atmosphere on a given organism ..).
 It does not allow apriory conclusion to be part of the question
 (meaning, it will let the chips to fall where they will).

There is apparently lot of publication of the type: 
http://www.fjokk.hu/cejoem/files/Volume6/Vol6No1/CE00_1-01.html

which may look respectable on the first glance, but which contain statements
like:

   "Negative air ions are of various sizes: small, medium, or large.
The size of a negative ion is extremely important, since only the
small ones can be inhaled and can exert their positive biological
effects..."

 which qualify whole 'paper' a pseudoscience. What are these 'ions' so
large that they cannot be inhaled? N2 or ionised methane or what?

So, what you need to clarify is this: Do you want to know if there is any
'evidence based research' on health benefits of (what) ion mixtures
or,
do you want marketing literatire to peddle some quackery ?

Clarification of Question by ds1976-ga on 11 Mar 2006 19:03 PST
hedgi-ga

Firstly I am not asking for someone to conduct a scientific study to
prove or disprove the theory of whether ionisers have a positive
benefit here - therefore in answer to your question, yes I would like
to know if there are existing studies which back the claims. If there
are none, I will know which way the chips fell. I'm not peddling any
form of quackery, I have a product to sell and don't want to make any
unsubstantiated claims about it's benefits. However if there are
substantiated claims, I will make use of them in my marketing
literature.

Request for Question Clarification by hedgie-ga on 11 Mar 2006 21:55 PST
ds1976-ga

          Your question is valid. I was asking for clarification,
since it is easier to answer a question when researcher knows the
purpose of the question.

Are you located in US?  This overview from 1980 says:

" ..The American ionizer industry seems to be recovering from the debacle of the
1950s, too. Several people in the ionizer business estimate that there are
about 20 manufacturers and retailers in the US today. There are also ionizer
manufacturers and retailers in Switzerland, Israel, England, Hungary, and
the Federal Republic of Germany. One Los Angeles ionizer manufacturer
estimates that last year 50,000 to 75,000 ionizers were sold in the US.
Prices range from $70, for desk or automobile dashboard units, to over
$2,000 for units to ionize the air in an entire building. Some ionizer
salesmen predict that ionization will become a multi- billion dollar industry
within the next decade. They believe they are in the same position today as
the air conditioning industry was in the 1950s. .."

  That apparently did not happen, and FDA ruling that no medical
claims can be made for these devices seems to be still in force.

Scientific questions,
" ..
Why do some people seem to be highly sensitive to ions? 
To what extent, if any, do ions affect people who are not ?sharav-sensitive??
 Do the effects of ionization depend on the positive-negative ratio as
well as the dosage?
 Do ions affect body chemicals other than serotonin? .."

are still open. 
 There are some articles in technical papers, but it does not look
like anything which would challenge the FDA ruling (or change their
mind at this time) will be found.

Do you want me to post the little I have as an answer?
Answer  
There is no answer at this time.

Comments  
Subject: Re: Health benefit of Rock Salt/ionisers - Answers by 10/03/06
From: pinkfreud-ga on 08 Mar 2006 18:26 PST
 
Unproven health claims for negative ions have been made for decades. I
doubt that you will find the kind of reputable sources that you seek.

Many of the negative-ion-peddlers like to say that negative ions are
beneficial for asthma patients. Actual medical studies, however, do
not support this claim:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=14749604&query_hl=25
Subject: Re: Health benefit of Rock Salt/ionisers - Answers by 10/03/06
From: ds1976-ga on 09 Mar 2006 10:33 PST
 
Hi Pinkfreud, thanks for your post. The research I've looked at also
suggests that asthma is not one of the ailments that ioniers can
benefit, but studies do show that ioniers can remove particles from
the air, making it cleaner and the fact that they can counter
positively charged ions, which makes the air feel fresher (which can
for example increase concentration). So I realise some people may make
false or unsubstantiated claims, but I do believe there are some real
benefits and am looking for more information on those!

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