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placebo jewelry
Placebo jewelry (PJ) includes tiaras, hairpins, earrings, nose rings (studs and chains), grills, necklaces, torcs and chokers, armlets, bracelets, watches, anklets, rings, and the like that are worn for protection, health, or to increase one's skill at some task. PJ items may be made out paper, plastic, metal, rubber, cloth, etc. The key to identifying something as PJ is not what it is made of or how it looks, but what the wearer believes: if you attribute magical powers to your piece of jewelry, it is PJ by definition. This implies, of course, that the same piece of jewelry worn by one person can be PJ, while for another the piece may be an ornament or symbolic proclamation only. There are also placebo tattoos and placebo hand-held objects like rosaries and prayer beads.
In ancient times, PJ was believed to have the power to ward off evil and evil spirits or to provide protection from some supernatural being. Charms and amulets continue to be popular among the superstitious, as do fetishes and talismans.
Religious PJ continues to be popular with people of many faiths. Many Christians, for example, wear PJ that has had some sort of incantation uttered over it by someone claiming authority to imbue the item with protective power. Some Jews wear scraps of red string to protect them from the evil eye or add to the oddity of their celebrity status. Some Jews and Muslims wear the hamsa, a symbol dating back to prehistoric times, for their evil eye protection. The Egyptian ankh remains popular after more than two millennia, as do the Indian and Tibetan Om symbols.
Healers and witch doctors throughout history have used various sones and animal or plant parts as charms and talismans, one of the more odd ones being the use of the jackal's horn in certain areas of India, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
In recent years, PJ has seen explosive growth in the so-called advanced industrial societies among believers in energy healing. Rieki is just one form of energy healing where entrepeneurs have filled a niche with reiki jewelry. The Q-Link line of PJ claims to neutralize the harmful stress effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) from computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.* The Q-Ray line claims it is "the world's only ionized bracelet of its kind for balancing your body's yin-yang (positive & negative ions)." The Q-Ray bracelet supposedly will "energize your whole body and relieve pains the natural way by boosting chi." In addition to PJ believed to ward off the evil effects of EMFs, there have been many PJ products made of copper or magnetic metals believed to have curative powers. Despite what anyone tells you, the use of these items for warding off EMFs or arthritis is not controversial. Any benefit anyone receives from wearing any of the items mentioned here is due to a placebo effect only (unless, of course, one of the items is thick enough to stop a small bullet).
Recently, PJ made of a large rubber band, sometimes embedded with a hologram or other pointless affectation, has swept over Informercial Land and Web Land. The best and most effective of these rubber bands is without a doubt the Placebo Band sold by SkeptiBros.
This amazing piece of pointless jewelry is waterproof, comes in several colors, and is embedded with a pointless hologram. Best of all, you can buy one for only $2 (Australian, which today is at parity with the US dollar). The prospective buyer should know, however:
Placebo Band doesn’t come pre-programed in any way. If you wish to have your band “imbedded with frequencies” we suggest placing the band prominently on top of or in front of the largest speaker you have while playing your absolute favorite song ( eg. Groove Is In The Heart by Dee Lite). Not only will you have listened to something that improves your mood straight away but you will be reminded of the song and that good feeling every time you wear Placebo Band.
The good news is that SkepticBros will send you a free replacement if your Placebo Band explodes for any reason.
There are other placebo bands on the market, but they are expensive imitations, e.g., Power Balance, iRenew, or EFX Health Wristband Bracelet Silicone Bands. If you're short of cash and must buy one of these three brand names, I suggest the EFX brand. You can get 50 of them for $150, including shipping and tax. The Power Balance has a line of neoprene wristbands starting at about $30. The iRenew rubber bands sell for about $20. Their commercials claim their product attunes itself to your body's frequencies and gives you more energy, whatever that might mean. Even more vague is the claim that the IRenew bracelet will “promote health and wellness.” Promote? One reviewer (known only as "blogger hired to review Infomercials") was impressed: "More importantly, they seem to give you much improved balance and muscle coordination." They seem to do a lot of things. As does the Power Balance. It seems to rearrange your body's energy in a positive way. That's assumed to be a good thing, if it's a thing at all.
But why pay a lot for something that can do so little when you can pay a little for something that can do a lot more? The Placebo Band is so cheap you can afford several. Richard Saunders of the Australian Skeptics says he wears multiple Placebo Bands as conversation pieces. Strangers are more likely to ask about them if you wear several rather than one. This, he says, gives him opportunities to talk to people about the Placebo Band, the idea behind it, and the lack of any plausible mechanism by which magical jewelry could have any of the effects promised except for the placebo effect. This also seems like a friendly way to promote skepticism and scientific thinking.
Finally, for those who just like to wear pointless colorful silicone bands, there is the Healthy Message Silicone Bracelet that proclaims your love of colorful fruits and vegetables, as well as your support for the US Department of Agriculture's food pyramid. They're selling for a whopping $1.50. The downside is they don't cure cancer.
See also applied kinesiology, magical thinking, magnet therapy, Evaluating Personal Experience, and Energy Healing: Looking in All the Wrong Places.
further reading
websites
No Difference Between Ionized Bracelet and Placebo for Pain Relief
Are ionized wrist bracelets better than placebo for musculoskeletal pain?
Static magnets for reducing pain: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials
A Randomized, Double Blind, Placebo Controlled, Crossover Evaluation of Natural Frequency Technology™ and Sleep Natural Frequency Technology on Sleep in Normal Subjects with Un-refreshing Sleep You, too, can do junk science and get paid for it. These folks tested "the impact of the Natural Frequency Technology (NFT) found in Philip Stein™ Watches (thought to promote overall well-being) and Sleep NFT, (a combination of frequencies designed to promote sleep) on sleep parameters in normal healthy individuals who routinely experience un-refreshing sleep." Now why would anyone test such a thing? Duh.
Proclaim Your Invisible Chronic Illness an example of wearing a colored rubber band to announce that you are suffering from an invisible chronic disease
blogs
Power Balance Bracelets a Bust in IIG Test by Jim Underdown at Hollywood Reality Check
magic jewelry by Brian Dunning at Skeptoid.com
Power Balance by Peter Bowditch at Ratbags
Richard Saunders Vs The Power Balance Bracelet On Today Tonight! by Kylie Sturgess at Podcat Black
Energy Bracelets: Embedding Frequencies in Holograms for Fun and Profit by Harriet Hall at Science Based Medicine
Power Balance, iRenew, and Applied Kinesiology BG Skeptics Society
video
Last updated 11/21/10
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