Keeping the parents brains intact

[deneen]

Hello all and @Bob,

I just received my M1 and have been using it for 4 days (knee pain and chronic corneal ulcer) and am impressed so far.

My question here is for my parents (both 78 yo) who are very healthy so far but are also very afraid of losing their memory and even dementia. They have seen family members and friends succumb and they both dread it.

I have told them about PEMF therapy and that it can help but now they are turning to me for suggestions on devices.

They are intrigued by mats that they can place under (or on their) pillows that they can sleep with and help prevent plaques and help them retain their memories.

I am more of the mind that they get device(s) that they can use for more than just this application. (use their fixed income wisely). I considered that they could get a C5 and have coils that go to both of them at night and run the same program but then I saw the price and thought that maybe 2 M1s would be better (cheaper and give the same programs) even though I’d have to talk them both thru how to program 2 devices.

And I have done as much research as I can to discover the right frequencies for brain health and found that 2-8Hz and 10Hz all seem to help but I’d love more guidance on this.

Anyway, I’d really like some feedback on all this. Thank you!

[Bob]

Hi @deneen,
For the uses you are describing, I would be more inclined to use a C5 because it works with our 2x2 coil pad, which is designed to work well for placement under a pillow or mat. The M1 does have the same pulse patterns, but it does not generate enough power to drive the 2x2 coil mat as well.

As for “frequencies” for brain health, you will probably never find a specific answer that is reliably truthful and accurate. We honestly have very little reliable data for that. As a general guideline for PEMF, there is really no truth to the assertion “Frequency X treats or cures Condition Y”. I discuss this at length elsewhere on this forum. It boils down to a nuanced discussion of what we know, versus what we do not know.

But as a practical matter, to use PEMF you need to apply it with some pattern of pulses (“frequency”), after all, you have to pick one just to get the dang thing to run. So, what frequency do you pick?

You can think about what pulse patterns might be better than others, for a particular anatomic location, conditions of use, etc. But these fall into broad patterns, and you will need to make adjustments based on individual sensitivity and responsiveness to PEMF.

So, based on my personal experience, and a lot of feedback from others, a good place to start when using PEMF on the head/neck/face area is to avoid frequencies much above 25 or 30 pulses per second because this can be irritating or over-exciting to the brain.

Then, consider whether you want the cognitive effect to be relaxing or even sleep inducing, versus inducing awake alertness. Once again, there are broad patterns here, but individuals vary, so it is necessary to test, observe effects, adjust, repeat.

For me, this basically comes down to:

Desired cognitive state_____Try pulse pattern
Awake and alert_______Alpha Wave, Beta Wave 1, 2, or 3
Relaxation or sleep_____Delta Wave, Theta Wave, Schumann 1

So, you are wondering why I am talking about cognitive state and not “brain health”.

Because when you apply PEMF to the brain, there are two separate effects:

One involves the reduction of inflammation. This seems to work at all locations on the body.
The second effect is brainwave entrainment, where a frequency is thought to induce a cognitive state.

Using PEMF on the head, you get both effects. So, my opinion is:

Any “frequency” or pulse pattern seems help reduce inflammation and therefore contributes to tissue health, including brain health.

Certain frequencies may also induce cognitive states, so you are free to choose one that suits your needs at the time you are using PEMF.

Therefore, I choose a pulse pattern suited to the cognitive state appropriate for what I am doing at the time (sleeping, relaxing, solving complex technical problems, reading, etc.)

Then, I also gain from the effect that ICES-PEMF pulses at any frequency or pattern will also have the positive benefit to tissues of reduced inflammation.

[deneen]

Bob, thank you very much for the quick reply!

I get what you are saying about the frequencies and it make much sense! I would suggest they use one conducive to sleep if they are using it then.

@Bob

For the uses you are describing, I would be more inclined to use a C5 because it works with our 2x2 coil pad, which is designed to work well for placement under a pillow or mat. The M1 does have the same pulse patterns, but it does not generate enough power to drive the 2x2 coil mat as well.

If they got the C5 and mat they would have to switch back and forth using it, right? It can’t power 2 mats at once?

If they got 2 M1s they could both use their own at same time but would need to figure a way to attach the coils to their heads at night.

So I guess the question now is if using a C5/mat every other night better than using an M1 (2 coils only) every night better.

What do you think?

[Bob]

The C5 can actually power up to four 2x2 pads at the same time:

ICES® DigiCeutical® C5 Model System

They could both use the C5 at the same time, if they decide to use the same settings, because all four channels output the same pulse pattern at the same intensity. I think the C5 is perfect for your intended use for your parents.

One more suggestion:
Don’t just crank it up to full power to “get more magnetic field penetration” then let them fall asleep on it. They could wake up dizzy and that would discourage continued use.

Best practice: start low and slow.

Start with low intensity for short time periods (5 to 10 minutes) to determine their sensitivity and build up tolerance.

Avoid thinking “more intensity is better.” That is simply not optimal. Too much is too much.

[deneen]

Ok, I see - they can make 2 mats out of the 4 arrays with self adhesive tape. This would be great for them.

Now - how far away from the coils can their heads be and still be getting the energy to their brains? I’m sure it would be more comfortable to have the “mat” under their pillows but is that too far from the whole brain?

[Bob]

It will work through a pillow.

[dlkmd]

Bob, this is a fascinating thread. As a physician I have many patients with Long Covid and ME/CFS with major complaint of "brain fog’. Would this method described in the thread be potentially helpful? Would it work better if NOT under a pillow, eg during the day in some other position. Thx.

[Bob]

Two questions:
1 - “… potentially helpful?” Sure, some people seem to think so. But we do not have solid data.

At this point all that we have are fairly vague anecdotal statements, such as “… it seems to work for me …”

2 - “Would it work better if …”
We do not have data to make any strong verifiable prescriptive statements about any of the conditions of use.

One thing I can say with reasonable confidence though is that when dealing with ICES-PEMF and the brain/head/neck/face: less is more.

From what I have seen, it appears in general that the basic assumption that more power/higher Gauss, et al. will work better seems generally not to be true for many things related to the brain/head/neck/face.

I am of the opinion that very low levels of energy seem to be more effective, therefore, strategies to increase power/peak Gauss, et al. really do not pay a lot of dividends for these applications.

But we do not know for sure, and individuals vary a lot in terms of their sensitivity and responsiveness to PEMF.

So, I know people do not find this to be a satisfying answer, but this is the honest truth about the scope of my knowledge on this topic: I don’t know.

I think it boils down to this: For any particular application and for any given individual, if you want to know if some coil placement strategy, protocol, intensity works better or not, it pretty much comes down to trial-and-error. I generally start with lower intensity for shorter durations and work upward, rather than the other way around.