To understand the bigger context of this article, we need to first look at the multi billion dollar global pharmaceutical industry. This industry hit $1.3 trillion in sales in 2015. However, according to industry experts, the global pharmaceutical giants published a loss of around $17 billion from expired patents in 2016. (1) There are a number of reasons for this.
The concept of personalised, precision medicine, (2) acquisitions and collaborations with innovative biotech companies (1) is becoming apparent to maintain growth and gain a leading edge in treatment efficacy. Pharma giants are seemingly taking the initial steps in what is a veritable leap forward in health care.
One such investment comes from GSK as it funds research in to bioelectronics. In an R&D overview article by GSK, they state; ‘The functions and organ systems of our body are, to a significant extent, controlled by electrical signals that travel along the nerves. Bioelectronics medicines will aim to control biological processes and treat disease by modulating these electrical impulses.’ (3)
This step away from the solely biochemical approach to treating disease and controlling biological processes is a clear recognition of the fact that our physiology is indeed controlled by other mechanisms.
The Language of Cells
The effect of variation in the electric charges of cells on morphogenesis (the mechanism by which a cell knows how to assemble itself and differentiate in to a cell of specific function) is now, a well researched yet under appreciated topic in biology. The fascinating work of Dr Michael Levin (4) confirms that an intrinsic component of the language of all cells, not just neurons, is electrical. Researchers before Levin, such as Nordenstrom and Becker utilised the manipulation of electrical cellular interactions to cure incurable cancers (5) and regenerate limbs. (6)
What is clear from the work of these visionaries is that bioelectricity is far more than an energy source confined to the digital action of the nervous system – the electricity of our cells is a biological language.
The AMN calibrate system assesses and stimulates this biological language with therapeutic effect.
Electric Planet Electric Body
The surface of the earth is electrically conductive, possessing a continuously renewed and limitless supply of free electrons. It has a negative potential maintained by the global atmospheric electrical circuit. (7, 8). Historically, humans walked barefoot or with footwear made of animal skins. They would also sleep on the ground or on skins. Through this continuous ‘ground contact’, the earths free electrons enter the body and match the electric potential of the body with that of the earth, (9) which acts to stabilise the electrical fields of all organs, tissues and cells.
Recent research has shown that earthing reduces electric fields induced on the body (10), reduces overall stress levels and tension and creates a shift in autonomic nervous system (ANS) balance (11), and crucially has confirmed the ANS shift as sympathetic to parasympathetic activation. (12)
The extensive research in to the positive effects of earthing on health, by syncing the electrical charges of cells with that of the earth, indicates the direct correlation between the autonomic nervous system and bioelectrical charge. When charge is increased or out of balance, there is an increase in sympathetic activity; when reduced or normalised, parasympathetic activity increases.
AMN Calibrate System
The AMN Calibrate system utilises the simplest of assessments to uncover tissues and systems of increased charge in the body. When we touch another person, an exchange of electrical energy is produced (13). The lab of Rollin McCraty has measured this phenomenon by demonstrating the transfer of one person’s electrocardiogram (ECG) signal (the person touching) as clearly measurable in another’s signal averaged waveform (SAW) (13) through the application of light touch to the skin. Interestingly, when the sources hand (the person doing the touching) was placed in to a latex glove and insulated, the strength of the signal was reduced tenfold. (13) This indicates the bioelectrical interference created between people through touch.
The touch sequences taught in the extensive AMN calibrate system, such as the Neuro Skeletal screen, are not themselves therapeutic, rather the touch is utilised as an information gathering process. Via the feedback of a manual muscle test, we are able to identify tissues and systems within the body that hold increased charge. The indication being a relaxation response of the muscle test. Essentially, the touch of the source momentarily reduces the charge of the receiver causing a relaxation of the system.
Touch isn’t the therapy, but tapping is. Piezoelectricity is a form of magnetic energy naturally generated by the bones of the body in response to mechanical excitation or stress.
Bone and the main structural components of the extracellular matrix are piezoelectrically charged due to their ratio of collagen and apatite. (14, 15, 16). Human bones are made up of piezoelectric material thereby when we come under mechanical excitation, an AC voltage sets up and current starts flowing in all parts of the body (16).
Tapping on the body to elicit physiological change has been around for thousands of years and most likely originates in the practice of Qi Gong. For example, the Qi Gong exercise known as ‘Beating the Heavenly Drum’ involves covering the ears and tapping around the Occiput and C1. The authors of Chinese Medical Qigong state that, with regular practice:
‘moderate stimulus to the brain produced by beating the heavenly drum helps regulate the central nervous system and prevent dizziness, tinnitus, deafness, senile amnesia and dementia.’
It looks like the Chinese were on to something. AMN proposes that tapping on bones produces a parasympathetic effect that acts therapeutically to reduce the charge of tense tissues, (17) previously identified through ‘touch testing’, and it is with this process that we and our practitioners are helping thousands of clients from all over the world to get out of pain, move better and regain their health.
- Shruti Jain, Senior Analyst. Global Pharma Industry in 2016. 25 January 2016. http://www.thesmartcube.com/insights/trends/item/global-pharma-industry-in-2016
- Nicholas J. Schork. Personalised medicine: Time for one-person trials. 29 April 2015. http://www.nature.com/news/personalized-medicine-time-for-one-person-trials-1.17411
- Bioelectronics R&D Overview. www.gsk.com/en-gb/partnerships/bioelectronics-research-network/
- Bjorn Nordenstrom. Biologically Closed Electrical Circuits
- Robert O. Becker. The Body Electric
- Williams E, Heckman S. The local diurnal variation of cloud electrification and the global diurnal variation of negative charge on the Earth. Journal of Geophysical Research. 1993;98(3):5221–5234.
- Anisimov S, Mareev E, Bakastov S. On the generation and evolution of aeroelectric structures in the surface layer. Journal of Geophysical Research D. 1999;104(12):14359–14367
- Holiday D, Resnick R, Walker J. Fundamentals of Physics, Fourth Edition. New York, NY, USA: John Wiley & Sons; 1993.
- Applewhite R. The effectiveness of a conductive patch and a conductive bed pad in reducing induced human body voltage via the application of earth ground. European Biology and Bioelectromagnetics. 2005;1:23–40
- Chevalier G, Mori K, Oschman JL. The effect of Earthing (grounding) on human physiology. European Biology and Bioelectromagnetics. 2006;2(1):600–621
- Chevalier G. Changes in pulse rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygenation, perfusion index, skin conductance, and their variability induced during and after grounding human subjects for 40 minutes. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2010;16(1):1–7
- Rollin McCraty, Ph.D., Mike Atkinson, Dana Tomasino, B.A., and William A. Tiller, Ph.D. The Electricity of Touch: Detection and Measurement of Cardiac Energy Exchange Between People. https://www.heartmath.org/research/research-library/energetics/electricity-of-touch/
- Athensteadt; 1974
- Oschman, James L. 2008. Charge transfer in the living matrix. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies
- 16. Rani, Swati. Singh, Jegendra. Parida, Amitri and Rohini. 2014. Generation of piezoelectricity from the human body. Department of Electronic Engineering. KIIT University. Bhubaneswar, India
- David Fleming. AMN Academy Neuro Skeletal Course Manual. 2016