magic ionizing foot bath to remove toxins

[miss djax]

hi,

this weekend i went to some festival thingie with the parents and friends of their who happened to be in town.

there was a booth of people giving footbaths for about 15 bucks. evidently some ionic thing was happening that removed all of the toxins from your body. and as it worked it turned the water this nasty murky brown thick gloopy stuff. eeewwwwwww

so i know enough to think 'bullshit' off the bat, but wtf? what was changing all of the water into gross nasti-ness? evidently that was supposed to be the 'toxins' pulled out of your body.

the device looked like some made for home use footbath jacuzzi. it was lined with a white trashbag.

ideas??

[Matty]

i have no idea what the stuff was, but what it wasnt was toxins from your body, :)

this is probably the new version of the manifestation of ectoplasm that the victorians used to dig at seances

[miss djax]

here's a link to the product...eeeww sludgey water..

http://www.ionicfootbath.com/

[Anne]

waiting for link...

[David B]

Just been having a quick google around this, and can't answer your question yet.

However there is something I think quite telling here

http://www.footbaths.co.uk/good.html

As with any alternative therapy, footbaths are only for healthy individuals :irony:

David

[miss djax]

that's ridiculous. viva quackery....

let me know what you find..that sludgey stuff was NASTY and my parents friends were all excited about how it got rid of toxins...more like got rid of 20 bucks ;)

[David B]

Here is an other site offering the same sort of thing.

http://www.doctorajadams.com/detoxfootspa.html

Words fail!

David

[miss djax]

Here is an other site offering the same sort of thing.

http://www.doctorajadams.com/detoxfootspa.html

Words fail!

David

holy shit!! the 'practioner' model is $1595!!

[David B]

What we need, I think, is someone with enough chemical savvy (I am not that person) to tell us what would be seen in the water if a current was run through a mixture of tap water and sea salt from the electrodes cited in some of the sites even if there are no feet in it.

If no-one shows up here to do it in a couple of days, I might ask at FR and TR. I'm not a member of the Randi forum, but that might be a good place to ask, too, if there is anyone here is a member, and is prepared to ask on our behalf, preferably with a link to this thread.

David

[ofro]

Methinks you folks are just envious that you didn't think of it first.

[Garnet]

Did y'all catch the disclaimer on the front page of the link? They say that due to the salt, the metal in the ionizer and the acidity or alkalnity of the water that the water will change color even when there are no feet in the bath.

So, who's the chemist in here? What can mix with salt and water and cause the water to turn brown?

[Christina]

You can get them as footpads too and they supposedly pull brown slime out of your feet. My guess was that something is sweat-activated in them that turns brown.

http://www.natures-secret.de/Info_Toxin_E.htm

http://www.lookgreat-loseweight-savemoney.com/foot-patches.html

ETA: The second link describes what they supposedly contain.

Foot pads are based on ancient Asian cultural medicine. Each pad contains a combination of ingredients including: Tourmaline, a stone or mineral that emits negative ions; bamboo vinegar, which helps eliminate waste products, and wood vinegar, popular for its unique ability to help remove negative substances. Tourmaline is a mineral that creates negative ions in your body which promotes relaxation and has therapeutic effects on your body. Negative ions also stimulate acupuncture points on your feet to improve circulation and detoxification.

[David B]

You can get them as footpads too and they supposedly pull brown slime out of your feet. My guess was that something is sweat-activated in them that turns brown.

http://www.natures-secret.de/Info_Toxin_E.htm

http://www.lookgreat-loseweight-savemoney.com/foot-patches.html

I think that is something different, which came up in the dumbest alternative medicine thread.

David

[Anne]

But Watchdog took this idea to science expert Dr Ben Goldacre, who wasn't impressed. He said: "It has nothing to do with toxins. It's just basic chemistry - electrolysis. The water goes brown because metal electrodes are rusting in a salt water bath." So even if you don't put your feet in the water, it would still turn brown. Goldacre even demonstrated the process with some salt water, a car battery and a Barbie doll. Even Barbie turned the water brown.

from here:
http://www.spaindex.com/Articles/IonicScam.htm

[miss djax]

Did y'all catch the disclaimer on the front page of the link? They say that due to the salt, the metal in the ionizer and the acidity or alkalnity of the water that the water will change color even when there are no feet in the bath.

So, who's the chemist in here? What can mix with salt and water and cause the water to turn brown?

NO WAY - how did i miss that?

paging all chemists - re-asking garnet's question -

So, who's the chemist in here? What can mix with salt and water and cause the water to turn brown?

[Anne]

rust.

[miss djax]

that's disgusting..

eeewww

[nygreenguy]

One way to scam people is to diagnose and correct a nonexistent problem. Aqua Detox practitioners do this by claiming to remove toxins and balance cellular energy. During treatment sessions, the customer's feet are bathed for 30 minutes in salt water that is subjected to a low-voltage current transmitted through an electrode assembly called an "array" (the dark cylindrical object to which the wire is attached). Aqua Detox International claims that the apparatus "produces a frequency of positive and negative ions, which gently resonates through the body and stimulates all the cells within it. . . . rebalancing the cellular energy, enabling the cells to perform efficiently and . . . release any toxins that may have built up." [1] During the process, the water typically turns reddish brown. Some marketers refer to the process as "ionic cleansing" or an "ionic foot bath."

Another marketer (Mobile Beauty) further explains that "the system draws toxins out through the soles of the feet" and that the "water changes color due to the release of toxic substances through the 2000 pores of the soles of the feet." It's treatment sessions typically cost £15 to £30. The company's Web site states that "You'll see the excreted toxins in the water. The water will change color and consistency—from orange, brown through to black." Yellow is said to come from the kidneys and bladder; orange/brown from the joints; green/dark brown to black from the liver, gall bladder and/or bowel; and white from the lymphatic system. Grease or fat particles may float on top of the water. According to the company, the process can be used to improve liver and kidney function; circulation; general metabolism; arthritis and joint pain; headaches; fatigue; irritability; menstrual pain; skin problems; mercury and heavy metal toxicity; food allergies, and poor digestion [2].

The above claims are nonsensical. Most of the listed conditions do not have a toxic basis. Positive and negative ions cannot "resonate" throughout the body in response to any such device. And the skin has no ability to excrete toxins. Real detoxification of foreign substances takes place in the liver, which modifies their chemical structure so they can be excreted by the kidneys which filter them from the blood into the urine.

The Aqua Detox is said to have been developed by "Dr." Mary Staggs based on "research" by Royal Rife [3]. Staggs, who is British, obtained two naturopathy degrees from a nonaccredited American correspondence school and appears to do most of her work in Spain [4]. Rife was an American inventor who, during the 1920s, claimed to have developed a powerful microscope that could detect living microbes by the color of auras emitted by their vibratory rates [5]. A survey by science journalist Ray Girvan has identified at least 19 other devices that are similar to the Aqua Detox [6]. Most of the devices sell for about £1,000.

Many skeptics suspected that the color change produced by the Aqua Detox was caused by rust (oxidized iron), rather than toxins. Ben Goldacre, who writes the "bad science" column for Guardian Unlimited (an online British newspaper), investigated by using a car battery to send current through two metal nails that he placed into a bowl of salt water. The water turned brown and developed some sludge on top. Then he sent a colleague to get "detoxed" and collect before-and-after water samples. Laboratory testing showed that in both cases, the change of water color was due to greatly increased iron content [7]. Thus it appears that (a) the color change is due mainly to the precipitation of rust created by corrosion of the electrodes, and (b) the water would change color regardless of whether or not a foot was placed in it.

The Guardian Unlimited article has had some impact on how the Aqua Detox and its imitators are marketed. Some marketers admit that the colors are due entirely to electrode conversion, and there is less emphasis on toxin removal and more emphasis on the "balancing" of "energy" that is not measurable with scientific instruments (and is therefore untestable.) But the bottom line is very simple. All such devices should be considered medically worthless.
http://www.devicewatch.org/reports/aquadetox.shtml


http://quackwatch.org/ is generally a good site!

[Garnet]

Mystery solved.

[MrFungus420]

You can get them as footpads too and they supposedly pull brown slime out of your feet. My guess was that something is sweat-activated in them that turns brown.

http://www.natures-secret.de/Info_Toxin_E.htm

http://www.lookgreat-loseweight-savemoney.com/foot-patches.html

ETA: The second link describes what they supposedly contain.

Foot pads are based on ancient Asian cultural medicine. Each pad contains a combination of ingredients including: Tourmaline, a stone or mineral that emits negative ions; bamboo vinegar, which helps eliminate waste products, and wood vinegar, popular for its unique ability to help remove negative substances. Tourmaline is a mineral that creates negative ions in your body which promotes relaxation and has therapeutic effects on your body. Negative ions also stimulate acupuncture points on your feet to improve circulation and detoxification.

With pads, it is most likely the wood vinegar.

When processed and dried, wood vinegar is clear or white crystals. When it absorbs moisture, it reverts to it's natural dark brown colour.

[dancer_rnb]

One of these days I'm going to create a machine that ionizes things in peoples'
bodies. Then I'll take over the world! :evil:

[miss djax]

thanks for the quackwatch remind :)

[David B]

I searched Quackwatch yesterday, and found nothing. Perhaps I was using the wrong search terms.

David

[Matty]

i fucking love quackwatch. Great site.

My guess was going to be bromine in there somewhere, but rust is even more obvious i guess.

[Ray Moscow]

Sorry I missed this.

I think Ben Goldacre nailed it already, in Anne's link.

These guys will sell anything -- and people will buy it.

[BWE]

http://www.ajscandles.com/

[Berthold]

rust.
Some time ago I had a look at such a thing (it was an electrode in some such context; not sure if it was that gimmick). The iron was alloyed with nickel and chromium. Not quite the stuff you would want as a bath salt. :p

[Athier than you]

My ex-gf got some of those so I agreed to give them a try overnight. When I pulled them off they were pretty nasty but I assumed anything stuck to my feet is going to be pretty gross after a few hours. I can definitely see how gullible folks could be excited by the results.

You can get them as footpads too and they supposedly pull brown slime out of your feet. My guess was that something is sweat-activated in them that turns brown.

http://www.natures-secret.de/Info_Toxin_E.htm

http://www.lookgreat-loseweight-savemoney.com/foot-patches.html

ETA: The second link describes what they supposedly contain.

Foot pads are based on ancient Asian cultural medicine. Each pad contains a combination of ingredients including: Tourmaline, a stone or mineral that emits negative ions; bamboo vinegar, which helps eliminate waste products, and wood vinegar, popular for its unique ability to help remove negative substances. Tourmaline is a mineral that creates negative ions in your body which promotes relaxation and has therapeutic effects on your body. Negative ions also stimulate acupuncture points on your feet to improve circulation and detoxification.

[Eudaimonist]

A ___ and his _____ are soon ______.


eudaimonia,

Mark

[Ray Moscow]

I know certain friends and family members are going to sing its praises when I next visit the US.