: The goal of the Center for Frontier Medicine in Biofield Science is to advance basic science and clinical research on biofield/energy healing therapies through rigorously controlled, collaborative experiments and sophisticated training of new investigators. The research is focused on developing standardized bioassay (cellular biology), psychophysiological, and biophysical markers of biofield effects and applying these markers to outcome measures of recovery in surgical patients. The Center integrates the psychophysiological and biophysical research of the Human Energy Systems Laboratory (Dr. Schwartz) with the bioassay research of the Institute for Frontier Science (Dr. Rubik. The overarching integrative hypothesis is that biofield therapies such as Therapeutic Touch, QiGong, and Johrei involve a common set of bioelectromagnetic and psychosocial mechanisms that together impact cellular functioning, reducing pain and increasing wound healing.
Specific aims of the Center are: (1) to conduct three exploratory projects with senior investigators who are (a) accomplished in physics, biophysics, cellular biology, psychophysiology, medicine, and surgery, and (b) skilled in interdisciplinary research, collaborating with a team of accomplished CAM (complementary and alternative medicine) practitioners in biofield therapies, (2) to create a nurturing integrative research infrastructure that combines methodological and statistical skills and services with research, education and training experiences for new as well as established investigators, (3) to establish an expanded base of collaborative research with scientists and clinicians (both conventional and CAM) locally, nationally, and worldwide - including other centers and laboratories in frontier medicine - and provide them with standardized bioassay and biophysical markers, and (4) to provide a credible resource for scientific information in biofield science through a dynamic website that not only provides information about research findings published, in press, and on-going, but also provides research training opportunities for distant learning through web-based video conferencing of actual ongoing experiments, experimental methods, and research seminars. Five collaborative Cores support the Center projects: Administrative, Methodology & Statistics, Biofield Practitioner, Bioassay, and Biophysics & Psychophysiology. The bioassay project focuses on the effects of therapeutic touch on growth and motility of bacterial cultures. The two psychophysiology and biophysics projects focus on Johrei and Qigong, one applied to recovery from surgery (Dr. Hamilton). Cross-site replication is built into the projects. The research experience of the senior investigators, combined with the carefully constructed collaborative research designs, should insure that the findings will be published in mainstream journals and that successful RO1's and R21's will be generated by new as well as experienced investigators.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Center for Complementary & Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)
Type
Exploratory Grants (P20)
Project #
5P20AT000774-02
Application #
6658211
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZAT1-G (04))
Program Officer
Wong, Shan S
Project Start
2002-09-15
Project End
2005-04-30
Budget Start
2003-05-01
Budget End
2004-04-30
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2003
Total Cost
$685,537
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Arizona
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
806345617
City
Tucson
State
AZ
Country
United States
Zip Code
85721
Sugarman, Jeremy (2015) Is Shared Decision Making an Appropriate Analytic Frame for Research on Medical Practices? Am J Bioeth 15:18-20
Campesino, Maureen; Belyea, Michael; Schwartz, Gary (2009) Spirituality and Cultural Identification Among Latino and Non-Latino College Students. Hisp Health Care Int 7:72
Baldwin, Ann Linda; Wagers, Christina; Schwartz, Gary E (2008) Reiki improves heart rate homeostasis in laboratory rats. J Altern Complement Med 14:417-22
Campesino, Maureen; Schwartz, Gary E (2006) Spirituality among Latinas/os: implications of culture in conceptualization and measurement. ANS Adv Nurs Sci 29:69-81
Baldwin, Ann L; Schwartz, Gary E (2006) Personal interaction with a Reiki practitioner decreases noise-induced microvascular damage in an animal model. J Altern Complement Med 12:15-22
Brooks, Audrey J; Schwartz, Gary E; Reece, Katie et al. (2006) The effect of Johrei healing on substance abuse recovery: a pilot study. J Altern Complement Med 12:625-31
Rubik, Beverly; Brooks, Audrey J; Schwartz, Gary E (2006) In vitro effect of Reiki treatment on bacterial cultures: Role of experimental context and practitioner well-being. J Altern Complement Med 12:7-13
Schwartz, Gary E; Schloss, Ernest P (2006) World hypotheses and the evolution of integrative medicine: combining categorical diagnoses and cause-effect interventions with whole systems research and nonvisualizable (seemingly ""impossible"") healing. Explore (NY) 2:509-14
Burleson, Katharine O; Schwartz, Gary E (2005) Cardiac torsion and electromagnetic fields: the cardiac bioinformation hypothesis. Med Hypotheses 64:1109-16
Creath, Katherine; Schwartz, Gary E (2005) The dynamics of life: imaging changing patterns of air surrounding material and biological systems with dynamic interferometry. J Altern Complement Med 11:233-5

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