'Crystal Healing' is also believed to help absorb, diffuse and focus energy into the body. When the gem or stone is placed within a person's 'aura', it can change the mental and physical outlook of the wearer.

But Kaptchuk’s research on placebo suggests that its therapeutic actions can be both “genuine” and “robust.” While he hasn’t studied crystals-and will not comment on their legitimacy or anything to do with alternative medicine-Kaptchuk has written that a therapy’s built-in placebo effect can be considered a distinct aspect of its efficacy, and that placebo-induced benefits should be promoted, not dismissed. Believers in gemstone therapy feel that all gemstones carry certain vibrations and channel good energy. “I think that the public and medical community’s perception of the placebo is something that is bogus or fraudulent,” says Ted Kaptchuk, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. See the following water crystal photographs from Dr. And yes, it’s almost certainly accurate to say that crystals do not themselves possess any of the mystical health properties attributed to them by users.īut the human mind is a powerful thing, and it’s trickier to say flatly that crystals don’t work, if you define “work” as providing some benefit. His take is one you would expect from a scientist. “If people believe that a treatment will make them feel better, many of them do feel better after they have had the treatment, even if it is known to be therapeutically worthless,” says French. Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts.

Lots of research shows how powerful the placebo effect can be.

Study of gems and crystals