Applied Kinesiology
This page was last updated on 14th June 2010.
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Applied Kinesiology: Muscle-Testing for 'Allergies' and 'Nutrient Deficiencies'Article by Stephen Barrett, M.D. (Chirobase) Applied Kinesiology — How it's doneA look at the tricks of Applied Kinesiology. The Skeptic Zone Podcast (12th May 2010) [9:59min video segment] Applied Kinesiology for non–NMS conditions“Applied Kinesiology (AK) is not established as clinically effective, is not professionally recognized, poses a health and safety risk through Substitution Harm and Labeling Effects, and is considered to be scientifically implausible.” American Speciality Health Clinical Guideline (Revised 27th October 2009) [pdf] Applied Kinesiology and Self Deception"Without putting to fine a point on it, AK is utter nonsense — as close as we get in CAM to pure magical thinking. It is based upon no legitimate biological, physiological, or medical principles or evidence." Steven Novella, MD, NeuroLogica (7th December 2007) Disentangling manual muscle testing and Applied Kinesiology: critique and reinterpretation of a literature review"When AK is disentangled from standard orthopedic muscle testing, the few studies evaluating unique AK procedures either refute or cannot support the validity of AK procedures as diagnostic tests. The evidence to date does not support the use of MMT for the diagnosis of organic disease or pre/subclinical conditions." Chiropractic and Osteopathy (23rd August 2007) Double-blind Study on Materials Testing with Applied KinesiologyThe working hypothesis of this study was the assumption that the reliability of Applied Kinesiology (AK) would not exceed random chance. The outcome confirmed the hypothesis. Clinical research report published in the Journal of Dental Research (October 2005) Another disappointing test of applied kinesiologyThe authors conclude that AK cannot be recommended for diagnosing nutritional intolerance. Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies [FACT] (June 2002) Applied Kinesiology"Applied kinesiology has been suggested for many conditions. But high quality research is limited, and applied kinesiology has not been shown to be effective for the diagnosis or treatment of any disease." Intelihealth (2002) Test-retest-reliability and validity of the Kinesiology muscle testCONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the use of Health Kinesiology as a diagnostic tool is not more useful than random guessing. This should at least be true in patients with insect venom allergy that are tested by examiners with average skills. Complementary Therapies in Medicine (September 2001) Applied KinesiologyArticle by William T. Jarvis, Ph.D., National Council Against Health Fraud (December 2000) An assessment of the reliability and validity of the kinesiological muscle test in patients allergic to wasp venomThe results suggested that its use as a diagnostic tool was no more useful than random guessing. German study reported in Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies [FACT] (2000) A review of the research papers published by the international College of Applied Kinesiology from 1981 to 1987"As none of the papers included adequate statistical analyses, no valid conclusions could be drawn concerning their report of findings." Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (May 1990) Kinesiology and food allergy"Our experience indicates that the kinesiology response is not reproducible under conditions of blind testing and therefore cannot be a reliable indicator of food allergy." J S Garrow, British Medical Journal (4th June 1988) [pdf] Applied kinesiology unreliable for assessing nutrient statusThe results of this study indicated that the use of applied kinesiology to evaluate nutrient status is no more useful than random guessing. Journal of the American Dietetic Association (June 1988) Applied Kinesiology: A waste of time and moneyApplied Kinesiology does not conform to known facts about the causes or treatment of disease. Controlled studies have found no difference between the results with test substances and with placebos. Differences from one test to another may be due to suggestibility, distraction, variations in the amount of force or leverage involved, and/or muscle fatigue. Applied Kinesiology"AK has been tested thoroughly, and has always been found useless." James Randi (An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural) What's the harm in Applied Kinesiology?Reports of people harmed by Applied Kinesiology. Applied Kinesiology"There is little doubt that the muscle movements detected by AK are unconsciously triggered (Hyman 1999), but there is scant evidence that they are triggered by amazing databases of truths. In short, AK practitioners are deluding themselves and mistaking ideomotor action for access to hidden truths." (The Skeptic's Dictionary) |