Healing Crystals: Facts on Gemstone Treatments that are Crystals Healing Stone-Cold

Healing crystal is a form of complementary medicine in which crystals and other stones are used to treat illnesses and prevent disease. Crystals, according to proponents of this method, serve as healing conduits, allowing positive, healing energy to flow into the body while negative, disease-causing energy flows out.

Despite its recent success, most medical doctors and scientists dismiss healing crystal as a pseudoscience. Healing crystal has never been shown to be the product of a so-called energy flow in the body, so there is no scientific proof that it can be used to cure diseases. Furthermore, no experimental experiments have shown that the chemical composition or color of crystals and gems can be used to treat a specific ailment.

Healing crystals are still common in health spas and New Age health clinics, and are often integrated into massage and Reiki treatments. In such situations, the use of crystals can aid in relaxation, but this effect is also unsupported by scientific evidence.

It's expected to work this way.

Proponents of healing crystal claim that crystals and gemstones have healing properties. Many websites promoting healing crystal claim that it has a long history, dating back at least 6,000 years to the period of Mesopotamia's ancient Sumerians. On such places, ancient Egyptians are often listed as being among the first people to wear crystals, such as lapis lazuli, carnelian, and turquoise, to ward off sickness and negative energy.

However, modern healing crystal philosophy is based on traditional Asian principles, especially the Chinese concept of life-energy (chi or qi) and the Hindu or Buddhist concept of chakras, which are vortices of this life-energy that are said to bind the physical and supernatural elements of the body.

Stones are given different properties in healing crystal, and healers have different ideas about which stones have which properties. Some people claim that amethyst is good for the intestines, green aventurine is good for the heart, and yellow topaz is good for mental clarity. Seven chakra points on the body are aligned with the colors red and violet.

A crystal healer may position stones or crystals healing on the body associated with these chakra points during a treatment session, roughly in the areas above the head, on the forehead, on the neck, on the chest, on the stomach, on the gut, and on the genital area. The stones used and their placement can be determined by the patient's symptoms. Much of this is motivated by the healer's understanding and belief in the chakra theory of illness and energy imbalances, which is often ignored by Western medicine practitioners.

According to Crystal Vaults, a company that sells such crystals, which it refers to as "talismans" or "amulets," healing crystal often includes the use of crystals and stones worn on the body or put under pillows to ward off illness, shed harmful energy, or absorb positive energy.

How it operates crystals in practice

Although there are no clinical studies on the effectiveness of healing crystals, one study indicates that a patient receiving this form of treatment may experience a placebo effect. According to Christopher French, head of the anomalistic psychology research unit at the University of London, placebo effects are side effects of a medication that are not caused by the treatment itself operating on the patient's illness.

In other words, a person may feel better after receiving healing crystal care, but there is no scientific evidence that this improvement is due to the crystals used during the procedure. French and his colleagues from Goldsmiths College at the University of London delivered a paper on the effectiveness of crystals at the British Psychological Society Centenary Annual Conference in Glasgow in 2001.

For the experiment, 80 people were asked to meditate for five minutes while holding a real quartz crystal or a fake crystal that they thought was real. Half of the participants were pre-programmed to note any impact the crystals may have on them before meditating, such as tingling in the body or warmth in the hand holding the crystal.

Participants were asked if they noticed any impact from the healing crystal session after they had finished meditating. The results reported by those who held fake crystals while meditating were no different than those reported by those who held real crystals during the analysis, according to the researchers.

Many participants in both groups recorded a warm sensation in their hands when holding the real or fake crystal, as well as an improved sense of overall well-being. Those who were primed to experience these effects showed greater effects than those who were not. The intensity of these results, however, was unrelated to whether the individual in question was holding a real or a fake crystal. Those who believed in the power of crystals (as calculated by a questionnaire) were twice as likely to report experiencing benefits from the crystal than those who did not.

French told Live Science, "There is no proof that healing crystal works above and beyond the placebo effect." "That is the sufficient criterion for evaluating any type of treatment. However, your attitude toward placebo effects will determine whether you consider healing crystal or any other type of [complementary and alternative medicine] to be completely useless."

Many types of medication, as French pointed out, are believed to have no beneficial effect other than a placebo effect. Although these therapies can make you feel better for a short time, there is no evidence that they can actually cure diseases or treat health problems. If you have a serious medical problem, you should see a licensed practitioner rather than an alternative healer, according to French.

Is crystal healing a healthy practice?

Crystal healers obtain certification after completing a course, which is often provided over the Internet by "natural medicine" colleges or clinics, many of which are not certified by any central organization. There are currently no state or federal laws that control or standardize crystal healing or the certification of crystal healers in particular. This form of alternative treatment can be classified as massage or bodywork therapy in some states. Crystal healers will be necessary to obtain a license in certain states in order to practice their profession.

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public service announcement

Massage therapists and holistic healers may take voluntary board certification tests administered by non-profit organizations like the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork (NCBTMB). NCTMB endorses schools and companies that provide alternative healer certification, but only if they meet the organization's requirements.

Some medical practitioners are open to healing crystal to a small extent, seeing it as a treatment that can help people relax, which is ultimately beneficial for stress management. Many looking for a crystal healer, on the other hand, should be wary of foregoing valid medical treatment for life-threatening illnesses.

Many parents often use Baltic amber necklaces for teething babies and toddlers, hoping that the amber can relieve the pain, close to how other gemstones are used to treat other illnesses. There is no clinical evidence that amber helps to relieve teething pain, according to Healthy Children. The amber allegedly acts in two ways: one, a pain-relieving drug (succinic acid) is released from the amber by the heat of the baby's skin and absorbed through the bloodstream through the skin; and two, the amber activates the thyroid gland to increase drooling and minimize inflammation in the face, mouth, stomach, and respiratory system.

According to John Snyder, a pediatrician who wrote an article about amber necklaces for the website Science-Based Medicine, there are many statements made about amber necklaces and how they can help with pain relief. Snyder's only arguments that seemed possible were that succinic acid is known to be present in Baltic amber, that certain molecules are absorbed through the skin, and that succinic acid is naturally present in the human body. The amount of succinic acid in the amber, on the other hand, is extremely small, and it is not released by body heat. Additionally, there is little or no proof that succinic acid has a therapeutic impact.

Alexandra Hudson, Kim Blake, and Robyn McLaughlin wrote a letter to the editor in the Journal of Pediatrics and Child Health in 2016 that discussed how the risks of amber necklaces outweigh the very slim potential for profit. Strangulation and choking are the main problems with the necklaces, and there have been some confirmed incidents. The authors point out that the Canadian Pediatric Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics also advise against wearing amber necklaces and that parents should be adequately taught about teething and amber healing.


Elizabeth Palermo can be found on Twitter as @techEpalermo. Live Science can be found on Twitter (@livescience), Facebook, and Google+.

Rachel Ross, a Live Science contributor, contributed additional reporting.

Additional information

• Visit the NCTMB's page on state massage therapist licensure standards for more detail on the laws and regulations regulating crystal healers in your state.

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Check out this post from The Atlantic for a more in-depth look at the debate about New Age medicine.

For those interested in learning more about the science behind alternative medical practices, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) is a good place to start.