What is the biofield?
The biofield is an energy field generated by the body's complete electrical system, which includes both the electric current running through the body and the magnetic field surrounding it. The electrical system operates from the central and peripheral nervous systems, which move energy through centers and pathways traditionally called the seven chakras and twelve meridians (see diagram). The biofield surrounds the body and extends outward about eight feet. The biofield is not visible to the human eye, but can be felt through pressure or temperature changes.
"The biofield or biological field, a complex organizing energy field engaged in the generation, maintenance, and regulation of biological homeodynamics, is a useful concept that provides the rudiments of a scientific foundation for energy medicine and thereby advances the research and practice of it."
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(1) Rubik, B., Muehsam, D., Hammerschlag, R, and Jain, S. "Biofield Science and Healing: History, Terminology, and Concepts." Glob Adv Health Med. 2015 Nov; 4(Suppl): 8–14.
Once termed a “mysterious invisible force,” electromagnetic frequency has become commonplace in modern science. The body’s electrical system is detectable by scientific instruments such as MRIs and EKGs. We now understand that bioelectricity is required for the nervous system to send signals throughout the body and the brain, making it possible for us to think, feel and move.
Why is biofield health
important?
The biofield integrates the body’s systems and functions, connecting them with the external environment. The environment we live in can enhance or disrupt this field, and because we run on bioelectricity, the biofield is a highly sensitive component of our health and performance.
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Vital energy must flow freely through the body to maintain physical, mental, and emotional health, and disturbances in this flow can cause acute and chronic health conditions. Through a variety of energy techniques, therapies, and exercises, an energy advocate draws upon the available energy of our environment to open, balance, ground, revitalize, and magnify the client's biofield. In nurturing this crucial aspect of our well-being, we unlock the potential for a life filled with vitality and freedom.
Research on the efficacy of holistic healing methods has been growing in recent years and many forms of biofield therapy are now being used in hospitals and other health care settings to support conventional medical treatment. These healing modalities are attractive because they are non-invasive, economical, have little to no side effects, and don’t require people to “believe in them” for them to be effective. The result is a growing number of medical and energy medicine practitioners alike who consider biofield therapy to be the next major evolution in health and wellness.
Are these ideas new?
No, they are not. An increasing number of energy healers believe ancient concepts such as vital energy (also called qi or chi), auras, meridians, and chakras are broadly consistent with modern science and refer to the body’s ability to store, transmit, and use energy. Just like the biofield corresponds to the body’s electrical system, chi corresponds to its electric currents, the aura to the magnetic field surrounding it, the meridians to the energetic pathways of the central and peripheral nervous system, and the chakras to specific energy points that align with bundles of nerves, the endocrine system, and major organs.
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Despite these concepts having been around for centuries, Western medicine has not yet offered much in the way of scientific research on the biofield, favoring a focus on pharmaceuticals, surgeries, and other interventions that fit with the goals of the medical industrial complex. Energy work and other holistic wellness therapies have been firmly categorized by mainstream medicine as "complementary and alternative medicine." However, emerging research is showing what traditional cultures have known for ages: these methods endure because they work. Holistic care focused on prevention, restoration, and wellness has been shown to help people manage their own health more effectively.
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"The term biofield fills the need for a unifying concept to bridge traditional and contemporary explanatory models of energy medicine and provides a common language for aspects of both clinical practice and scientific research that focus on energy fields of the body."
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Rubik, B., Muehsam, D., Hammerschlag, R, and Jain, S. "Biofield Science and Healing: History, Terminology, and Concepts." Glob Adv Health Med. 2015 Nov; 4(Suppl): 8–14.
