Кристалдық ем: тарих, әдістер және ғылыми негіздерінің жоқтығы

Aternative medicine technique

Crystal healing is a pseudoscientific alternative medicine practice that uses semiprecious stones and crystals such as quartz, agate, amethyst or opal. Adherents of the practice claim that these have healing powers, but there is no scientific basis for this claim. Practitioners of crystal healing believe they can boost low energy, prevent bad energy, release blocked energy, and transform a body's aura. In one method, the practitioner places crystals on different parts of the body, often corresponding to chakras; or else the practitioner places crystals around the body in an attempt to construct an energy grid, which is purported to surround the client with healing energy. Scientific investigations have found no evidence that such "energy grids" actually exist, and there is no evidence that crystal healing has any greater effect upon the body than any other placebo. Where the practice is popular, it fosters commercial demand for crystals, which can result in environmental damage and exploitative child labor to mine the crystals.

In Plato's account of Atlantis, crystal healing is also mentioned. According to Plato, the Atlanteans used crystals to read minds and transmit thoughts. The Sumerians purportedly used crystals in their magical formulas 6000 years ago. Ancient Egyptians mined for crystals and used them to make jewelry. Crystals or gemstones were also used in practice, for their metaphysical properties. Specifically, they used crystals as aids for health and protection. They often would bury a lapis lazuli scarab with their deceased, with the belief that it would protect them in the afterlife. Additionally, in Ancient Egypt amulets were used to ensure the well being of the individual. The amulet's shape, decoration, inscription, color, material, or ritual performed with the amulet dictated its power. The Ancient Greeks believed that clear quartz crystals were a water that had frozen to the point where it would remain in its solid form. The word "amethyst" in Ancient Greek language means "not intoxicate." Amethyst was worn as an amulet that they believed would aid hangovers or prevent intoxication. The Hopi Native Americans of Arizona use quartz crystals to assist in diagnosing illnesses. Both Pliny the Elder and Galen claimed that certain crystals had medicinal properties. In Europe, the belief in the healing powers of crystals (and in particular crystal amulets) persisted into the Middle Ages. The alleged medicinal properties of precious stones, as well as other powers they were believed to hold, were collected in texts known as lapidaries, which remained popular in Medieval and Early Modern Europe until the 17th century. Across cultures, different stones can symbolize or provide aide for different things. An example of this is rose quartz. In Egypt, it was believed rose quartz could prevent aging, but the Romans used rose quartz as a seal to signify ownership, while in the Middle Ages it was used in healing potions, today rose quartz is known as the "love stone" and is used to balance emotions, and heal anger and disappointment.

In the English speaking world, crystal healing is heavily associated with the New Age spiritual movement: "the middle class New Age healing activity par excellence". that is dependent on extreme personalization and creative expression. Practitioners of crystal healing purport that certain physical properties such as shape, color, and markings, determine the ailments that a stone can heal; lists of such links are published in commonly distributed texts. India, China, Brazil, and Madagascar are the main producers of crystals. Alleged successes of crystal healing can be attributed to the placebo effect. In 1999, researchers French and Williams conducted a study to investigate the power of crystals compared with a placebo. Eighty volunteers were asked to meditate with either a quartz crystal, or a placebo stone which was indistinguishable from quartz. Many of the participants reported feeling typical "crystal effects"; however, this was irrespective of whether the crystals were real or placebo. In 2001 Christopher French, head of the anomalistic psychology research unit at the University of London and colleagues from Goldsmiths College outlined their study of crystal healing at the British Psychological Society Centenary Annual Conference, concluding: "There is no evidence that crystal healing works over and above a placebo effect." Crystal healing techniques are also practiced on animals, although some veterinary organizations, such as the British Veterinary Association, have warned that these methods are not scientifically proven and state that people should seek the advice of a vet before using alternative techniques. Crystal healing proponents and 5G conspiracy theorists have falsely alleged the pseudoscientific and misinformational belief that shungite may absorb 5G radiation.