Effectiveness of Distant/Remote Blessing Treatment on Cognitive-motor Function: A Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Trial

Abstract

Background: Biofield therapies can be administered in person (hands-on treatment) or remotely, and this study focuses on the latter. A literature review did not find any reports on the effectiveness of remote biofield energy /blessing therapy in enhancing cognition and motor function performance in adults.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of distant/remote blessing (biofield energy) therapy on the cognitive and motor functions in adults with self-reported neuropsychological impairments using NIH Toolbox^®.

Methods: The present study was a randomized, double-blind clinical trial involving 117 participants with self-reported neuropsychological impairments. These participants were stratified into three distinct groups: control, sham control, and blessing/biofield treatment as the intervention. At baseline (day 0), day 90, and day 180, NIH Toolbox^® was employed to evaluate all participants' cognitive and motor function scores.

Results: In the blessing treatment group, language function score (p <0.01), working memory (p <0.0001), and episodic memory (p <0.0001) scores exhibited statistically significant differences compared to both the naïve control and sham control groups. Moreover, in the blessing intervention group, a substantial improvement was observed in locomotion (p <0.0001), standing balance (p <0.01), dexterity (p <0.01), grip strength (p <0.05), and muscle endurance (p <0.05) compared to the naïve control and sham control groups. Importantly, no adverse effects were reported during the study period.

Conclusion: The study outcomes revealed that distant/remote blessing/biofield energy therapy is safe, non-invasive, and less expensive. It enhances cognitive-motor functions in adults with perceived neuropsychological impairments.

Clinical trial registration: CTRI/2022/07/043736.

Keywords: Biofield Energy Therapy; Cognitive-motor function; NIH Toolbox®; Neuropsychological impairments; Randomized clinical trial.

Figure 1.. Schematic diagram of study design.

Figure 2.. The CONSORT (consolidated standards of reporting trial) flowchart representation of study subject disposition.

Figure 3.. The NIH Toolbox^® (NIH-TB) mean raw scores (prior correction from baseline, CFB) of cognitive and motor parameters were measured after treatment with distant/remote blessing at day 90 and day 180.

Cognition function measures are shown as (A) Language, (B) Processing speed, (C) Working memory, (D) Episodic memory, (E) Executive function, and (F) Attention. Moreover, motor domain measures are represented as (G) Locomotion, (H) Standing balance, (I) Dexterity, and (J) Endurance. Day 0 considered as the baseline. Statistical significance p-value was calculated for between comparison using one-way Repeated Measure Analysis of Variance (RM-ANOVA) and for post-hoc analysis was performed by Tukey’s test. *p <0.05, **p <0.01, and ***p <0.001 shows statistical significance vs. control group; #p <0.05, ##p <0.01, and ###p <0.001 shows statistical significance vs. sham control group.