Therapeutic Touch

Description 

Therapeutic Touch (TT) is based on the belief that “energy fields” (also known as chi, qi, ki or prana) surround and penetrate the human body. Therapeutic touch practitioners are taught that disease or disorder can be detected in the energy system and affected therapeutically by smoothing or relieving congested energy (Pierce 2007). Energy or biofield practices are often considered controversial as they do not fit conceptually within scientific thinking.

Please also see our CAM-Cancer summaries on Qigong and Reiki.

Background

TT was developed by American nurse Dr Dolores Krieger, Professor of Nursing at New York University and healer Dora Kunz in the 1970s as a procedure for the assessment and treatment of the human biofield. Krieger and Kunz based their theory of TT on the assertions of nurse theorist Martha Rogers. Rogers claimed that humans are surrounded by energy fields that extend from the skin’s surface (Jackson 2008). The training was initially developed for nurses, but training is now also open to other health professionals.

It has been estimated that 200,000 individuals have been trained to practise TT since the 1970s, about 60% of whom are nurses. It is not known how many nurses are currently practising TT (Pierce 2007) and the exact prevalence of the use of TT for cancer patients is also unknown.

Components 

TT practitioners are trained to work with the alleged energy fields to facilitate healing and relaxation. Usually healers conceive energy as something they receive, or channel, from an external universal energy source and transfer through their hands to the patients.

Alleged indication 

It has been proposed that TT can be effective in decreasing anxiety, decreasing stress, evoking a relaxation response, decreasing pain and promoting wound healing. (TTIA 2024a). People with cancer who receive TT report that it helps them manage physical and emotional symptoms including pain and fatigue (Cadet 2022) and have described it as a fulfilling and multidimensional experience that facilitated personal growth (Kelly 2004).

Application and dosage

TT is an individualised intervention guided by clues gained from assessing an individual’s alleged energy field (Coakley 2012). A TT session typically involves three phases. The initial phase involves a process whereby the practitioner adopts a meditative quiet state. The second phase is an assessment phase where the practitioner uses their hands to sense areas around the body that feel imbalanced.

The practitioner then uses slow, symmetric movements of his/her hands over the energy field with the goal of ‘smoothing out’ or relieving energy congestion. Finally, the practitioner evaluates the session. An intervention usually lasts between 10 and 20 minutes (Coakley 2012). Several sessions may be recommended.

Mechanisms of action 

The underlying assumption of TT is based on the belief that energy fields (also known as chi, qi, ki or prana) surround and penetrate the human body and that when a person is ill or stressed the usual balanced flow of energy is interrupted and can become congested. This energy field is considered to extend a few inches beyond the skin’s surface (Coakley 2012). Energy healers have different beliefs about how and why the assumed energy healing works (Agdal 2011), with some suggestion it is a belief-based intervention (Garrett 2021).

An in-vitro study of TT was shown to significantly increase human osteoblast DNA synthesis, differentiation and mineralisation and decrease the differentiation and mineralisation in a human osteosarcoma-derived cell (Jhaveri 2008). Biofield practices are often considered controversial as they do not fit conceptually within scientific thinking.

Legal issues 

The Therapeutic Touch International Association offers a credentialing programme in the US (TTIA 2024b). Therapeutic touch practitioners are not regulated healthcare professionals in most countries.