Detoxification foot pads

Detoxification foot pads are adhesive foot pads or patches that manufacturers claim can dramatically improve health when placed under the feet during sleep. Some of these pads may contain ingredients such as "distilled bamboo vinegar" that allegedly pull toxins from the body, but critics have shown that the process is not scientifically viable.[1][2]

On January 3, 2008, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released an urgent warning[3] regarding the potential dangers of many imported pharmaceutical substances including several brands of detox foot patches. In April 2008, in response to questions from the Associated Press, an FDA spokeswoman said regarding the agency's investigation of the claims made for Kinoki foot pads that "basically, when we open up a case it means that the violation might be in terms of the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act, such as when (product makers) make false, misleading claims."[4]

In August 2008, National Public Radio commissioned a laboratory test to look for heavy metals in used pads, which Kinoki claims are extracted from the body. The test found none. NPR also discovered that the pads change from white to grey when they are exposed to moisture, including sweat, and not necessarily because they are absorbing other substances.[5]

The Japanese company Kenrico claim that their pads have a positive effect on the health of the users,[6] and that they remove heavy metals from the body,[7] but experts at Quackwatch have pointed out that Kenrico's foot pads are unlikely to work, since the skin is not semi-permeable and is not able to conduct substances out of the body, and also because the skin is not part of the detoxification process, hence no toxins can be removed through the skin.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Can Kinoki Detox Foot Pads Save Your Sole?". 2008-01-10.
  2. ↑ Ridding Yourself of Toxins, or Money?, ABC News 11 April 2008, retrieved 17 July 2014
  3. ↑ FDA warning, January 3, 2008
  4. ↑ FDA launches Kinoki Foot Pad inquiry, Associated Press, 14 April 2008, retrieved 16 July 2014
  5. ↑ Japanese Foot Pad Is Latest Health Fad by Sarah Varney. NPR, All Things Considered, 18 August 2008.
  6. ↑ "Phase 4 Clinical Study of TRMX-3 ® in Boosting Mental & Physical Health". Kenrico Research & Peer Review Studies. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  7. ↑ "Heavy Metals Research (January 18th, 2005)". Kenrico Research & Peer Review Studies. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  8. ↑ Barrett, Stephen. "Sap Sheets: A Device for Saps". Quackwatch.
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