Have you heard about Power Balance wristbands?
According to the Power Balance™ website, the bracelets contain a thin polyester film hologram, which reacts differently for each person. The thin polyester film hologram is programmed through a proprietary process, which is designed to mimic Eastern philosophies that have been around for hundreds of years.
Recently, The American Council on Exercise (ACE) worked with exercise scientists at the University of Wisconsin to conduct a study testing Power Balance’s claims. John Porcari, Ph.D. and Rachel Hazuga, M.S., a researcher from the University of Wisconsin, led the study.
There were 42 college-aged volunteers, roughly half men and half women, all of who were NCAA Division III athletes that participated in the study.
According to a release from ACE, each subject completed two trials of four tests: trunk flexibility, balance, strength and vertical jump. The first three tests mimic the tests used on the Power Balance website to demonstrate the efficacy of their performance jewelry. A vertical jump test was added to gauge lower-body power. The tests were presented in the same order for all subjects, without a warm-up, and subjects were required to not have exercised prior to testing on the day of the study.
For one trial, subjects wore a Power Balance™ bracelet ($30) and for the other trial they wore a placebo ($0.30 rubber bracelet). Neither the subjects nor the examiners knew which bracelet was being worn for which trial. Half of the subjects wore the Power Balance bracelet for their first trial while the other half wore the placebo bracelet for the first trial.
The results of the trials showed that there wasn’t any significant difference between the Power Balance™ bracelet and the placebo trial.
“Invariably,” explained Porcari. “The subjects always did better on the second trial, and it didn’t matter which bracelet they were wearing.” He attributed these results to what he calls the “order effect,” as in, the order in which the trials were administered.
To explain the supposed effects of the bracelets the researchers attribute the improvements in the second trials to the fact that the subjects were either more warmed up or habituated to the task.
However, what about all the personal testimonies? It’s the placebo effect. “The power of the human mind to believe something works,” said Porcari. “If they think it’s going to work, it’s going to work to some extent.”
When Power Balance was approached about ACE’s findings, the company simply released a statement saying: “Power Balance has lived and thrived in the ultimate testing environment, the real world.”
To read the full study from ACE go here: http://www.acefitness.org/certifiednewsarticle/1261/power-balance-or-power-of-persuasion/
