Energy Armor Ionized Wristbands

[Jack21222]

Energy Armor "Ionized" Wristbands

This is clearly a scam; I just wanted to use this space to lay out their claims.

At the Maryland State Fair, Energy Armor has half a dozen or so booths this year. I decided to speak to one of their sales reps to see how they would claim it worked.

The Energy Armor bracelet is a silicone band "infused with volcanic ash" which has "negative ions" in it. The whole product seems built around this idea of "negative ions." The claims on the site and the claims of the sales rep diverged a bit, so I'll mention each.

The website carefully avoids claiming that the bracelet will do anything. The website mentions all sorts of benefits of "negative ions" and claims that the bracelet is infused with these ions, but stops short of saying that the bracelet will have benefits.

The website claims that negative ions boosts blood flow to the brain, are involved in biochemical reactions that increase levels are serotonin, and improve the performance of athletes. Strictly speaking, some of these claims might be true... surely there are some polyatomic ions involved in biochemical reactions. What is unclear is how putting some ions on the surface of your skin has to do with biochemical reactions in your brain.

Elsewhere in the website the following is listed:

Ions carry a positive or negative electrical charge. Negative Ions are created all of the time in nature. When a bolt of lightning slices through the air or a wave crashes on the shore, it creates Negative Ions. Volcanoes and waterfalls create Negative Ions as well. As the water is falling, it loses an electron, creating that fresh air smell filled with Negative Ions. Negative Ions have been helping mankind feel better since the beginning of time!

Here, the website seems to be saying that losing an electron makes a molecule a negative ion, rather than gaining an electron. I'm also not certain that it's common for water molecules to become ionized in a falling raindrop, and I don't think negative ions are responsible for a fresh air smell. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong on this point.

Now, the claims by the sales rep I spoke to were different. The rep went a step further than the website and actually stated that the bracelet will improve my energy and help relieve pain due to the presence of these negative ions. The pain relief claim is not advertised anywhere on the website. She then claimed that the negative ions are needed to counteract positive ions that come off of things plugged into the wall. She said something about things being plugged into the wall have a "frequency" and that causes "positive ions." I tried to explain to her about electromagnetic radiation, and how these radio waves and microwaves are not ionizing, but she just responded with "well, not everybody knows that." Which to me is another way of saying "I was just making stuff up, hoping you wouldn't know the difference."

And then she tried doing a test on me which I've seen before. A test which I've DONE before. It's little more than a basic magic trick.

She told me to put my right arm out to my side, and to try to resist her pushing my arm down. I was able to resist. I was then instructed to pull my cell phone out and put it over my heart, then repeat the experiment. She was able to push my arm down. The trick is to push in a slightly different direction and slightly harder to force the arm down. She then wanted to repeat the experiment with the band on my wrist, but I refused since I knew the trick and saw where it was going.

I've sent a complaint to the FTC about their potentially misleading marketing. This is just a rehash of the q-ray bracelets (http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2008/01/qray.shtm).

In the meantime, please let your friends and family members avoid this scam.

 

[FlexGunship]

Here, the website seems to be saying that losing an electron makes a molecule a negative ion, rather than gaining an electron. I'm also not certain that it's common for water molecules to become ionized in a falling raindrop, and I don't think negative ions are responsible for a fresh air smell. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong on this point.

Maybe we can pick it apart one piece at a time.

I believe the "smell" they are referring to is ozone. The mention of a "lightning slice" leads me to this conclusion. This doesn't specifically speak to "ionization." Ozone is a polar molecule if I remember correctly, but it's not an "ion" itself.

The confusion about the term "negative ion" seems large here. They should really use the terms "cation" or "anion." Is a "negative ion" short an electron? We would usually think of that as a cation (positively charged).