If you have been reading the new lately, chance are you have probably stumbled across a story about the new fashion trend in baseball right now. The Phiten Titanium necklace. Apparently the trend started when after visiting Japan for exhibition games against the Japanese All Stars, Randy Johnson came back and spoke of positive energy that could be achieved by wearing this necklace.
Baseball players looking for any kind of advantage are flocking to these necklaces in droves. It’s current poster boy is none other than Josh Beckett. These illustrations show what the necklace is supposed to do for you:
As many of you know I am a chemist, hence the nickname chemgod. What you don’t know is that I am a metals chemist. One thing that I can assure you is that titanium (Ti), itself is not water soluble, it needs an ionic bond like fluoride (TiF) to become soluble. Although there are many uses for Ti, the two most common is it’s amazing strength to weight ratio (very tough and very light), and it’s corrosion resistance. Corrosion resistance is essentially how well it hows up to heat and water. Since it isn’t water soluble. It holds up very well.
So after that little chemistry lesson I am trying to figure out the claims of this necklace to give extra energy (which has not been proven to the FDA). Essentially, they are saying that air comes into contact with the necklace, is ionized (seperated into nitrogen and oxygen ions) through a Ti filter and your body uses those ions to gain energey.
That is a bunch of non sense. It’s like the sleeping on magnet bed theory. Or wearing a copper bracelet while playing golf. It’s all in the player’s head. Any energy he (or she) get’s while wearing it is all concocted in their mind. Although the necklaces are neat looking, to say they do what they do is preposterous. In order to prove me wrong they would have to stake their claims to the FDA, knowning those claims to be false, the instead, market it as essentially a novelty item. Unfortunately this goes on way too much in our society and unfortunately it’s the uneducated that get hurt. So I implore you to think before you reach for the miracle pill / necklace. If it hasn’t been approved by the FDA, then it’s probably too good to be true. Sorry Phiten.
I bought one of these this summer and have worn it since then, only taking it off to shower. Although I do have to agree with you – after all it is just a nylon necklace.
Regardless, the placebo effect works well. And it does look nice as well.
I completely disagree with everyone that says it does nothing. I got my first Phiten Titanium Necklace about a year and a half ago. I ran into Beckett in our home town Spring,TX and so I decided to ask him about all that colored yarn and string all tangled up around his neck apparently forming some powerful forcefield that made you pitch better. I laughed so hard a Josh so his hillbilly hobby hunter from Spring, Texas pull a darn rifle on me and said, put it on and throw me your fastest pitch after you’re warmed up. HA, warm up?! Yeah right. I couldn’t believe what happened on my first pitch. I pumped out a 103mph fastball and then hit 105 ten times in a row right after that. Josh then got pissed and took away his special Phiten power necklace with radioactive juices in it that increase your strength and all other athletic abilities secretly made by the company. Its basically similar to the stuff that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were exposed to. Josh just got jealous and I haven’t heard from him since. Maybe he should wrap a bunch of those bracelets and necklaces around his fingers to stop his yearly blister bonanza. He should share those performance enhanced products with his TEAM or should I say the DL All-Stars?
Put the crack pipe down bro…
Chemists unite!
I’m actually an analytical chemist (and I stole my blog name from a quantum mechanics course), but metals are cool too. I am usually skeptical of any of these nebulous claims, so it was nice to see it all broken down. I still think they look cool.
This crap has been around forever. My grandpa wore a bracelet with these claims for golf – he thought it worked until I told him it was a bunch of crap. Then he realized how well the placebo effect works.
I’ve seen these on some players and was wondering what they were. I don’t think baseball players are any smarter then the rest of us and regular people fall for this stuff all the time.
Well, now we know, and knowing is half the battle…
Its true, Phiten necklaces are just a scam.
At least these are reasonably priced unlike the Q-Ray bracelets are the golfers were wearing. But a scam is still a scam.
I myself have always been real skeptical when it comes to this type of magnetic therapys… but something needs to be said about all the people that believe in Phiten necklaces and Titanium Bracelets. Whether it works for real or in your head, lots of people believe the $20 Phiten Necklace is worth it.
Do they think it’s worth it? Or do they want to emulate major leaguers? I think it’s the latter. I don’t think they are buying it for it’s healing power. They are buying it for it’s look.
yea chemgod, i think that people definitely want to emulate MLB players with Phiten . But i look at it, pretty much the same as wearing a jersey.
i love the phiten necklace it works perfect it really gives u extra energy bost
You are VERY stupid!
OK, thanks!
i agree with wtf chad
they dont work
I’d like to have one of them. But, you didn’t mention their price… what is it then?
Phuck Phiten. Phake ass crap.
I get really bad back spasms from time to time. And honestly the phiten titanium discs work. I put them on as directed and the spasms were relieved. I am not bsing anyone right now, I am just saying they really did work on my back. My mom also has really bad feet problems from standing at work for 30+ years. She wears the bracelet around her ankle which has relieved a lot of pain and discomfort she used to have. I know a lot of people think this product is a gimmick, but I dont think you should knock it till you try it yourself.
I just bought one of these necklaces and it has taken away all my pain and given me lots of energy I never had. I’m a healer myself, reiki, and even I know the benefits of healing myself and others, I never got such a great effect as I have done with Phiten.
If I take it off, only for a few minutes, my body feels heavy and lethargic. I don’t see a problem with wearing it if it works for me. There are a lot of negative nancy’s gravitating towards this post, all eager to debunk a necklace. Those kinds of people need joy in their lives, but you won’t find it by rubbishing everything trying to make a positive change in the world.
It’s about as effective as a placebo. To were it as jewelry is one thing, but “healing nature”, unless it’s approved by the FDA it doesn’t work.
And you are going to put faith in the FDA? Good Luck there.
Kelly,
The fact that you claim to be a Reiki healer proves that you are willing to buy whatever ridiculous new age claim anyone packages in a pretty box.
I have a magic rock. It channels positive energy. Ions. Vibrations. Toxins. Energy. Vibrations etc. Wanna buy it?
Gee, that was outright wrong. Funny as hell, but wrong. Keep up the good work!
I’m curious how the body uses nitrogen and oxygen to make energy. Sure the body uses oxygen to create ATP, but the amount a necklace could produce would have zero effect on the overall oxygen concentration in the blood. These “ions” would most likely return to their normal molecular form before they reach the skin anyway. People really think the few ions produced by a necklace could really provide an energy and pain relieving boost???
I’m also curious how many of these posts from folks saying its wonderful have ever posted here before or even read this blog.
Well, I will admit, I know odds are, it will do no more good than the copper bracelet my father wore until the day he died, believing it helped him…
That said, after a dog-biten thumb has left me with some pretty rough side effects 8 weeks later (some minor nerve and joint damage causing times of uncontrollable tremors in the thumb), I’m going to try a bracelet – who knows… maybe a holistic approach might do something. It might be a placebo, but then again, I have seen some pretty interesting things that science doesn’t understand. – (I have learned, you shouldn’t trust people who peddle miracle cures, but you definitely don’t have to solely take the word of someone who’s thinks they are worthy of internet names like “chemGOD”)
chemgod was a nickname I had in college, I do not claim to know all chemistry but my area of focus is in metals analysis. I do understand the mechanism they claim works and I can tell you without a doubt what they claim doesn’t work. Now if for whatever reason there is some medical value to it, then fine, but the truth is, like the copper bracelet, there is no FDA evidence of any efficacy, so as long as there is no legal proof it does anything I will stick to my guns on this stance.
Steve, not to pick knits here but, this isn’t exactly a “holistic approach.” If you want that you’ll have to take into account every area of your physical body – food and drink, sleep, physical and mental exercise, etc. Holistic means “Whole Person,” not “New Age Medicine.”
My Nana has had back problems for over 30 years from a motorbike injury and has not been able to straighten up for at least 5 years, I have not seen her get out of bed for over 3 years. She takes very strong pain killers just to get through the day laying in bed.
My Mum bought the phiten tape and I laughed at this ‘placebo’ but thought anything is worth a try..
Well, I have never seen such an improvement in a short space of time. Within 30 minutes my Nana was up out of bed standing straight and tall and feeling good – the best she’s felt since she can remember! My Nana is a tough old bird and full skeptic of everything (she won’t even use an atm card!) but my mum didn’t explain what it was, she just said I’m going to stick this tape on your back and it worked! I am going to try it for myself now.
Too bad that you cannot accept that some people are benefitting from Phiten. Recently, a 70 year old lady was struggling to walk with a cane as the area around her knee was in pain. Just so happened to that I had the new disc tape. I told her not sure how it will help her, but try it. She called me to say that it really helped her and she had put the addtional discs that I left her on her daughter’s back. The joy on these two people really blessed me. As for me, I have used the necklace and the socks and I have reduced pain in my feet and walking much better in the short time I have used this. Another friend had a knee surgery and she healed much faster than they anticipated and did well in physical therapy, using the Phiten disc. And a friend who plays in a local baseball league, suffered an injury to his neck and sholder area. His sister purchased the necklace for him. He didn’t believe in it but since she purchased for him, he wore it. After a while he didn’t notice the pain anymore as it decreased a great deal.
Well, this is my contribution and though I don’t understand the scientific explanation you are giving, I will respect your opinion for you seem to know what you are talking about and hope you respect what I’ve said.
I am a fellow Phiten owner. I bought it not for the effects, but to see if it would actually work. Going in to my expierments (not based on science) I noticed absolutly NO CHANGE in how my body fealt. If my body was sore and beat up…it stayed just as sore and beat up as it would if I wasnt wearing the necklace. As others have said…its all in the mind. I know a lot of players who wear them that know they are a frod, im one of them. In baseball, wearing one is a mental advantage.
I have the phiten necklace.Being an avid golfer with various pains and itises(i.e. arthritis bursitis ect) I will try anything.Mind over matter works for me, so what is the harm!Here is my problem! The necklace seems to have a negative effect on me. I know this sounds impossible, but when I first noticed I wasn’t feeling right, I checked everything, even went to my doctor.I just happened to not wear the necklace one day and noticed I felt better. I have tried wearing it on and off and seem to feel better with it off! Go figure!!
Wow, people need to RESEARCH!!! First off, we have 3 layers of skin so why would anyone believe that something so “little” can penetrate them? How big and powerful is an MRI machine? How powerful are x-ray machines? And second, professional baseball players are GIVEN these for free so that moronic fans will see them wearing them and run out and buy them! It’s called advertising!
Do you own Nike, Levis, or Adidas. Welcome to the world of advertising. It is not a moron that likes to wear something that looks good and is something others can’t afford. That is America. I own one because I am 18 years old and it looks good. BTW: They aren’t GIVEN to baseball players, baseball players are PAID to wear them. Again, welcome to America. It is amazing the mental picture I get of some people just by reading their responses. The only result I have gotten from the necklace is the cutest girl at school digs it. That is enough for me.
Yeah and the FDA approved drugs that will kill you too! To put all your faith and beliefs in the FDA is simply stupid.
Who say’s they don’t work? If it is a placebo effect and your pain goes away then Phiten’s claim is true….right?
Even drugs that are approved by the FDA don’t work for everyone.
I agree there about the FDA(Federal Death Administration)…they are killing Americans with their toxic Pharmo Drugs!
All these so called “experts” need to give it try these things before they try to discredit them. Last year I was bed ridden with a terrible cold. My next door neighbor is a professional healer and he gave me a Phiten necklace. I started wearing one and was 100% back-to-normal health in less than a week! Needless to say. I continued to wear that necklace. And as a woman previously mentioned, whenever I take off the necklace now I get a weird sort of “exposed feeling” mostly concentrated in my neck area.
Ugh. Listen, there’s nothing wrong with it if it’s just a placebo effect… if it works for you then great. For the rest of us who ACTUALLY CARE about EXACTLY how these things work, the pseudoscience claims that Phiten makes are kind of aggravating. They shouldn’t make outlandish claims about “energy balance” and ions while leaving NO REAL PLAUSIBLE EXPLANATION as to how the effect actually improves… well… anything. I’m not going to say I’m versed in chemistry or biology but I have taken enough of both to recognize empty claims when I see them. People like me wouldn’t be so aggravated at products like this if they were marketed honestly. If it’s a placebo effect then whatever, but it’s still wrong to play on the ignorance of the average consumer… that’s why we’re here today discounting this. I remember the tachyon crystal necklaces… tachyons haven’t even been definitively discovered yet! Sometimes I’m ashamed to be American.
i have been playing football for ten years and before i started using phiten i had alot of back pains and now that i use phiten it clears it up right away and during practice and games i dont feel fatigue or anything so YES it does work!
AJ,
Hanging out in Atlanta lately? Weird with you playing for the Rams right now and your wife plays in Philadelphia.
I bought a bracelet for my neck pain. It wouldn’t fit around my neck, so I put it on my ankle. WOW!! In just 3 seconds, all my pain went away. And my son, who was in the next room, also miraculously sprung up from his wheelchair and started walking! And I didn’t even put it on him, I put it on my ankle! So I thought, “Wow, this is terrific! What else can it do?”
So I went outside. I saw a dead bird on our lawn (the neighbor’s cat likes to leave them there). I felt sorry for the bird, so I put the bracelet on it. Can you believe it? The bird sprang to life and started singing! The little bird then landed on my shoulder and whispered in my ear, “Thank you kind sir,” and stuffed the bracelet in my ear. And guess what! I could hear! I had been deaf in my right ear for the past 12 years, and my hearing returned! All because the bird stuffed a phiten bracelet in my ear!
Then I went into the garage. My car had been acting up for the past week. The mechanic said it looks like my alternator is going bad and isn’t charging the battery. But what does he know? He’s just a mechanic! Pfft!! So I dangled the phiten bracelet on the mirror. Guess what! The car fired up on its own and drove around the block 4 times! All by itself!! It also obeyed all the traffic laws! Wow!! All it needed was a phiten bracelet!
So then I had a brilliant idea. I opened up my checkbook. It said “BALANCE: -$39.40″ on the entry page. I put the bracelet in the checkbook. I closed it tightly in my hands, and then opened it up after a few seconds and it said “BALANCE: $9,501,388.29″!!! Wow! That was only after a few seconds! I had been poor all my life, and phiten made me a millionaire in a few seconds! I said to myself, “Maybe I should leave it in my checkbook overnight, then I’ll be like Bill freakin’ Gates in the morning!!”
Unfortunately, just at that moment, my precious phiten bracelet and checkbook slipped out of my hands and fell into the vat of snake oil I keep near the desk. They spontaneously burst into flames. Luckily I had a ShamWOW handy, so I quickly covered the flames and they went out. Darn, there go my millions. But hey, at least I have no more neck pain, my son can walk, there’s a singing bird in my back yard, my deafness is gone, and my car works. THANK YOU PHITEN!!!
BTW, if you believe any of this, I have some magic weight-loss beanbags for sale. They melt the pounds away! Just rub them on your scalp before you sleep. You also have to eat healthy, do 30 minutes of cardio every day, skip the sugary soft drinks, and always get 8 hours of sleep, and these magic beanbags will do the trick!
That was simply awesome!
Wow, agreed – that last post was right on the money! I went to the fair with my son, and saw the Power Balance Bracelets demo. A 400-pound guy couldn’t move me while I was holding the miraculous Balance Bracelet – and it was pretty convincing. I watched him do this a few more times to other people, who could just not believe the power and they quickly ponied up the $40.
That night, my son and I practiced the routine, and could reproduce the same results while holding a carrot. When I left the demo, I knew it was in my head, but I didn’t think it was just a matter of where he was pushing. I feel sorry for the people falling for this parlor trick. How could a tiny magnet like that actually give you power? Wouldn’t everyone be wearing one?
It’s is a contraction of “it is.”
Interesting fact – I picked up on of the necklaces for the hell of it – ’cause they look cool. I put it on and like the other guy, actually felt worse. So I’m thinking I’m getting the reverse placibo effect. I try again the next day at work when I’m not payin attention to it. It felt like something was definately happening – I felt light headed, was getting warm and actually felt my heart rate picking up. Not sure what this suggests but it was clear that I felt better when I took it off. Do with that as you will…
Yet another case of humans not aware of their full potential. The more people buy into these “benefits” the stronger the items power becomes. The more the brain believes that it has access to strengths the more it allows itself to shine. If the world believed that wearing a mesh sock on your head would give your better stamina we would see people getting results.
“Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, it is that we are powerful beyond imagination”.
i was at a shopping centre in Singapore and a phiten salesman did a demo on me. It was the most amazing thing. First he asked me to lift this 4 litre container with 2 fingers. I couldn’t. Then he put a phiten bracelet on me and asked me to lift it again with the 2 fingers. Amazingly I could lift it. Has anyone any explanation for this? I have seen something similarly amazing before when a kinesiologist did muscle testing on me. I was wondering if there is a trick to what the salesman did with me. The salesman also tried another test with me but it wasn’t as amazing because it was a flexibility test and I was already very flexible so I didn’t think there was any difference when I wore the bracelet and when I didn’t (but he insisted i was slightly more flexible wearing the bracelet)
When I’m working out in the weight room with friends we’ll do a similar thing to mess with your head. One set we’ll pretend to take the weight down, but we’ll just put the same weight back on… and guess what… many times we’ll be able to lift it easier or even more than our previous set. Mind over matter.
ALSO… why do you think people drop so much money on clothes and sneakers? A cotton t-shirt at Walmart is going to perform just as good as a $75 cotton t-shirt at Bloomingdales.
Yes,true or not it’s up to us with our own experience ofcourse.Recently my son got bone fractured at his right hand and it swelled badly and complained of soreness with piercing pain at the injured part for two weeks,as a mom I don’t care what to buy or try things just to ease the swelling and the discomport he had been through,though medicine help a bit but the swelling still as anoying as the pain is.One day as my other son,also in sport ask me to buy tennis shoes and it happened that this Phiten products were hanging at the side of the store then I read,I don’t need demo on that time cause we were so late already for our late night movie show,so I just grab a few pieces for my two boys only,it cause me a bomb ofcourse and a hole in my wallet he!he!he! but what the heck!!! it’s for my kids I don’t care, who know’s it will work.When we came home that night I quickly put it on him,one is the bandage tape light brown color and the necklace,in my mind I don’t believe such thing untill proven,next day I check it again and Whoa!!! it did!!! the swelling is gone and he said he don’t feel the peircing pain already, so in my mind it work and I need more proof so I went back to the store and purchased more for the shoulder brace with two magnets attached both side and you know what happened? after two days of wearing all the phitens that I bought for him he can move already his entire shoulder and arms he said no more pain,it really works for him and the doctor told us the healing will be arround three months, no it’s not,after one and a half months he take out everything(the brace and bandages from the hospital) now he is improving a lot…Well,I am still worried cause our doctor found out that the fracture is caused by a cyst on that bone so he need to undergo a thorough bone check up this coming months to make sure that it’s not something else that we need to worry about.This time I need a second miracle for his cyst to go away.Now I let him drink the NONI JUICE(Moringezyme) and RESHIE MUSHROOM to get rid of his cyst etc. I know miracles will strike often to those who believe,as what I say before, if your a mom you will try everything to shield your loveones from pain and harm.So I did buy phiten necklaces for all of us and planning to purchase another one the PURE TITANIUM BRACELET SLIM TYPE(if we have here in philippines) and I will combine it with TITANIUM NECKLACE X30(Mirror type)to go with my big onyx birthstone cause my present phiten necklace my husband always tease me that I looked like Cleopatra,if this thing doesn’t work in medicine field,well atleast it will look nice in my neck and arms,just don’t think the whole in my pocket ha!ha!ha!
hey shay may
It made my penis grow 3 inches longer…… hence my nickname.
I have a bad back and tried Phiten. I then threw my back out, and needed to have surgery. I wore the necklace after surgery, but there were complications. I never fully recovered.
I’m now confined to a wheelchair for the rest of my life. I never had this problem before I wore that goddam necklace.
Beware! This necklace will ruin your life.
these phiten products made my poop sick
Unless anyone here slamming Phiten has actually done something to better mankind whether it is in their mind or what have you, post your comments elsewhere! There is nothing negative about anyone purchasing anything from Phiten! People think it helps them, and money is spent which helps our economy. I`m proud of you chemists who can prove 1,000 different ways why this product cannot scientifically help our bodies. I remember when I had nothing better to do than TRY to degrade a product. I tip my hat
Could you explain how the balance test is a farce?
Not a false test, I have done the 2 litre bottle test when a friend didn’t even tell me what I was expecting or tell me what it was for that I was doing. He knows I was a non believer in these things but that got me after he told me about it after I felt the bottle was much lighter. I asked an uncle of mine who is a doctor for 25+ years, he explained it is balance of the electro flow of the body, it effects how our blood flows, and yadda yadda yadda. He tried it and he said it is true that it works but varies in situations.
They want to see what they want to see and that is what they see; clearly.
(For the people to favour and the people against)
i am a logical person and i was skeptic at first to try the product…until somebody gave me one (an old version of the fabric necklace-forgot the model already). i only wore it as a fashion statement since it was a fad back then. one day, my wife (who has a prevailing pain on her wrists & hands) tried it out since we tried everything from massages, ointments, balms, etc. just to ease the pain… surprisingly, she commented that the pain was significantly reduced! what surprised me most was that she never believed in it!!! she just wrapped it around her wrist for fun…since then, i discovered a lot of other products to suit our needs (not only for my wife & i, but for our children as well…). another case is the Phiten Lotion (e-water as they call it) when i tried it for my stiff neck – again, surprisingly, i was able to move my head (compared to when i use other balms, oils, etc…). however, it takes effect after 5-10 minutes after application, and only for 4 hours – then the you can feel the stiffness again…well, all you have to do is to re-apply it over again! my son is a basketball athlete (jr. varsity) in a renowned school, and with all his injuries (normally on ankle sprains & muscle fatigues) he found “e-water” to be better than the others he tried (and believe me, we already tried a lot – including therapeutic massage by Indian-national, and acupuncture). his recovery seemed faster and less painful… i am an engineer and one who doesn’t easily believe on these kinds of stuff – until such time i have tried and proven it myself. one note though, the mind game only works if you are open to the idea that it will work! in our case/s, we were not open to the idea that it would work to begin with… but the results were mind blowing! for my family & myself, the dough we spend (on phiten products) is always worth it – since we get the results we need…
These things really work…my 11 year old son (baseball player) wanted one cause it was cool. I bought one for him last night and today he had another game…guess what…he got there and now he’s cool. I thought it worked so well that I went back to the store and bought me one and guess what…I’m a really cool dad according to my son and all the other cool kids…”really cool” cause mine cost more. So they worked for us because I didn’t even read the package before I bought them so I didn’t even know about the “medical benefits”…that must be a plus that I haven’t felt yet. They work for what they were intended for here in the USA…a new, cool, great fad…a few bucks spent on a happy kid is worth every penny and a few more bucks to be a cool dad is worth a couple more.
I had one of this Phiten necklace that i no longer wears it. Initially, i am able to endure slightly more pain e.g. exercising, stretching etc. Then one day after an unusual long hour workout, while resting, i decided to take off the necklace to see if i could feel any differences. After a few minutes i felt pain at my lower back and it was so painful that i almost blackout. My heart beating very fast. I lay down on my back for an hour before getting back to normal. Something is weird about this necklace. Any athletes out there who experience this before?
luv me a phiten. Now i can do yoga and stretch my body further and longer. This thing is a piece of miracle.
Sir, you may well be a trained chemist, etc., but you sure could use some lessons on grammar, spelling, proof reading and where to buy a spell checker. I quit reading your entry after the fourth mistake
These necklaces really do work! My uncle recently was recovering from a bruised elbow. I personally convinced him to try one of these outstanding products to help with the pain. Two days after that, he was in the hospital from aqua titanium poisoning. The next three days, he fought for his life before finally losing the battle. I have lived with this guilt for the past 2 years of my life. When asked if I would still continue to support this product, my reply was simple: “Absolutely!” Though it does seem to have mix results on elbow bruises. Please visit http://www.phitenusa.com/ for more info on this amazing product!
I agree. Same with the power balance’s the supposedly called ” energy” is all in the users head