Rhythmic Mechanical Body Stimulation Improves Physical and Mental Wellbeing and Alters States of Consciousness

Objectives: There is quite a debate about frequencies around 8 Hz playing a role in the human brain but also in micro-vibrations in muscles of the body. There are also claims about a positive bodily and mental influence of various kinds of vibrating whole-body stimulations. We have studied the effects of such a rhythmic whole-body stimulation on a subjective level. Study Design: We tested the effects of 20 minutes mechanical whole-body stimulation at about 8 Hz on physical and mental wellbeing on 20 healthy participants. An additional control group of 20 participants kept the same body postures in a relaxation session. Outcome Measures: Changes in bodily sensations, emotions and mental experiences as well as the phenomenology of consciousness were assessed by questionnaires. Results: Compared to a control group, vibrational stimulation resulted in a significant more intense and wider body feeling and changes of the body image summarized in a factor called Integration (z=1.94, p<.05). It also provided slightly more experiences of bliss (z=2.1, p<.05). Effect sizes were moderate. Conclusions: Despite rhythmic whole-body stimulation has an overall positive effect on body, mind and wellbeing, when compared to a relaxation exercise, it only offered a slightly more extended body awareness and stronger experiences of bliss.


Introduction
There is evidence that physical stimulation through technical aids such as massage devices can have positive effects on muscular relaxation. Furthermore, such devices are also reported to have a positive influence on bodily and mental wellbeing in general. Here, we have tested this hypothesis on a rhythmic stimulation device oscillating at a speed of 7.8 Hz and thereby applying this vibration mechanically to the body. This frequency is termed Schumann frequency and represents a measurable electromagnetic resonance of the geosphere. This frequency is also within the brains' upper theta band (close to the alpha band from 8 to 12 Hz) which shows oscillations for example in states of drowsiness, relaxation and sometimes during meditation [1]. Additionally, the shivering produced by the human muscular system is in a frequency range 4-8 Hz or even higher [2]. This tremor is also supposed to play a role in the temperature regulation of endotherm animals. There is a huge debate about the influence of artificial stimulation with this rhythm on the brain and thereby on human consciousness but also on other body functions such as the heart rate [3,4]. Despite there is some evidence for synchronization effects, this connection could

Am J Biomed Sci & Res
Copy@ Thilo Hinterberger still not be clearly scientifically answered [5]. Therefore, we used a commercial swinging plate and studied its effects on mental and physical wellbeing as well as the phenomenology of consciousness.

Participants
Each group consists of 20 participants (14 female and 6 male).
The average age of participants in the swinging plate group was 52.2 ±12.5 years and in the relaxation control group 39.6 ±14.3 years. All participants gave their informed consent according to the ethical guidelines of our institutional ethics committee. None of them reported any previous illnesses or psychological disorders.

Swinging Plate
The swinging plate (Schumann 3D system®) is about 78 cm in size and rotates horizontally at a speed of about 7.8 Hz with an amplitude of less than one centimeter. Participants can either lay down on the plate or sit on a firm cushion and feel the vibrations through their back or the feet upwards.

Procedure
Participants were asked to first sit on the vibrating plate for a

Group comparisons
Focusing on the mean values of pre-post changes, all three CSP-14 dimensions as well as most of the CSP-14 items yielded highly significant changes even after FDR adjustment in both groups, the relaxation exercise and the swinging plate session (Table 1)  According to Table 2

Discussion
The goal of this study was to evaluate subjective changes of wellbeing and describe conscious experiences which might be specific to a rhythmic mechanical whole-body stimulation. We have found that

Limitations
The primary limitation of this particular study is the small sample size as well as the difference in the significant mean age of the groups (z=2.48, p<.01), nevertheless yielding moderate effect sizes in the group comparison. Further, the questionnaire PCI-K should be validated in further studies.

Conclusion
To conclude, the results of this study present the positive effects of a rhythmic whole-body stimulation on changes in body sensation, emotional and mental state as well as the phenomenology of consciousness. However, the impact of the Schumann frequency as stimulation frequency still needs further investigations.