Whole Body Vibration (WBV): Evidence that it works?

[marcjf]

Study done in aging mice:
Whole body vibration activates AMPK/CPT1 signaling pathway of skeletal muscle in young and aging mice based on metabolomics study
https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/endocrj/69/5/69_EJ21-0343/_article/-char/ja/

And from the abstract:

Our study revealed that WBV mainly improved lipid metabolism and amino acid metabolism pathways of skeletal muscle in young mice and mainly improved lipid metabolism and glucose metabolism pathways of skeletal muscle in aging mice. WBV can activate the AMPK/CPT1 signaling pathway and improve mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle in both young and aging mice.

It seems that a couple of weeks on WBV, β-oxidation was upregulated, which is exactly what is impaired in our case.

Has anyone tried it? I've seen some Canadian scientists warning caution against it due to the potential degradation of joint tissue. But the evidence is not that strong yet.

 

[Wishful]

It seems that a couple of weeks on WBV, β-oxidation was upregulated, which is exactly what is impaired in our case.

Has that been verified, that it's impaired in all PWME? If not, it's just one more unproven hypothesis about ME, so trying a possibly harmful treatment should wait until the hypothesis has verified evidence.

I'm no expert on how to tell whether a study was done properly, but one study on mice does not mean that it will work effectively (and safely) on humans. Some types of vibration have definitely been proven to cause permanent damage in humans.

 

[perchance dreamer]

I have fibro, not ME, but I have a vibrating platform, the Marodyne LiV. When I had a follow-up bone density test some months after I bought it, I had quite a bit of improvement. I stand on it 10 minutes every day.

Marodyne is a low-frequency platform, unlike some like the Power Plate. I once stood on a Power Plate and felt as if I were on a jackhammer. The Marodyne's vibrations feels really gentle compared to that.

A rare side effect of vibrating platforms is a detached retina. This is why I wanted to go with a low-frequency model.

I'll have another bone density test soon and am hopeful it will show more improvement.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Has anyone tried it?

I tried the machine everybody was raving about (10 years ago?) : I think it might have been called Power Plate (fitness and sport teams using it).

It made me horribly ill every time I used it for just a couple of minutes.

Normals were lined up coming over to use this machine and loving it. My husband loved it.

PWME be warned...

 

[Rufous McKinney]

unlike some like the Power Plate.

I used the really big Power Plate type machine- you hold onto it...the $10,000 version.

A much subtler gentler vibration sounds useful....(around $3000 or more I just read for Marodyne.

 

[Wishful]

A rare side effect of vibrating platforms is a detached retina.

A particularly bumpy session on a riding mower tore loose a really big annoying floater. It's still there, faded somewhat. I did go in for an eye exam, just because it might have been a sign of something more serious (no problems showed).

If you want to try whole body vibration, you could sit on a laundry machine with an unbalanced load. I'm sure there are other sources of vibration Get a ride on a Harley-Davidson?

 

[marcjf]

I have fibro, not ME, but I have a vibrating platform, the Marodyne LiV. When I had a follow-up bone density test some months after I bought it, I had quite a bit of improvement. I stand on it 10 minutes every day.

Marodyne is a low-frequency platform, unlike some like the Power Plate. I once stood on a Power Plate and felt as if I were on a jackhammer. The Marodyne's vibrations feels really gentle compared to that.

A rare side effect of vibrating platforms is a detached retina. This is why I wanted to go with a low-frequency model.

I'll have another bone density test soon and am hopeful it will show more improvement.

Thanks for sharing it, that is very interesting. I also heard reports that it can improve tissue as well. That is why I find some papers so confusing. I would like to give it a shot, but scared to harm myself in the long run. I also assume you need some time before you see any results.

 

[Wishful]

That is why I find some papers so confusing.

Yes, you always have to ask the question: "what is the author's main goal?" It might be honest explanation of the study. It might be to 'look good' by manipulating the numbers. Papers with negative results don't build careers as well as ones that 'look good' or promise some sort of economic value (selling drug prescriptions, supplements). Other papers have a main goal of pushing a treatment by abuse of facts. They might do a test on bacteria under very specific conditions, then stretch the theory way, way out, and claim that this proves that the treatment/supplement will boost human health when applied in a way that in no way resembles the conditions for the bacteria test.

If you read something that sounds like a promising treatment, you really need to do a lot more research, and not just in 'selling the product' magazines/websites.

In the case of whole body vibration, I suggest waiting for some actual studies on humans. Given that there are many occupations that involve unavoidable whole body vibration, if there were significant beneficial effects, there would likely be mention of it (and lots of marketing already). Since most of the mentions are probably about harmful effects (detached retinas, white finger disease, etc), you have to balance known risk of harm vs claimed theoretical benefits.

This isn't a treatment I'd feel comfortable experimenting with, especially since there's no reliable evidence that ME involves the pathways mentioned in the study.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

well it makes people like us sicker so its mostly similar to the result of folks who like to jump on little trampolines.

A common fitness activity...the normal people do.