When looking to buy a Pulsed Electromagnetic Field therapy device it can be daunting and there is a lot of big words and scientific information that may not make much sense! Often when researching you will come across the words intensity, frequency and waveform. But what do they mean?
PEMF Frequency
PEMF frequencies are how often per second the magnetic field cycles and the majority of PEMF devices for home use have frequencies between 1-1000 Hz
The frequencies for pre-set programs on PEMF devices are usually selected to duplicate the ones used in clinical studies and research into PEMFs.
Intensity
Intensity or Power (often measured in Gauss) is the maximum strength of the Magnetic Field a PEMF device is capable of. Most devices for home use could be split into low, medium or high-intensity devices.
Intensity should not be confused with frequency, frequencies (measured in Hz) are adjustable on all PEMF devices but the intensity is the maximum strength of the magnetic field the device can produce; it cannot be changed as it is built into the device.
Dr Pawluk has done a video about Intensity that you may also find useful. Click here to watch.
Waveform
Put simply a waveform is the shape of the signal. A PEMF device emits a pulsed electromagnetic field and this signal can have many different shapes such as square or sawtooth.
Many different waveforms have been used in the thousands of clinical studies into PEMFs so there is no one truly exact waveform that can be duplicated and even the famous NASA square waveform has been changed many times
So what matters the most intensity, frequency or waveform?
When researching PEMF therapy it’s easy to get caught up in intensities, frequencies, and waveforms but we find that it is how often you use the therapy which matters the most.
Finding a device you know you would use daily is more important than anything else. A common concern is that you might be using the “wrong” setting but this isn’t possible.
There are of course recommendations we can give to help you along but there is no such thing as a bad PEMF therapy session.
