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Kinoki foot pads: Sucking away toxins or just your money? Posted: Thursday, June 19, 2008 8:56 PM
What it claims to do: The foot pads collect ``harmful toxins'' from your body while you sleep, says the manufacturer, by ``cleansing and detoxifying your skin's outer layers,'' boosting your energy level and improving your health and wellness.
My experience: I was surfing the Web on a rainy Seattle night with the TV on in the background when whatever late-night show I'd been watching ended and suddenly, images of a woman in a kimono filled the screen as a voice-over told me about an ancient Japanese secret that would give me better health and well-being. The claims were so fantastic that it took me a while to decide whether I was watching a satirical sketch or an ad for a real product.
The item in question? The Kinoki Detox Foot Pad - and it's real, all right.
Every night for two weeks, you attach a small, white pad to the bottom of your foot right before going to bed. While you sleep, the pad removes ``heavy metals, metabolic waste, toxins, chemicals and more!'' A fancy graphic on the Kinoki infomercial explained that the pad draws toxins down your legs and out through the soles of your feet like a biological magnet. There's even ``proof'' that it's working: After wearing it overnight, the pad is black and puffy, full of nasty crud that used to be floating around in your body. As a result, you will feel better and have more energy! At least, that's what the lady in the kimono seemed to be promising.
Putting it on, I discovered, is a little like building your own foot-sized Band-Aid. I followed the instructions by placing the pad in the middle of an accompanying piece of adhesive, pressed it on to the sole of my foot and went to bed.
The next morning, my ticklish feet gamely endured my peeling the pad off when, to my surprise - and utter disgust - I found it had turned completely black. Worse yet, it smelled like a vile combination of sweat and the acrid smoke of a campfire. But that day at work I was oddly perky. Maybe there was something to this detoxification system.
Alas, no. The directions say that continued use is supposed to result in the pads becoming less and less black over time due to the gradual elimination of toxins from my body, but mine continued to be dark and smelly every morning. The only pattern I saw was related to how long I'd slept - longer equaled blacker (though, luckily, not smellier).
And my higher energy level? That vanished, and I found myself in an ugly funk a few days into my experiment, but I blame that more on the gray Seattle weather than Kinoki.
Growing increasingly suspicious, I decided at the end of the two weeks to test a theory. I held one of the foot pads over a kettle of boiling water, and within about 10 seconds, that familiar blackness and smoky odor became obvious.
What the expert says: Dr. Devra Davis, director of the Center for Environmental Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh and an expert on toxins, did a similar experiment: She left the foot pads out overnight without their plastic packaging and saw the same effects. She says the pads contain little more than green tea and vinegar.
``It doesn't make sense that these ingredients would produce that effect,'' said Davis, who suspects the blackness and odor are the result of the ingredients interacting with oxygen, heat or moisture.
And while it's not unheard of for substances to get into our bodies via the skin, such as the nicotine patch or estrogen creams, Davis says she doesn't know of any therapy that actually pulls substances out of the body through the skin.
Davis doubts the foot pads are harmful, but says ``we really just don't know.''
As for energy boost the first day I tested the pad, Davis says there's no way to know whether any psychological benefits are real or merely a placebo effect until controlled experiments are done. (She doubts that will happen anytime soon since the Food and Drug Administration doesn't have authority over alternative therapies like Kinoki foot pads.)
Bottom Line: While Kinoki foot pads probably won't hurt you, they likely won't help you either. Save your money and put it toward a nice pedicure.
Posted by Meg (Member # 22) on :
Good find Anneke
I find it interesting that you can leave them on the counter top and they'll turn just as black....amazing what we'll believe will work.
Posted by Greatcod (Member # 7002) on :
Are they good to eat?
Posted by Meg (Member # 22) on :
Are they good to eat?
Maybe with a little mayo......?
Posted by chamade (Member # 11472) on :
These were glorified by some people here as far as I remember. Just goes to show you that one must be weary of rumors and hype.
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
I think it would take more than mayo, Meg
Good find, Anneke.
Posted by luvs2ride (Member # 8090) on :
I would feel a whole lot better about this article if she would have sent one unused and one used pad off to an independent lab for analysis.
That would have been a whole lot better than her subjective opinion about the effectiveness of the pad.
Scott did this and the lab results did show the used pad to contain substances the unused did not. I hesitate to list the substances as my memory may be faulty, but it was exactly the stuff we are trying to detox.
And then there is this statement:
And while it's not unheard of for substances to get into our bodies via the skin, such as the nicotine patch or estrogen creams, Davis says she doesn't know of any therapy that actually pulls substances out of the body through the skin.
Oh yeah, Dr? What about pastes made from baking soda for bee stings, or castor oil or mustard packs for the chest or liver? Epsom Salt Baths and/or soaks for inflammation?
This was not a scientific or objective experiment at all.
Luvs
Posted by kam (Member # 3410) on :
I haven't tried the brand listed. But, I have tried podi patches and I feel they helped.
I also have made the mistake of putting the wrong side out at times and viola...nothing happened.
so, leaving it out on the counter and having the same thing happen doesn't fit in my case.
My feet have this burning feeling on the bottom a lit. I wish I had some podi patches to put on right now.
it seems to calm that down. They are costly thought so usually not in my budget.
I also did have them become lighter with use.
Got to the point that I was only doing maintenance when I first came down with this and still ahd the funds to do so.
I think it was about 2 months before things lightened up for maintenace only.
I did try other, less expensive brands and found they did not do much for me...not enough to continue to purchase them.
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
I was curious so did some searching on this topic. Another article:
The Detox Foot Pad Scam Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Various adhesive pads and patches are claimed to detoxify the body when applied to the feet.
The best known is the Kinoki Detox Foot Pad, which is claimed to remove toxins, restore "balance" within the body, and boost energy.
Various other products are claimed to strengthen the immune system, reduce stress, improve circulation, improve sleep, enhance mental focus, relieve headaches and arthritis pain.
The alleged explanation for their working include reflexology, unblocking of lymphatic passages, and negative ions that release far infrared rays.
All such products should be regarded as fakes, and the proposed mechanisms should be regarded as nonsensical.
Users are instructed to apply the products to the soles of the feet and leave them on overnight. In the morning, they claim, the pads will absorb toxins and turn muddy brown or black.
"Detox" product marketers have done no studies that identify what they claim to remove, measure its level in the body, and see whether such substances accumulate in the pads and have their level reduced in the body.
It is unlikely they will ever try, because the basic idea that toxins will be excreted through the skin clashes with what is known about human anatomy and physiology.
Real detoxification of foreign substances takes place in the liver, which modifies their chemical structure so they can be excreted by the kidneys which filter them from the blood into the urine.
Sweat glands in the feet can excrete water and some dissolved substances. However, its minor role in ridding the body of unwanted substances is not changed by applying foot pads.
In April 2008. ABC's "20/20" investigated Kinoki ad Avon pads and reported:
When used overnight, the pads darkened, but dropping distilled water on the pads produced the same dark color.
Laboratory analysis of pads used by eight volunteers showed no significant evidence of heavy metals or commonly used solvents.
When asked for tests that would show that their products really work the companies offered no valid scientific studies.
Detox foot baths should also be regarded as fakes.
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
Hey boom..
Isn't that the Quackwatch guy? The same one that tries to lend credibility to McStupid?
I wouldn't trust that article if that is where it originated. Sorry.
I have to agree with luvs2. The reports weren't at all scientific... just opinion.
And I have not used the foot pads so have no experience either way. But I do know a few bad sources for information... and Quackwatch is probably the worst.
Posted by Gert (Member # 13584) on :
Thanks for the article.....Personally, I love to soak my feet in very warm Epsom's Salts baths.
Posted by luvs2ride (Member # 8090) on :
TC! I just read your signature! You are in for the greatest experience of your life.
Someone said to me before my first grandchild that words cannot describe it. They are right.
We had our grandson close by for the first 4 yrs of his life and have developed a close bond. His Momma, our daughter, just remarried though. A nice fella but he lives 1 hr away. Not too bad, but we are all too busy to get together much. You know how that is.
Today, we will pick up our grandson and have him for 4 days. He is so excited and so are we!
Luvs
Posted by maureen2174 (Member # 11471) on :
I use the foot pads sold by health marvels- kenrico. i don't think these have been mentioned in the news. They are made in Japan.
These are the footpads that Scott recommends on his site. My LLMD recommends them.
Does anyone else use these?
Posted by cactus (Member # 7347) on :
I fess up - I've used the Podi Patches, and I've tried Health Marvels brand, too. Not the brand the authors' of these articles are discussing, though.
I liked the Podi Patches, and didn't like the Health Marvels. (nope, not affiliated with either one or any other company, I am just a patient)
It's possible that the foot pain relief was "all in my head" of course - but then again, this whole constellation of diseases is "all in my head" depending on which doctor is speaking.
Haven't used them in a long time. In the long run, they are not where I am putting my hard-earned money. Maybe if there are extra funds after LLMD, meds and supps - but that is not often.
We all have to make choices on what to try or not try in our quest to get well and/or get symptom relief.
Posted by Windmill (Member # 15404) on :
Hi Maureen, I used the Kenrico foot pads too and definitely felt a herx from them. I used them on and off over a period of 2 years and i really like them. I felt they were a help in reducing toxicity.
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TC! I just read your signature! You are in for the greatest experience of your life.