Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Buying this device made me lose all respect for Lori Grenier. My first clue should have been in her infomercial airing while I wrote this review. In it she personally provides unconfirmed anecdotal evidence "it works for so many of my friends". Is that really the best she could do? To the individual so personally offended by my review essentially debating my statements on the grounds that this useless device has "FDA approval". To them I say, yes, lets open up the topic of FDA approval shall we? And honestly how dare you attempt to take advantage of the average person's ignorance of what FDA approval means when it comes to devices like this. I urge readers to read this article in the LA Times titled, "Be wary of products touting FDA certification The words ‘FDA approved’ or ‘FDA registered’ don’t mean as much as consumers often assume" March 01, 2010 (link to article below) "FDA approval" in the world of gadgets like this means nothing. From the article: "If you're shopping for a pill or gadget to trim your waistline, grow your hair or generally make you feel better, you probably take comfort in the words "FDA approved" or "FDA registered." Even in a time of widespread distrust of government, most people continue to put their faith in the Food and Drug Administration, says Daniel Carpenter, professor of government at Harvard University and author of the soon-to-be published book "Reputation and Power: Organizational Image and Pharmaceutical Regulation at the FDA." "FDA approval is like the Good Housekeeping seal of approval, only much more so," Carpenter says. "Sellers try to take advantage of that reputation." But as reassuring as they may seem, the words "FDA approved" or "FDA registered" don't mean as much as consumers often assume. "FDA certification of a product is never a guarantee of safety or effectiveness of anything," Carpenter says. The long list of products flaunting their FDA bona fides includes the Flex Belt, the HairMax laser comb and a supplement called Canditate. The Flex Belt, an electronic exercise device that stimulates the abdominal muscles, is described online as the "only ab belt toning system cleared by the FDA for toning, firming and strengthening stomach muscles." The website for HairMax says the product has "FDA clearance," an honor that supposedly represents "a milestone in hair care, hair growth and hair science." A site touting Canditate, a remedy for yeast infections, calls it "an FDA-approved herbal product." All products that make health-related claims need some kind of clearance by the FDA...Consumers trying to sort out marketing claims should understand that the FDA holds different products to different standards, says Dr. William Maisel, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and the director of the Medical Device Safety Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Strictly speaking, he says, the only products that the FDA actually "approves" are drugs and serious high-tech medical devices such as implantable defibrillators. The agency takes a similar hard-line approach to serious medical devices such as implantable defibrillators. Like drugs, these devices — also called Class 3 devices — are supposed to go through serious testing to establish both safety and effectiveness. For less-invasive medical equipment, known as Class 2 medical devices, the standards and the scrutiny drop dramatically...Exercise equipment can fall into the Class 2 category if the company claims to do something other than promote general fitness, such as rehabilitating injured joints or speeding weight loss. Before they can sell such products, manufacturers have to convince the FDA that devices are "substantially equivalent" to similar products already on the market, regardless of whether those existing products actually work. Passing this test gives them FDA "clearance," but not approval." (End of quote of article) Read full article here: http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/01/health/la-he-0301-skeptic-20100301 Lumbar spine traction requires a traction forcer significantly greater than 26% of your body weight before any traction effect can be produced at the lumbar spine. [*] If you think this device will work for you, try this experiment: Lie down on your back. Bend your knees. Push down on your upper thighs with your hands. Did that stretch your back or provide any traction whatsoever? Did it elongate your spine? Did it do anything to relieve your pain? No right? Well that's as good as it gets while using the device. If it did work for you, you certainly don't require this device! With or without this device, you will NEVER generate the amount of pressure (with your own arm/ hand strength) required to push your lower body/ raise your upper body in order to effectively decompress your lumbar spine. As a 135lb woman I have required 80lbs of traction at my physical therapist to get relief for lumbar back pain. Your best bet for a home device is to find one that uses gravity (but not at the ankles which will only stretch/hurt your ankle joints like Teeters) to generate sufficient traction force. I'm still searching... *Harte, A., et al.,The efficacy of traction for back pain: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials, Arch Phys Med Rehabil, Volume 84, Issue 10, Pages 1542–1553 October 2003 (Level of evidence: 1A) My goal is simple: I have tremendous back pain that I'd like to remedy & I feel for people who are similarly suffering.