Do our words affect our cells?

Words & Cells: Exploring Their Intriguing Connection

A few years ago I went to a conference in Liverpool where I heard Dr. Masaru Emoto talked about water and consciousness. The talk (and his amazing visuals of ice crystal) was about the impact of human emotion on water. It was stunning and compelling – I have never forgotten it!

His work is summarised really well on the following YouTube post ‘Water, Consciousness & Intent: Dr. Masaru Emoto 

In simple terms, Dr Emoto’s work suggests that our emotions, words and vibrations (and those of others around us), can change the composition of the water molecules present in the human body. Negative thoughts and emotions have a negative effect on water molecules and therefore well-being, and vice versa. 60% is the figure generally quoted as the being the water composition of human beings and therefore, the potential for impact is great. His work is not quite as simple as that of course, so do watch the video if you’re curious.

The discussion thread and comments that accompany the video are really interesting, Some people have conducted their own simple water experiments using Dr Emoto’s principles and their results support his theories. Others strongly dispute it. As coaches, you might find this research as though-provoking as I did, bearing mind that in our role, we seek to support people to be at their best and adopt resourceful states and mind-sets. What if this has greater positive impact than we could have imagined, with a cellular response as well as a behavioural benefit.

Here is another link to a similar experiment with rice

Dr Emotos’ work isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Today I received an email linking me to a new discussion thread on social media about this very topic. The responses were predictably polarised! Here are two anonymous examples:

“The Big Apple Experiment is another physical way that demonstrates the impact thoughts have on ourselves and others. It’s based on the works of Dr. Mazaro Emoto and his work with water crystals. The reason for an apple is it is made of up similar water consistency as humans. You cut an apple in half and put each half in a sealed jar, one labelled love, the other hate (or another negative thought). Each day, you send only positivity and love to the ‘love’ and send negative emotions to the ‘hate’, or ignore it as that’s as powerful. The results speak for themselves. If you look at my last post, it shows my apples after 4 weeks and the rate of decay is undeniable. I use this with leaders so that they become aware of their thinking of how they see their people and the impact it has.”

“Ok, I’m a real scientist (PhD and Masters in Astrophysics, Member of the Institute of Physics, Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, etc…), and I have to tell you that that video is absolute garbage. It is entirely made up, with no scientific basis what so ever. Please don’t spread this pseudoscientific nonsense. Please don’t undermine what we learn when we train to be coaches, and what we practice, by polluting it with this.”

I’ll leave you to make your mind up!

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