Raynaud's 'cure' - Miracle product or Snake oil?

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Tom Rankin

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While doing some research, I came across this link:

Therapy Gloves

Basically, they claim the glove emits IR rays to help keep your hands warm. :confused:

I could not find any objective reviews online.

Anyone using them, or have an unbiased review source?
 
Looks snakey to me...

There is no external source of energy, so the best that they can do is insulate the user's hands. My guess is that their effects are similar to any pair of gloves that has a similar insulation value.

BTW, any object whose temperature is above absolute zero emits thermal electromagnetic radiation. Objects in the "normal" temp range (ie the range in which we live) emit primarily far infrared. (The intensity and peak wavelength of the emitted radiation depends upon the temperature.) See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-body_radiation.

BTW2, any pair of gloves emits far-infrared radiation... As does every other object around us (including us).

Doug
 
Doug beat me to it. Without a visible means of power to generate heat, they remind me of the Astronaut gloves that were the rage a few years back. The web site has no references to studies of any kind.
 
No need to get technical..I think they mean that the gloves reflect IR that originates in your body. So at best some portion of radiation is reflected back to your skin. They dont talk about this at all and suggest that it may help people with a certain disease.....thats snaky, but most people would say that those foil IR reflecting emergency blankets are useful.
 
Yes, I think it's just a case of taking something old (reflective materials, and materials with some heat capacity that can store and re-emit noticeable heat) and billing as "something new" in order to sell it for too high a price. That's standard practice in many fields.
 
If you read the description very carefully, the actual claim made is essentially: "They're insulating gloves with a reflective (mylar-like) layer. They keep your hands warm."
 
Aren't they pushing a similar concept with synthetic down jackets this year? I forget if it was Columbia or someone that was praising some sort of reflective inner layer to their synthetic down jackets. Just slide on the magic foil protection of the incendiary ball synthe-tek down miracle jacket and it's like you're on a beach in Tahiti at 2PM in the afternoon! :p
 
Reflective layers are just another form of insulation--they reduce radiant (eg infra-red) heat flow. Their most extreme form is found in vacuum (Dewar, Thermos) flasks/bottles. (Both use reflective (mirror) double layer walls to minimize radiant heat flow.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vacuum_flask

The others:
* Thick layers (eg wool and fleece) reduce convective and conductive heat flow.
* Wind-blocking layers reduce convective heat flow.
* Water vapor blocking layers reduce the evaporation-condensation heat flow.

They all contribute to the same goal--reducing the heat flow. There is no magic and the claims of the glove manufacturer, while technically true, are intended to suggest unique qualities which is unlikely. A snake in sheep's clothing, so to speak... :)

Doug
 
Aren't they pushing a similar concept with synthetic down jackets this year? I forget if it was Columbia or someone that was praising some sort of reflective inner layer to their synthetic down jackets. Just slide on the magic foil protection of the incendiary ball synthe-tek down miracle jacket and it's like you're on a beach in Tahiti at 2PM in the afternoon! :p
Those with long memories will recall that reflective inner layers in sleeping bags were the gimmick-of-the-month a number of years ago. Haven't seen them in quite a while now...

The current Columbia version appears to be reflective dots with an ~50% (guesstimated from pictures) coverage which means that one would get only half of any potential benefit...

Just like the regular fashion industry, fashions in outdoor gear come and go whether they are any better than "yesterday's" gear or not.

Doug
 
Aren't they pushing a similar concept with synthetic down jackets this year? I forget if it was Columbia or someone that was praising some sort of reflective inner layer to their synthetic down jackets. Just slide on the magic foil protection of the incendiary ball synthe-tek down miracle jacket and it's like you're on a beach in Tahiti at 2PM in the afternoon! :p

Columbia's initial foray into 'self reflection' was the introduction a few years ago of 'Omni Heat' to their Bugaboot line of winter boots. In our [AMC/Boston Winter Hiking Program] polling of what boots perform well in practice, these were not contenders. However, that shouldn't be construed as a condemnation of reflective layers, but rather as commentary on all aspects of the boot taken together: overall performance (how well does it deal with all 4 forms of heat loss combined, not just radiant) as well as the 4P's of marketing (product, promotion, place, price - if the boot doesn't get to many folks, it won't be well represented in a poll).

As Remix observed, curbing radiant heat loss via reflection is common, scientifically proven practice - but it's just one of many contributors to how well a piece of gear performs overall.

Alex
 
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