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TaoPatch

TaoPatch – Is it a scam?

I’ll try to keep this one short…. if people want to ask me a question, please leave a comment.

Let’s look at the info on the Taopatch website, and then look at the evidence that Taopatch provides.

If you are a Multiple-Sclerosis patient looking at Taopatch for MS treatment, please tread carefully. Don’t be persuaded by testimonials or the offer of a money-back guarantee as sufficient evidence, regardless of how desperate you are, talk to your doctor, and make sure you look for concrete evidence that this is not a placebo product. The product is NOT FDA approved.

What is Taopatch made of?

Taopatch® claims to be a “nanotechnological medical device”. It is a Mylar disc, that they claim has had “nanotechnology elements” added inside, such as “upconverting nanocrystals”, “quantum dots”, and carbon nanotubes.

“Taopatch contains ultra-thin layers of nanocrystals called Quantum Dots, 10.000 times smaller than a human hair, with a similar width of our own Human DNA”

Who created Taopatch?

fabio fontana taopatch
Fabio Fontana – Taopatch Founder

Taopatch was supposedly created by Italian bioengineer Fabio Fontana (photo right). From his linkedin, he started working on Taopatch in 2013. For someone who supposedly spend a decade researching EMF, it is interesting that he has zero publication history … and his linkedin shows no years or details of his past research or work history in this field. Roberto Ricci is listed as a co-creator of Taopatch too.

How does Taopatch work?

It appears to be pseudo-science. Taopatch claim it works by emitting ‘biophotons‘. While biophotons are a known phenomena, there is no evidence that these play a role in intracellular communication, or that by simply adding more similar photons that any healing effect can be achieved. This is a classic example of Pathological science. Biophoton treatment appears very similar to homeopathy in terms of claims of incredibly weak signals offering immense healing power.

Taopatch claims to achieve the same results with unspecified Quantum Dots. Yes, Quantum Dots are a real thing too, but they do not create free energy out of anywhere… they certainly can’t create more energy than they receive! Yes, low-level laser therapy is also a real thing too, but there’s a big difference between low-levels they use (typically ~5W/cm2) and, well, zero!

As you can see, Taopatch mixes current scientific research, scientific buzzwords, and complete fabrications, to present as a technology that seems ‘miraculous’ but yet almost plausibly believable. I am certain in my own mind that there are several inconsistencies in their work that give away their deception.

Real Low-level Laser therapy — note the still very visible glow from the laser!

What proof is there that Taopatch works?

There is no proof available showing that Taopatch contains functioning Quantum Dots, or any proof that it emits anything at all! — it appears to be a sham, or placebo device.

Only a few very poorly written studies that claim to show how improvements were found when people wear Taopatch, but when searching for information about the researchers, you end up discovering that many of the supposed authors do not appear to exist. Taopatch publishes a list of “research” on their website. Of the five links they offer publicly, lets quickly evaluate them:

1 Nano-technological devices in degenerative cerebral pathologies. Prospective study on 28 patients with multiple sclerosis. Read Study
2 Nanotechnology and Posture, from research to practical applications. Study with placebo comparison, control group on subjects with multiple sclerosis. Read Study
3 Improvement of Postural Reprogramming by a Nanotechnology Device. Read Study
4 Effects of nanotechnologies-based devices on postural control in healthy subjects. Double-blind randomized study. Read Study
5 Use of Taopatch nanotechnology for dental care in HCP subjects. Read Study
  1. Paper 1 was published in 2019, in a “complementary therapies” “scientific journal” for “training, information and professional news“, covering all healthcare professionals, including ” veterinarians”. Only 28 participants were involved in this laughable study. As for the authors? The study was supposedly conducted at Cannizzaro Hospital, but if you search their site, none of authors are recorded as working there (Alberto Lomeo, Giuseppe Cacciaguerra, Domenico Garsia, nor the venerable vascular surgeon Antonio Scolaro). Zero citations….
  2. Paper 2 is a 2015 “masters thesis” by three supposed doctors, but I could find no evidence that they are real people with a real research career. One of the authors, a Dr Gaetano Caldarera, even lists a paper from 1894 (“Potenza di una serie particolare”) as something they have self-authored! Zero citations since it was written five years ago. This paper is also FULL of plagiarism. For example:
    1. From the fake document:
    2. Plagiarised from this online article…
  3. Paper 3 was published in 2018, this time by some real authors, including dental expert Aurea Maria Immacolata Lumbau, and Russian biochemist Anna Shevchenko. This paper has results which are weak, and on the border of statistical significance. Regardless of the results, the paper is poorly written, and provides insufficient details to be reproduced. It is unclear whether a placebo was correctly used in this trial. Finally, Taopatch is not even mentioned in this article once!
  4. Paper 4 is behind a 45 Euro pay-wall, and so a detailed evaluation was not possible, but at least this one seems to have been written by real authors! Only 30 participants were involved in the study, but at least it sounds like the study was a randomised controlled trial. If someone can provide me a copy of this paper I will be happy to review it. Edit: I have been supplied this paper, and it is indeed a low quality study. No discussion of research ethics, no disclosures of conflicts of interest are just some of the obvious signs that this is a sham paper. The conclusions describe the results tentatively as “preliminary findings”. They even admit that “future investigations might provide further insight in the underlying mechanism”. Translation: we have no idea how this effect works.
  5. Paper 5 is not a paper at all, it is merely a poster. In their study, it does not appear a placebo was used.

 

EDIT: Since writing my article, TaoPatch has added new articles. Quick summary of the ones with links:

Paper 6: New paper behind paywall. From reading abstract, they compare TaoPatch to wearing a Mouth Guard, with similar results obtained for both. Interesting that this paper claims results were “immediate” when wearing TaoPatch or Mouth Guard.

Paper 7: A duplicate of paper 4.

Paper 8: A duplicate of paper 2.

Paper 9: Completely bogus article studying patches on plants. Does not disclose relationships with patch suppliers, and insufficient data provided to replicate claims. No details provided about specific types of nanoparticles used. Extremely weak conclusions – “results reported in this research suggest the possibility of […]”.

Review of Taopatch Literature

I am left unsatisfied by the literature offered by Taopatch, and the very low quality of some of these works indicates that Taopatch does not understand scientific rigour. Any company that offers a medical device needs to show that the product is not “snake oil”, and demonstrate that the product is better than a placebo effect. We know that the placebo effect is a real thing, and I fully believe that most of the positive reports about Taopatch are from genuine users. However, it my strong belief that this product appears to be a fake placebo product. The use of terms like “nanotechnology” and “quantum dots” without clarification are a big red flag, and I have seen these terms abused as a way to persuade non-scientific people that a product is ‘complicated’.

To those with MS looking at TaoPatch, please don’t be blinded by desperation! As much as you want a cure or solution, you need to stay sceptical if you don’t want to be fooled by products just like this.

I hope this post helps some people, and I am sorry I don’t have better hope to offer for those with MS.


P.S Still have doubts that this is a scam? Search for “Multiple Sclerosis Advanced Energy Patch”. These things (magic placebo patch treatments) are all over the place, this has just been supercharged with marketing energy from the team at Enventys Partners, just like they did for the Kailo scam

 

 

138 replies on “TaoPatch – Is it a scam?”

Thanks for your investigations. I was on the path of the biophotons being a pseudoscience. Everything looks really scammy indeed. I have MS and I have bought the superearlybird offer on indiegogo for $99,- This money I can loose just out of interest (maybe I am sensitive for placebo after all 🙂 They also sell a double pack for $999,- That’s real money. Thanks!

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Hey Abel, thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. I can certainly appreciate your open mindedness to try new technologies, and keen desire to support innovations. It really is a shame that TaoPatch doesn’t appear to be a true breakthrough for MS treatment. I wish you the best.

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In my time I have seen too many pseudo MS offers that never panned out. I’m glad you took the time to really evaluate this offer before throwing your money in their pocket! There will always be those that will take advantage of people that suffer with different medical issues

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I am Marie Heron. I have lived with M.S. since 1985. I host a podcast for people living with M.S. I have purchased the Taopatch. I will be recording my experience as evidenced based research for my Social media followers. I attended a webinar with the Taopatch team. I left feeling encouraged. Similar to statins being used on the U.K., the Taopatch people never developed their product for people living with M.S. They did however, study the best outcomes of the Samboni treatment. They isolated the process that enabled people with M.S. to regain their mobility, gait and posture.

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Dear Marie,

Thanks for your comment. I have watched one of their webinars, and I found it lacking in evidence. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to test things on ourselves objectively – we are all (including myself of course) susceptible to biases that cannot be avoided. This is the need for properly executed, double blind clinical trials. Taopatch claim to have done some of this, but their garbage-quality publications give away the fact that their science appears to be completely fraudulent.

I wish you the best with your trials, and I sincerely hope the science of M.S treatment continues to evolve and progress.
Kind regards,
Sam

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Love you did some real research! I have been published twice in medical journals and a total medical nerd. All published research has to go before a board of peers , verified and guidelines agreed upon to be accepted for legit publication…with that being said, according to you this product has zero EBP to back it up. I have seen videos of those that are using it with MS and having really good results. Sometimes even what you or I consider as quack medicine or placebo, happens to work miracles for some. So I say, what convinces the brain to work, affects the rest of the body. Regardless of EBP or anyone’s opinion. Namaste

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Hi Shana, Thanks for your comment. As I’m sure you’re aware, MS symptoms can vary over time for a range of reasons. In the absence of any evidence based science I would say the most likely reason is that the patches are placebo. I would be happy to analyse a TaoPatch sample (and measure the emitted wavelengths etc) if anyone would like to provide one, but I expect pigs will fly sooner than that happens! Best, Sam

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Dear Admin -strange name
Buy the product and do a testing on it to see what it omits instead of commenting on your personal perception of observance of what you think. Are you a scientist or professional PHD in the field?

If it works for some then, great. If not you can get your money back. personally I have felt results, as this is not a cure ,but an aid to help some people as all MS and Athletic people have many different symptoms.

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I am an Engineer, and hold a PhD. I work in the field of material science, with at least some experience in fields of spectroscopy, metal coatings, quantum mechanics, physical chemistry, to name a few.
I don’t have experience in the field of “nanotechnology” because there is no longer any such specific field — the word has been used and abused so that today it is largely just a marketing buzzword. Nanotechnology as a descriptor can be applied to many developments across a broad range of fields at that length scale. I would describe it as equivalent to someone in computers or IT saying “I work with electricity”.

Regarding your comments that I should buy one:
If I buy it, then I am giving them credit of being plausible. I don’t think their product is plausible.
If I buy it expecting a refund, I am giving them the credit of being trustworthy. I don’t believe they are trustworthy.
If I already have read their “science” and can see that it is bogus, then what need is there for further testing?
If many people here have said that they “don’t care if it is placebo or not”, then do you think they would change their mind if I bought one?
I already purchased the Kailo patch, and even then, people ignored my findings.

I’m here to caution people, and to hold up some red flags. If people want to ignore me, by all means, it’s their money.

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Thanks for straightening out the person about this sight Taopatch MS. I have tried many things tried CSVI a few times and had luck with that with limitation but am willing to do it again, as I had great result for 4 months at a time also a person said something about I believe Zamboni. that Dr was discredited on the trials in Canada there is documentary talking about it working with a DR in Mexico to try get a trial going so there can they can do paper on CSVI. as I believe in it and has to be brought back as it is no different then having a procedure on your heart

May I ask Lorraine — I’m aware of some valid criticisms of the FDA and the way they operate. Dr Fauci, I understand is controversial. Bill Gates though? What has he done to deserve to be lumped in with that group?

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My website is far too “rogue” to be suitable for sponsorship by big pharma, but I appreciate your recognition of my efforts. One man band, 100% independent.

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I saw the product on facebook. And never heard of it.My boyfriend has MS. And I have Myalgisk encefalomyelit and read it could help for fatigue, I have a lot of =) But then I read that only 28 person was in the study so I search on the net and found your website=) Thank you for all your work in this ,it gave me all the answer=)Sorry for wrong words but speak and write swedish =)and got ME =)

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I purchased the patch for parkinson’s it didn’t work for me. I returned it and have been waiting over a month for my money back. They keep making excuses. I contact my credit card company and hopefully they can get my money back for me.

Wow, where do you find this stuff? VoxxLife appears to also be a complete sham… Mark DeBrincat is a Chiro, not a medical doctor. Facebook group full of “testimonials”. Their own “paper” (that is neither peer reviewed nor published in a journal) says “The exact mechanisms of action of the Voxx sock foot pattern on the somatosensory system are currently unknown”. No placebo testing… 😆

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i had my hopes raised by a treatment called simplytreatment they have since changed their name ,i think to body tec they had a previous name to , they offered me a treatment to treat fibro 4 day day treatment of 2hrs a go worked out around £1000 , i booked it they when their site was down for several weeks i questioned them they pulled my appointment and were really rude ,its heartbreaking that these fake companies can offer hope to people who are really suffering and get away with it ,,even thou many had warned me it was a scam , i still would have tried it because am sick of being in pain and sick and a little hope is better than no hope until yr their you have no idea how it feels ,

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I was pretty sure that Voxx was a scam, I had seen it on sharks den, and couldn’t figure out how it worked. Then my wife saw some Voxx socks at an MS conference and they were relatively cheap. She bought a set, and it was amazing. Prior to wearing the socks, she could walk 2 , maybe 3 blocks without stopping, resting and using her cane. The first day she walked 7 blocks nonstop to her physiotherapist. She made it in 1/4 of her usual time, arriving early. Blew me away, she says it might be a placebo effect, but it works for her. She continued getting great results for 3 months, then fell and got a concussion, and was no longer able to work. When she stopped working, she stopped wearing socks of any kind. The concussion affected her balance and she had more trouble walking. She went for vestibular therapy, and it really helped her walking. I am not a fan of pseudo science, but Voxx worked for my wife, maybe placebo effect. But vestibular therapy is real, and it helped just as much, and I urge people with balance issues to talk to their doctors, and see if they might benefit from it.

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Hey Bob, I am aware of the Voxx life products — again, there is ZERO evidence I could find of any scientific evidence on voxxlife. Completely non-existent! The CEO, Jay Dhaliwal, gives a number of talks “demoing” the HPT Patch, but there is ZERO information provided about what there is in the patch that could influence things in this way. Based on this, and the absence of any plausible methods of operation, I would have to agree and call this placebo — and again, as you mention, some people may still see improvements with placebos! Vestibular therapy is certainly a real thing however, and I’m glad to hear that it helped your wife. All the best Bob. Cheers, Sam

Wow I’m impressed With this website and it’s about time that people that are educated in this kind of area did some research I can’t believe all the scams out there. There are people out there that are taking a advantage of the people who are desperately sick. Happy New Years

I tried the voxxlife stuff and it exacerbated my symptoms to the point where I was having continuous spasms and my entire body was in pain. The minute I took them off it started to recede. The reps were adamant that I had to put up with the pain to ‘break through’ and I would feel the benefits. Tried again – same thing happened. Straight in the bin after that. The fact that they also claim their stuff cures autism as well is disgusting.
But when you see products like voxxlife and Taopatch offering help when you’re being refused treatment by places the NHS it does make you desperate to reach out and try anything. In some ways what do you have to lose – other than money and hope?

Outstanding summary and thorough research! (I had not even thought to look up the authors of the papers to make sure that they were real people … I just assumed that they were, but was quite unimpressed by the so-called publications for their lack of scientific or statistical rigor. They do not show the results of the “control sample”, nor describe their experimental design (for example, what was the protocol for those in the control sample? What insurances were taken that they were treated exactly in the same way as the patch-wearers? Were those studies conducted in a double-blind manner? At least in a single-blind manner?)

Feel free to include here the back-of-envelope calculations I provided on the FB group page demonstrating that the available energy provided by the human body is insufficient to power these patches to levels required by ultra-low-level-laser therapy devices.

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Thank you so much for this in depth review. For months I have been thinking about trying this product but something kept telling me to hold off and wait for more information. Your research sounds like that of a research journalist. Everything was based on facts you have acquired and not your opinions which is what I was looking for. I appreciate this information which helps me to make a well informed decision.

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Yet Samuel refuses to review this years PubMed reviews or to try this himself for free.

If you have MS you realise that no tests or trials mean anything. It either works for you or it doesn’t.

TaoPatch lets you try it on yourself. If it doesn’t give you relief, the give you a refund.

How can that possibly be a scam?

If you are worried you won’t receive a refund, just pay with a Credit Card or PayPal who guarantee the refund.

What have you got to lose? Whilst you are reading others opinions which have no bearing on your MS, you may be missing out on relief!

It’s your life. Decide what you want-to know this is a confirmed MS cure: or to know this works for YOU?

Be well🤔

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Dear Adrian,
Sorry, which paper did I refuse to review? Being on PubMed does not make a paper credible… we both know that.

Really? So science has nothing to offer for MS? So, if you have MS, then placebo products are your only hope? Is that seriously your stance? What’s the point of MS research and associated trials?

Yes, everyone is welcome to buy it and try and see if a PLACEBO works on them… and pray that they uphold the refunds, which are NOT provided for indigogo backers “because that’s the only way we can make the price so much cheaper”. Keep pushing that dead horse… no need to respond to anything I’ve shown that discredits TaoPatch and their sham operations….

Adrian – Do you dare me to buy a patch, and run it through my lab and really see what kind of emissions it actually puts out? You tell me what I should study, give me a real challenge. Not just this nonsense about “just believeeeee” and give TaoPatch money. I did it for Kailo, I’ll do it again if the community wants it.

Best👨‍🔬
Sam

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I think that you should buy them, try them, and then write a proper experienced-based review. You obviously have the proper background – both academically and (I presume) with having some sort of personal with experience multiple sclerosis. It would be of the kind of value that all of us wondering about the legitimacy of this product, one way or the other, desire. It would be interesting too, if you find that these patches do nothing, and you decide to seek getting your money refunded – one of the big selling points, your experience there would be valuable too.

Here is me advising you how to spend your money.
Presumptuous, I know. Sorry!
(But I still think it is a good idea, ho, ho!)

D B

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Hi Dee,

Thanks for your comment. 🙂 I actually don’t have any personal experience with MS, but I am confident I could find someone if that would help. However, a personal experience would simply be an anecdote – and we don’t really base our science on simple case studies of one person (they call these “n of 1 studies”) as it is very hard to do controlled double blind testing on yourself effectively.

I have considered buying a patch to examine the device and see what frequencies (if any!) does it emit when heated to normal body temperature, and how strong the emission is. Maths (the pesky ‘laws of physics’) tells me that even if the patch worked 100% efficiently, and even if it worked at all, there is simply not enough heat energy coming off the body in a single coin sized circle to generate anywhere near the kind of energy required to make something like this work. But experience tells me that those who have stubbornly made up their mind wouldn’t disbelieve in the patch even if taopatch themselves admitted it was a fake… so I don’t know how much of a need there is to ‘preach to the converted’ so to speak.

Cheers,
Sam

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Hi, my husband had HSCT in 2017 which many doctors still believe is hocus pocus.
He ordered the Taopatch 3 months ago and can now lift his leg off the ground when lying down..he can walk and kick his leg up behind…he could never do that before..
So we dont really care if its placebo or hocus pocus..it works…

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Likewise, if it’s “working” for you, I don’t care if it is placebo or not — hurray! 🙂
Unfortunately, I just can’t recommend it to others without concrete evidence that it is better than taking sugar pills.

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Adrian is a plant from taopatch who infiltrates ms groups and encourages people to buy the scam. I’ve tangled with him after I reviewed taopatch “research” and informed the group of my findings. John, PhD research methods (retired). Ppms 20 years

I for one would actually like to see what you find. Provided the testing process was properly documented and done with the least possible prejudice. I’m sure lots of people would appreciate this if you have the time. You could turn it into a short documentary that people would easily be able to find while searching for TaoPach testimonials on YouTube.

Please describe in detail your affiliation with taopatch. Your employment by taopatch and any financial relationship should be disclosed to readers of your comments. You are not a neutral commenter as per your previous comments advocating taopatch on the Facebook light therapy group.

Thanks for your investigative efforts! I was intrigued by the TaoPatch but was sceptical, especially after reading Maria Konnikova’s wonderful book ‘The Confidence Game. Why We Fall for It…Every Time’ (2016). Over the years I have put a lot of money and hope into things that in the end proved useless (not all were scams, and some may have proved useful had I used them more systematically).

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iv spent thousands over the yrs for improvement of my fibromyalgia alsorts of gadgets and supplements and treatments and nothing has worked i had 4 yrs of acupuncture did nothing bought a massage pad from a medical company was dreadful to use and made me worse cost a £1000 , i had reflex , tapping, chiropractor , and so much more and am still no better off , the last 5 yrs been learning about the vagus nerve and i truly believe thats were so many problems like MS FIBRO chrons stem from ,HOW TO GO ABOUT GETTING the proper treatment of the vagus nerve is another thing esp in the UK

Hi. I found your site by first following a link for the Kalio patch read the site saw the prices, did further research about it to see what exactly it was and how it supposedly works. Your article was very informative. I also followed to your website and saw this other article about the patch for MS. It’s really a crime for people to try and make money off of sick and desperate people who have to live with chronic pain. The idea if it was actually studied and tested sounds promising in the hands of legit scientists and medical research, I myself have Rheumatoid Disease since 2009 and the mind numbing pain some days is unreal, I take medications for it the list of serious side effects is scary, I’ve tried different pain medications and they don’t completely get rid of the pain and the ones that probably do would probably put me in a stupor unable to function. All any of us who suffer from chronic pain is relief from it and to be able to function again. The claims are tempting but my first thought was if this was legit you would need a prescription and to be handled by a doctor to find the right area in your body to work on your pain.

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OK, I hear you but TaoPatch has never held itself out to be a cure or even a medical device. It is something that was developed to enhance the body and mind for users who wanted a little extra.

It was fluke they found out it can assist with MS sufferers. TaoPatch are merely saying, look we have found something which may help you to feel better. You can try it and return it for a full refund if you are not delighted. No questions asked!

The research evidence is extremely weak and is really based on the safety of the technology.

It is impossible to really tell if something works for MS patients or not. HWich is precisely why they ask you ton give it a go and return it if it is not for you.

I genuinely believe they are trying to bring some relief to MS sufferers. Would it be better if they didn’t tell people they knew of something which MAY make you feel better?

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Thanks for your comment Adrian.

TaoPatch has never held itself out to be a cure or even a medical device. It is something that was developed to enhance the body and mind for users who wanted a little extra. […] The research evidence is extremely weak and is really based on the safety of the technology.

So what you’re saying is, TaoPatch fits the very definition of a placebo device?

A placebo (pluh-SEE-bow) is a substance or other kind of treatment that looks just like a regular treatment or medicine, but is not. It’s actually an inactive “look-alike” treatment or substance. This means it’s not a medicine.

That’s all I want to bring to people’s attention. That there’s no proof this is better than a placebo device, and a lot of disingenuous sham “research” that they are pushing as evidence.

Thank you again for taking the time to comment. By all means, people are welcome to spend their money however they like, and placebo effect or not – if they feel that burning money rolled into a cigar shape helps reduce their pain, why not go for it!

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Why would it be “burning money” if you have a guaranteed money back no questions if you are unhappy.

I have tried many things to assist with my MS. I don’t care if this is a Placebo or not, so long as I feel better by using it, that is all I need.

But seems somewhat unfair to call it a Placebo when so many users are benefiting with it?

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I don’t care if this is a Placebo or not, so long as I feel better by using it, that is all I need.

I know, and I understand the desperation for something to help. It may not matter to you that , but it matters to me, as surely we both agree that there are plenty of snake-oil products out there — and it is important to verify that we are not participating in recommending a scam.

But seems somewhat unfair to call it a Placebo when so many users are benefiting with it?

No, this is a logical fallacy — the placebo effect is surprisingly strong! A study showed a placebo was 50% as effective as a real pain relief drug! So in one sense, for those people it wasn’t a scam, but the reality is that they were deliberately deceived into paying $100 for nothing more than a piece of plastic. A number of users in the facebook group are finding extremely weak or negligible improvements. It is the job of TaoPatch to organise double blind clinical testing, and their refusal to do that is a HUGE red flag to any buyers.

‘Money back policy’ + ‘no placebo testing’ is the classic recipe that all these scams seem to follow. Even when they pay money back, the small amount of people for whom the placebo effect will offer some benefit, is still plenty enough to make them big bucks!

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not to memtion that this “company” is actually *failing* to provide refunds to unsatisfied customers. The FB group has one or 2 posts describing the need to constantly remind/email/plead with the company to get their refund. Some odd things have also been described such as the customer paid for the patches via credit card, and the company claimed they could not refund to the credit card and instead needed the customer’s PayPal account info to credit the money there. And then, what should have been an instantaneous refund to PayPal ended up taking a couple of days (and then, only by the customer constantly staying on top of it). I have heard from at least 2 people that the company requires submission on before/after videos before they will consoder providing refund. Many do not make videos, and more importortantly, the company has zero right to demand such personal property of the customer, not to mention the highly subjective process of having the company view the videos and assess whether or not signs of improvement were present. The notion thay this company provides trouble free refunds is a lie that is being told as part of the scam .

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Placebo or not, it is difficult to pin down the protocol progress. I have MS, it has not worked at all for me I am also a physician and non of my recommended patients have experienced results other than ‘hope’ that didn’t help. As a ‘shrink’ I avoid magical thinking for my patients but sometimes a little hope with a money back g., is ok. I don’t think it is intentional deceit – it may have helped very few MSrs – more just magical thinking by all involved. Unfortunate.

Has anyone here tried the patch, found it failed them then successfully gotten a refund? Did the makers hold true to their policy?

Adrian you can get your army to block me here. Adrian, you stated it’s was a cure for MS – lies and literally NO proof what so ever
You then decided it stopped the progression of MS, again nothing to back that up. You are fully aware the only treatment that stops MS progressing is HSCT and I for one am so surprised a Man in your situation who claims to have a legal background couldn’t gather up the funds to have HSCT done and be done with it as opposed to pushing this onto innocent people who will try anything that they are told will work. You know rightly we had purchased 40 for the charity I work for and yes we all used for the full duration and do you know how many are still wearing them 0 – no refunds as bough through that other agency. So don’t go preaching refund in 90 days. The agents are cheaper, that’s where people will go but the agent forget to advise the fund doesn’t fall there. It’s null and void. Adrian I honestly don’t think you know what your talking about, your a Taopatch pawn, nobody from Taopatch will make any public comments in writing yet you will on their behalf – alarm bell number 1
Alarm bell 2 – non of the research has been on MS patients bar 2 or had the quick trial during lockdown been completed and published? Yet they proclaim so much success with MS patients – where when only 2 where among the very weak trial and research papers. Adrian you where part of a group that had me kicked out of the Facebook group for a number of reasons
1 I wrote honest review / it done absolutely nothing for me
2 you advised me I never asked you say question – I showed the questions. You always want to take the conversation quiet – away to private so nobody else can hear or see what your saying then denied it
3 you actually asked me for advise on writing up new notes for the group which is run like a page – totally backward with no structure what so ever and dare you say one bad word against Taopatch, you get the boot. Then again you denied ever asking for help. I though you wanted honestly, well your not being honest when you done all of the above & then denied it. I questioned so many things and nobody could answer so our charity where no way going to recommend a product with no testing or research. Who in their right mind would and get you continue to say – it works it just does. I wouldn’t be happy with that if I went to purchase any other medical or well-being device. Trials. Evidence & proof.
As stated the developer of the Taopatch needs to get his facts correct, dates don’t add up, his name is not know on any postings or publications until June 2020, oh hold on that’s this year, the year it hit Facebook. Everybody knows the products you purchase on Facebook are a big NO NO, usually manufactured in China and have little or no correction to them. I will admit however your walking has improved somewhat slightly when you see the videos, your gait urgently requires attention. Your foot drop still remains so not all has miraculously gone with these 3 little patches. The energy / heat produced from these 3 parched would not have the power to resolve a pain in your little finger if the truth be told. Make your minds up what the product is for, MS or Fibromyalgia now you are advertising? If the product is that good, 1000’s more Dr’s sports therapists would be involved. Where is all the feedback from the previous sold 500,000 units? Key Taopuinto google and 2019/2020 is the 1st time it’s mentioned. Your just living a dream Adrian with the hope that if you generate enough sales Taopatch may donate funds to your own charity in the U.K. You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours. You continue to be the voice of Taopatch and when someone decides to challenge guess who will be left to deal with it – the little unpaid volunteer who speaks answers questions – do you honestly think Taopatch will acknowledge you then – wise up. For someone whom is supposed to come from a legal background you really don’t see what’s in front of you. Very very sad. You come back to me with proof that Taopatch can communicate with the end of a damaged nerve? Impossible yet you continue to attempt to convince people it can do everything. It’s the same people on the group who are singing its praises. Or bear the latest it works for a month. They ask you on the group, drink more water, you are not a medical professional and should know that drinking large amounts of water (now I’m not talking gallons here) can be dangerous to people with MS if there are bladder issues as it weakens the bladder wall the more the bladder is stretching hence causing Infections but that doesn’t bother you, it works it just does! I’d be asking for some serious evidence of its success with these previous 500,000 people and not their word especially when the developer doesn’t know how to complete his profile information corrects, completely different dates that are published.

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I suggest that if you want to see what is really going on with the Taopatch and MS that rather than go by whatever Samuel has to say that you join this Facebook group and see what real people with MS have to say and report about the Taopatch.
We have no reason to lie, and all comments are included, good or bad.

(Note: Link to Facebook group removed by Sam. This is not free ad space for TaoPatch, users can search if they want to find the group. Besides, if TaoPatch want to promote TaoPatch for MS treatment … then I think they need to go and try get FDA approval first… 🙄)

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Yes, by all means! Join the group and you too can be convinced of the power of the placebo effect! 🤦‍♂️I’m sorry for the snarky comments – I know that people are desperate for a solution. Unfortunately, if it really worked, then there would be scientific papers galore — millions of MS sufferers worldwide would love relief. But there aren’t.

As for reasons to lie – there are plenty of people out there who are desperate enough to lie to themselves all the time.

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And as any person suffering with MS knows, all the investigation in the world cannot help a single sufferer. Only by an MS trying something can they really decide if it makes them feel better.

And with a full refund if you are not happy, no questions, this has got to be the best win/win of my 38 years of MS.

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False again. Yes, some therapies may not work for everybody, but therapies that target root causes tend to be highly effective for the overwhelming majority.

Psychosomatic conditions can be exceptions, and pain science is complex, but the benefit of being properly diagnosed is that this way you can be treated with MS-specific therapies.

I hope that science in these areas will continue to progress, but buying a placebo product is just sheer desperation, money back policy or not.

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I hate to jump into this argument but my husband has had ms for 38 years. Nothing, I repeat, nothing except for 4ap has ever really helped in the last 20 years. Some things work for some people and for others not at all. If something works for anyone, that’s all that’s important.

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Dear Debbie,
Thanks for your comment. It was not my intention that these comments become a place for arguments, as that is unwelcoming, and doesn’t serve anybody well.

It may just be that what we know as “MS” could actually be multiple different diseases with different causes, and different corresponding treatment routes, even though they may appear to have common symptoms. For this reason, the fact that something “works for some people and not for others” is not a major problem in my mind. What does matter is that for those that it does work on, it works measurably better than a placebo pill.

You mentioned 4AP, a drug prescribed for MS to assist with mobility. Unlike TaoPatch, 4AP has been clinically tested to show benefits, and a 2014 review of 4AP described this drug as “easy and safe to use”, and that “Slow release 4-AP shows more robust clinical effects and a more beneficial side-effect profile than immediate release 4-AP”. Yes, there is more we have to learn about MS and about 4AP, but there has been a valid effort to apply the established methods of scientific discovery to critically evaluate the effectiveness of this drug, long before it is prescribed to patients.

Contrary to the claims on their website, TaoPatch has not undergone any such close scientific scrutiny, and I want this fact to be clearly communicated to those who are considering it.

It’s certainly a sign of care that you are continually looking out for new options that may improve your husband’s quality of life. I really wish you and your husband the best.
Kind regards,
Sam

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Hi Debbie
What is 4ap and how is it obtained please? I have PPMS so always searching for something that works for me

Thanks for your response Adrian. You are right, with MS people have to try and see what works for them. I have NMO which is similar to MS. I heard baclofen and lyrica- well researched meds were useful for controlling spasms. None of these worked for me, and I had terrible side effects. Eventually settled for a different drug. It may take time before Taopatch is approved by FDA, but if it has been helpful in some instances, then persons should be allowed to try and see what works for them. Autoimmune diseases are still being researched and it isn’t one size fits all yet. Dr. Wahls found a diet that was not yet researched that helped her symptoms and she too has been accused of false messaging. But it has helped her and as such she wants to help other people. Not every medication that is well researched and fda approved is beneficial and not every treatment that is not well researched without fda approval is harmful or fake.

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Laurel, I agree with most of what you said. What I am saying is that people need to be aware of the placebo effect, which is stronger than people are willing to accept. Buying TaoPatch “to see if it helps”, is playing right into their hands. You are putting yourself at risk of paying $200 to charlatans who are selling you a placebo. For some people, they are desperate enough that they don’t care if it is a fake placebo, or a real treatment — if they experience any improvement, in their mind it is worth it. I have no hope of changing their mind.

What I am trying to do is to give an answer to the question: is there credible scientific evidence that TaoPatch is not a placebo? The answer is a resounding NO.

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If you want to get around the paywall of most research papers you can reach out to the researchers directly and they will often be happy to send you the paper. The paywall is typically from a third party publisher, iirc.

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Yes, however — I can’t find contact information for the authors of the paper, and only 3 or 4 of them even appear to exist in the real world!

For whatever use it is, considering science has no idea what MS is-so every test has to be subjective! Here is where you will find the research on Light Therapy in Medicine as invented by Albert Einstein. ( By the way, he is dead so you won’t find any papers by him.)

2013 Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis With Chinese Scalp Acupuncture

Every morning I wake up and groggily peal 5 Taopatches off my body, stick then on a plastic card with double sided tape, put the card in a hat, put on hat for an hour before I shower. I had to take it on faith that the Taopatch folks had done their research that this works for MS, and today I found some specifics.
We can look for explanation of Taopatch effects through studies on Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) but this method is just now getting published for MS, but with promising results. The acupoints used in LLLT are based on needle acupuncture. I haven’t done a wide search on this, and I will later, but the very first paper that came up answered so much. Confirms that the acupoints on your head can affect symptoms far away, like numb feet. This paper is a 1 person case study:
– 65-year-old male patient, MS for 20 years with many symptoms.
– After the 16 treatments, all symptoms resolved. As of Nov 2013 publication, patient in remission 26 months.
Best of all, looks like if you have 3 Taopatch, you can do the Pyramid just fine by putting them in a straight line over the top of head acupoints. There are diagrams of the points, and this excerpt explains what parts of the body and symptoms they treat.
…recent studies have shown that scalp acupuncture can be a very effective modality in controlling MS. Scalp acupuncture often produces remarkable results after just a few needles are inserted. It usually relieves symptoms immediately, and sometimes in just several minutes noticeable results are achieved. Scalp acupuncture areas should be chosen according to the patient’s particular symptoms. The primary acupuncture areas for patients with motor problems such as paralysis, weakness of limbs, or abnormal sensations in limbs, including tingling, numbness, or pain, are the motor area, sensory area, and foot motor and sensory area. Those areas should be inserted with needles and stimulated unilaterally or bilaterally, according to the patient’s manifestations. Select the balance area or dizziness area of the scalp, depending on which symptom(s) the patient exhibits. The tremor area of the head should be chosen if patients have limb spasm. Many patients have a very quick positive response in controlling urine and bowel functions when the foot motor and sensory area is stimulated.
Chinese scalp acupuncture is a contemporary acupuncture technique with just 40 years of history. It integrates traditional Chinese needling methods with Western medical knowledge of the cerebral cortex and has been proven to be a very effective technique …

NCBI.NLM.NIH.GOV
Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis With Chinese Scalp Acupuncture
Chinese scalp acupuncture is a contemporary acupuncture technique with just 40 years of history. It integrates traditional Chinese needling methods with Western medical knowledge of the cerebral cortex and has been proven to be a very effective technique …

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Dear Adrian,

I am no ‘believer’ in acupuncture (a pseudoscience with no evidence). The article you cited is a study of only one individual, which is already enough for me to ask for more substantial evidence. Regardless, I will acknowledge that this is far outside of my scope of expertise, and am willing to keep an open mind in such areas, and await further proof.

I will not however, be so gracious to TaoPatch and their claims. Their product makes a number of demonstrably testable claims as an active medical device — specifically, the claim that the device emits light, using thermal energy sourced from the body, and upconverted in frequency by quantum nanoparticles.

I am a material scientist. It would be relatively trivial to take a TaoPatch, place it on a electronic heater, and to acquire a full spectrum of emitted light from this device with the heater on and off. This would conclusively prove the first hurdle of whether TaoPatch actually has ANY quantum-active nanoparticles, and would be a simple way to discredit “unbelievers” like myself.

I await proof from this company, but I will admit — I’m not planning to hold my breath.

Best,
Sam

Tell you what, one better, why don’t you give it a try ? Follow the three suggested tests of body movement, before and after. Then you can give your opinion, unless you would be subject to placebo because you really want it to work?

If you don’t feel better, then return it within 60 days for a full refund.

That way you will be able to write from actual experience of the product and of the refund promise.

I am sure you know how to order on Amazon. I look forward to reading your informed view of TaoPatch.

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Dear Adrian,

Please… you take me for a fool? MS patients are often desperate, and to prey on the psyche of the vulnerable to “just give it a go”, is unconscionable.

Even if I did buy it, you know as well as I do, that the best I could offer is anecdotal evidence — FAR from the gold standard of a double blind clinical trial.

The proof I am demanding is entirely obtainable through practical scientific tests, and should have been provided by TaoPatch long ago.

The burden of proof and validation certainly does not fall on my shoulders!

I mean, really, TaoPatch is well over 5 years old, and yet still does not have a clinical trial?

Best,
Sam

TaoPatch is not interested in providing clinical tests. For the same reasons that acupuncturist don’t bother. It is entirely subjective.

Einstein said the future of Medicine was light frequencies.

In Europe and US it is correctly called a Medical Device, but, accepted, no so in the UK.

Investigative journalism requires your personal assessment. Because TaoPatch advertises itself as Body Enhancement FOR EVERYONE , you owe it to your readers to test it yourself.

Again, this is not suggested to be a cure for MS I or anything else. Rather a body enhancer for everyone, so there is no reason not to test it out yourself?

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Come on….

Wow, how convenient for them that they are “not interested”! Entirely subjective? Sounds very scientific indeed…

I most certainly do NOT owe my readers the potentially misleading and unreliable anecdotal experience of one single person… the goal of my “investigative journalism” is simply to dig up the evidence (where it exists…), and then to dissect and separate the wishful claims from the scientifically validated hard facts.

I’m sorry to say Adrian, but as a representative of TaoPatch, in my opinion you have quite clearly revealed the true unscientific nature of the product, that the emperor has no clothes! All evidence points to this being a placebo patch.

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And you, sir, have revealed your lack of professionalism as an investigative journalist.

The difference is, I will still be helping people relieve their suffering, you will always merely be merely negativity.

Yur views are very welcome but in this case where the ONLY question is how TaoPatch helps the user, unless you are prepared to be that subject, your journalism is fatally flawed, sorry.

BTW I do have my NUJ membership, do you?

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I’m quite willing to be attacked for being too critical; when people resort to ad hominem attack on character, it simply reveals that they have no other argument to make.

It’s you who called me a journalist – what Adrian giveth, Adrian can taketh too. No skin off my nose.

Thankfully, I’m a scientist, not a journalist; I’m not content with being asked to just “believe” the marketing that it just magically works, when all the other evidence suggests it breaks the laws of physics (specifically around laws of thermodynamics).

You have also presented a logical fallacy – if TaoPatch actually is 100% a placebo, in your eyes, does that still means the product is valuable? Sure, we can agree that any relief for people is better than no relief, but at what cost? It sounds like you would still see a placebo as something to recommend to people to “try for themselves”, whereas I would draw a hard line there as I am not interested in promoting snake oil under any circumstances. This is why it was so important to me to find out if there is any credible evidence that TaoPatch is not just a placebo.

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Why does your site reference “research” that has zero evidence of efficacy, is not published in peer reviewed journals and has no connection to ms? Your comments suggest research doesn’t matter yet your employers (taopatch) are touting it as a selling point for your scam product.

When I saw the ad for Taopatch I laughed, I thought they were a joke. I spent $99 and tried them, and I was wrong. They worked. I have MS with very very poor balance. Could not walk tie to toe straight line. 15 min after wearing the Taopatchs I was walking a straight line. If it is placebo the it has been working for the past 2 weeks!

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Dear Will,

I don’t dispute your story — it’s great to hear that you have some improvement in your symptoms at the moment, and for your sake, I hope these results continue.

  • I wish the laws of physics would permit an explanation for how this product might even plausibly work.
  • I wish that there were credible studies showing that taopatch does emit any kind of measurable signal, and is not a placebo.
  • I wish that there were independant double blind clinical trials demonstrating the effectiveness of taopatch on MS patients.
  • I wish that this product was effective enough that every MS person who tried it had positive results.

But alas, in all cases, I come up short.

Please keep us informed on your progress.
Best,
Sam

Hi,
they posted last study https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32744040/ – perhaps your ref ‘Paper 6’? – which again avoids to actually test their claims: “The tests were performed in the following order: at the baseline (no treatments), and after having applied the bite alone, the occlusal splint and Taopatch® devices together, and the Taopatch® devices alone.” hence no control test (i.e. with a same-looking&feeling yet inert patch). Of course you can read such stuff for “You can access the full text of this article (PDF and HTML if available) for 2 days at a price of: € 85,00.” – that’s part of the business model – the lay buys the patch the prof buys the paper.

Patent, anyone? the US site says “Taopatch is a device, patented by Fabio Fontana, which combines light therapy and most cutting-edge Nanotechnology currently available globally. Impossible to be replicated, it is waterproof, indestructible and has a shelf life of two and a half years once applied. ” whereas the home IT site doesn’t mention any patent. Worldwide patent search for the 2 co-founder yields nothing seemingly related. And, of course it’s ‘unreproducible, indestructible’ yet lasts some 2 ys once applied (2ys is the required warranty period in IT).

So it may or may not do something on you base on who you are, like acupuncture and other stuff that act as some targeted stimulus (pressure, pinch, stretch, …) – forget the nano-quantum-light smoky things, take any ‘band-aid’ patch put a bump in the center and voilà, you get the same ‘device’ for a few pennies rather than hndreds bucks (beware though that the price tag may be part of the placebo-effect game – “it’s costly hence it must be effective” …)

Beyond that, it’s faith.

cheers

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Visit Admin Edit: Advertising links removed. for the website. Facebook removed
 
Or if you join the Facebook user group removed you will get a $25 discount off PRO.
 
Be well.
 

Don’t buy a placebo product and save a whopping 100%! With money back guarantee if no improvements occur! Don’t delay, avoid a scam and save your money today!

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A friend put me on to Tao patch as I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis earlier this year.
I have to admit I was excited when I first saw it but luckily their advertising campaign is so obviously a scam.
They post links to orphaned papers not in english as their evidence and don’t even attempt to summarise how the patch is supposed to work.

They offer a tao patch and a tao patch pro. I can’t think of a legitamate medical device that would bother doing that. Do they sell insulin and ultra expensive insulin pro?

The advertising is just entirely in the style of an daytime infomercial. All these amazed people saying how great it is and footage of people wobbling, then not wobbling. No attempt to explain anything beyond buzz words like “nano… science… quantum…” and claims of making you 2.5x stronger etc.

This isn’t just a look at me I’m so smart I wasn’t fooled. This is just to highlight some of the tactics that snake oil salespeople often use. The worst one here was that until I recieved medication for MS I was wobbling like the people in the video and I know what it feels like and that you would try anything to get out of that and that’s why I think theyre evil scumbags for exploiting people’s desperation. If it was called magic spirit walk patch and retailed for $5 then no problem. This is the amount of money someonecould buy some equipment they could actually use or treatments that are proven to help them with MS.

If you have a 90 day money back guarantee if you do not feel it is helping you, please explain how this is a scam?

And you cannot say they will not refund the money because Credit Cards and PayPal guarantee the refund!

All Taopatch are saying is they have invented something, NOT for MS. Tested it for 7 years in Italy and they discovered it works for relieving MS symptoms. Test it yourself and if you are not feeling substantial benefits within 90 days you get a full refund.

How can this be a scam? Who is getting scammed?

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Lay off it Adrian… you’re pulling straw-men arguments out of thin air.
Facts: TaoPatch claim things that they do not have proof for. No evidence exists to show TaoPatch is not just a placebo.

The scam is that people buy TaoPatch expecting that this will be their pain relief buddy forever. Sure, we both know that some people may get some relief in the short term (thanks to the placebo effect) but in many cases people soon discover that the pain returns and the patches do nothing. People like you then tell them “just drink more water” … “try repositioning the patches” … “do the detox routine”… “keep trying”… and by then, the money back guarantee may have expired, and you move on to the next suckers.

I personally guarantee anyone who works with me to improve their use of Taopatch, NO METTER HOW LONG IT TAKES is still able to access the money back guarantee.

So who is scamming who?

Well played … not sure if you’re bluffing, but that’s an interesting offer for sure! All I can say is, I hope people finding it ineffective take you up on it…

However, it still doesn’t change the fact that based on what I have seen, I am still certain it is a placebo… 🤷‍♂️

Brilliant objectivity and critical thinking that only a person of science can collect, aggregate and disseminate to laypersons in a concise and impactful manner. Please come to the U.S and help us! Oh wait, you cannot, for our government does not “believe” in science (much to the detriment of our society)…

My mum, who doesn’t have MS but severe back problems and struggles to balance, has been recommended this device by her psychotherapist. My parents went there with all the medical documentation, scans, examinations from orthopedic… they didn’t event take a look at it. It’s now four months of visits, no improvement, continuous suggestions of changing the position of the patches, now she needs to place them on her head on a sort of cap. After four falls in two weeks (despite struggling to balance, she had never fallen before) she has decided to stop using them, and her balance has improved, no falls since two weeks. I staid away from all of this – I was highly skeptical, convinced it was a scam – because I didn’t want to crush my mum’s hope, but I’m happy that she has decided to stop. As for the people who ask: “How can it be a scam if there is money back guarantee?” my parents now don’t want to go through the hassle of discussing with them… My mum especially is not very confrontational and doesn’t want to address this. So, if some people benefit from it because of the placebo effect, and if some of the people for which it doesn’t work don’t want to try and get the money back, they get their profit… I remember reading about a woman who was claiming to be able to find the sex of unborn children and getting a small fee for that. She would refund the fee after birth if her guess was wrong – obviously, she was correct half of the time and she could make money out of this system!

All my wishes go to the people who suffer and are trying anything to get better. I can see how chronic pain is affecting my mum.

Dear Chiara, thank you so much for taking the time to tell your story. I really appreciate your comment. Kind regards, Sam

I’m a Certified Personal Trainer…
I don’t have MS.

Also, i have no association with Taopatch company/associates… none whatsoever.

I got and tried the product to make personal assessment about its effect.

It produces noticeable effect on my body, so it does function, at the very least.

It’s effect as described seems to be plausible (converting heat into light frequency) since my peripheral nervous system (PNS) senses its stimuli. There is no signature with these stimuli (i.e., not targeted to autogenic or non-autogenic tissue), from my own observations, but this is not a clinical paper.

However, what seems clear is that “my senses” are noticeably heightened. Proprioception is improved while performing manual tasks, hand-eye coordination exercises and sports. In fact, to relax, it’s best for me to remove the one pad. Effect subsides after 1-2 hours, in my case.

My feedback is that the stimuli can be useful for “sluggish PNS” subjects, and may be worth some amount of personal trial, per doctor-patient review of possible pros and cons in each case.

I got a 3-pack, but only need one at a time. It is less intense on my back, between shoulder blades (vs on my sternum).

Anyway, all this is to say that there is something there… further, it may be useful to various folks… it’s NOT a useless ripe-off as your article seems to suggest.

Have you at least tried it once or twice???

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If there is a measurable effect of any kind, then there should be no trouble running a proper clinical trial with double blind placebo testing. There should also be no problem measuring the effect of this patch from a scientific perspective. However, neither of these things have been done. Until we do double blind placebo testing, I challenge anyone who says this is not a placebo to prove it.

If we’re going to make decisions about our health based on what some guy on Facebook says a lot of people will be parted from their money. The reason why we gave scientifically rigorous processes due determining efficacy is precisely because if scams like taopatch and the placebo effect.

Thank you for your research. I have ms and, although I was sceptical, I purchased the patches. When you have this disease you’ll try anything. I stared using the patches expecting nothing. My husband noticed that my balance improved. I was able to walk short distances without support, which had become impossible. I was still sceptical of the placebo effect, so I wasn’t convinced. The defining day was when I thought I had put on the patches after my shower. I hadn’t. We went to breakfast at a local dinner. I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t walk. I was very dizzy, I had reduced muscle control of my legs, and I was exhausted doing very little. I almost crawled in from the car. I finally reached behind my neck and realized the patch was missing. I checked the other two and they were also missing. After applying them, my symptoms eased. I’m convinced.

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I have been using Taopatches since early July 2020 and absolutely love them. They are not a cure but they have made significant improvements to my MS and I wouldn’t be without them. My osteopath has seen the improvements first hand – he has been seeing me for years and cannot believe how much my spasticity has decreased since using the Taopatches along with other benefits. I am writing about my journey with them. I have no affiliation with Taopatches but I am more than happy to shout from the rooftops about how amazing they are. If you do them, follow the instructions properly and set realistic expectations and do not expect to just put them on and walk because that isn’t going to happen. You should also be exercising every day and eating well – this is just another bit of the jigsaw. You can read my journey in my blog – https://lifewithms.wixsite.com/mymsjourney

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Hi Georgina, thanks for your comment — that’s great to hear that you have had a reduction in symptoms, whether they are placebo patches or not. If they really did work, then I would expect more credible clinical trials to be coming soon. Unfortunately, the absence of any reliable scientific evidence prevents me from even giving them a shred of recommendation. I am still glad for you that you have seen improvements.
Best,
Sam

I can understand that to some extent however everyone with MS is so different and mindset is a massive part of it, it would be extremely difficult to run a standardised test when to me the Taopatch is another piece of the puzzle that helps – but I think the individual using them needs to be intune with their body and from my experience in MS groups many people aren’t except those who do the MS Gym with Trevor Wicken regularly. It’s hard to notice some of the changes in the first few weeks without that awareness. Too many variables so makes it extremely difficult. In my opinion it’s not that much money really and if you don’t try you never know, so those who are open minded and are able to follow the rules properly (believe me I’ve seen people give up after a couple of weeks and haven’t done so) then it’s worth a shot.

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Dear Georgina, I do appreciate that MS is different from person to person to some degree, and also that symptoms can fluctuate significantly. However, I still believe that a well-designed study could provide some credible and reliable evidence to either confirm or (imho – more likely) refute the seemingly miraculous claims that taopatch makes. An even easier test would be for someone to send me one of the patches, and I could put it under all kinds of analysis, to see if it does emit anything at all … or if it is just a piece of cheap Mylar with a sticker on it. No one has taken me up on this offer yet.
Best, Sam

I guess you could just buy some and test them? I can understand as a company why they wouldn’t just give away patches to someone. I would be the same if it was my business. If you are interested enough to write a piece on them my question would be why don’t you just buy them, they aren’t that expensive in the scheme of things?! Your honest opinion is merely that, my honest opinion is that they are the best things I’ve purchased for my MS and I actually have it – I am assuming you don’t. Even if it only works for 20% of people with MS who have the right approach to managing their life with MS then that’s still a good thing. Not every drug/treatment will work for everyone. Doesn’t mean it should be slammed as a scam. I run a competition site business and we sometimes get called a scam by people who haven’t won (like everyone can win?!) – it just makes me think that person is narrow minded. You can question something without labelling it as a scam, especially when there are plenty of people who have seen success with it.

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Dear Georgina — here I disagree. For the kailo patch I did just that, I bought the product and tested it, confirming that it did not work on the people who I tested it on, as well as examining exactly what it was made of. I am considering doing the same for Taopatch, but I have not seen the same keen interest for this kind of research as I did with Kailo.

However, so far I have done a thorough coverage of the research available regarding TaoPatch, and already I have identified significant red flags and discrepancies in their claims and in their ‘research’, that should be alarming to anyone considering this product. My honest opinion is scientifically informed, and I hope that my posts provide some value to those who do not have the time or experience to do this kind of due diligence.

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Well Sam, I disagree with you. I don’t know what the Kailo patch is but if I was Taopatch I wouldn’t have a keen interest in you either, they don’t require you to validate their product they have plenty of reviews from people with MS who use their product and are seeing great results. You don’t have MS and I am not sure how you can really carry out a standardised test on something that impacts people with MS in completely different ways. I also didn’t see my best results until after the month 2 and month 3 detoxes – you would need to study test patients for at least 3 months if not longer and then you would have to ensure they all do the pyramid protocol every day and for the same time – you would have to ensure the patches were all in the correct places – just way too many variables. But that doesn’t make it fake or a scam it just makes it extremely difficult to test effectively. One thing I notice might be completely different to what another person notices so how do you compare and analysis. I did a degree in psychology so I know a little about running scientific research and as a non-scientist I can see how impossible it would be. Every MS patient has different degrees of symptoms etc… and also many of them wouldn’t be able to see some of the differences – my osteopath and personal trainer see more than I do. For me the evidence comes from those using them properly and seeing results. It’s a shame you might put people off something that could improve their lives but hopefully they will take the time to reviews from people with MS who are using them like me….

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Dear Georgia, I wasn’t talking about the companies supporting my efforts, I was talking about the comments and interest I received from other people who were doubtful of the product too, and wanted more rigorous independent analysis. I was talking about testing the claims of TaoPatch working by emitting 170+ different frequencies just from body heat alone — this would be so, so easy to test, but yet nobody has done it online yet!

I love that everyone says you need to wait till around 3 months to start to see proper results… or about 90 days. Strangely enough, the return period is also 90 days! Why would you not have a return policy that gives people enough time to use the device before returning it?

Frankly, I don’t believe you are being genuine with me, or perhaps it feels like you are in a state of denial. Presumably, if your local doctor told you they were highly trained … exclusively on anecdotes and testimonials, then you would not trust their advice… I certainly don’t see why taopatch deserve the benefit of the doubt! At $249 for the most “basic” version, or $599 for the pro, I’m simply amazed at what people will throw money at without a shred of credible scientific evidence.

Regardless — if it appears to be working for you and has reduced your multiple sclerosis symptoms at all, then hallelujah. Regarding exactly how this miracle has occurred, I think we can agree to disagree.

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Why would I lie – I never lie – I wear my heart on my sleeve and am passionate about things I believe in. Are you saying my osteopath is lying too when he has seen a massive reduction in my knee spasticity since doing Taopatches and now my ankle which has been solid for years is starting to improve too? Am I lying when I get up more easily off a chair or that my balance means my ability to bend down has improved. Read my blog I am not someone who talks BS, I say it how it is. I have said my walking hasn’t really improved much, I have snippets but it goes again. Am I hallucinating when I can now lay on my back with my knees up and hold my right leg in position without touching it – which I’ve never been able to do… There is no benefit to me lying. I saw small signs of improvements from the first week but I saw my biggest improvements after 3 months. I don’t know why they don’t offer money back after a long period, and don’t really care as I think they have made a significant difference to my life. The fact I don’t wear my FES anymore is huge, I’ve been wearing that for 4 years. I still use my walking poles, I can’t walk unaided outside of the home more than a few steps. I am not in denial – I am very self aware and can see the improvements. Please don’t insult me. I merely asked how someone without MS who hasn’t used them can really give an honest insight into them.

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Georgia, I feel have made myself quite clear: Not once have I disputed your claims about your improvements! I do not doubt your claims that you — and your osteopath — have seen things change! I fully believe you. However: TaoPatch can be a placebo AND you can see results. They are not mutually exclusive. I know that the placebo effect is STRONG. I will try to ask you directly: how can you be certain that your improvements are not just due to placebo?

In my post I have focused my criticisms on the claims and marketing of this product, attempting to take a closer look at their ‘research’, and you have not entered into any discussion around that. If I have missed something and we both agree their research is contentious, then great!

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I just think it’s a shame you could be putting people off something that could improve their lives.
Please explain how a placebo effect would cause a reduction in my spasticity that my osteopath can verify has changed significantly since doing Taopatches? Or my Personal Trainer seeing me doing things I’ve never managed before. A placebo effect would be my mind making me think I have improved but wouldn’t actually cause physical changes…. and these physical changes have stayed and move changes keep occurring, I am nearly at 7 months now – I don’t for one minute believe it’s a placebo effect.

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How could placebo influence physical effects on your body? I think the mind is more powerful than you may be aware of!

There are powerful connections between our mind and body — you may be interested to do further reading on the psychosomatic effects. Completely possible to see physical effects on the body with just a placebo. This is not wacky woo-woo science — that’s certainly not my type of thing, these kinds of phenomena are well known and validated stuff.

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Well then who cares – if it’s merely a tool for making my mind work wonders for my body then woohoo!! Still worth the money as I am seeing benefits that impact my daily life so makes no difference to me although I believe they are actually doing something more than that but whatever it doesn’t matter as the only thing that matters to me is that I am seeing benefits that are real to me and the people who know my body well. And if me posting on here gives one other person the confidence to try it and see success then fantastic. I won’t be commenting further.

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So, I wrote this from my recliner in Ani fusion center, having celebrated my 12yr dx of relapsing remitting Ms the 13th. I was in the phase 2 clinical trial for this drug in 2009-10,a game changer for me (ocrevus). So I’m bored and flipping thru Twitter… Taopatch? Wth?

MS peeps, I know we’re all totally different. Nothing works for everyone, though meditation and hydration may help unless you have urgency. But for the good lord’s sake, listen to the science. Or, be glad the placebo effect exists and tape a nickel to your neck. Pet your cats or dogs or iguanas. This disease is a massive pain in the butt. Came out of nowhere for me. Let’s support each other with humor and good faith. I mean, by all means keep on being cranky about acupuncture, quantum whatever, etc. I’m not telling you what to do. But there’s no way I’m doing that kind of money for a bogus circuit board and placebo. Someone send a used one to our kind author so he can do some research.

Thanks for this, btw. Be safe out there

I do not have MS, but Hashimoto autoimmune deasese and my symptoms are often muscle pain. I use Tao patch now for one year and it helps me. When I use them, I feel significantly less pain.
As they give the money back in the case you are not satisfied, I think is good to give it a try. It will not do harm, but it can help you feel better. I think that for the money back, you need to buy it throw one of their ‘operators’, trained persons that make you a
‘body mapping’ before use, so you can know in which ‘points’ you should put the Tao for the first month.
Best luck to everybody. Valentina

This is not only a sham product it is a sham company that will not call you back nor email you when you ask for help or a refund. I have submitted a complaint to the FTC and I’m just getting started. Read it folks. You have to find it on the website but the company has a disclaimer that states it is not intended to treat a medical condition and if MS is not a medical condition we have all got it wrong

i got a pain patch from voxx says a 30 day money back guarantee but when it came down to it they only fund you half the price of the item
if you have opened the pack ,how you can try a product with out opening the pack beats me / it seems there seems to be a run on these pain patches because people dont want to be taking pills .i also bought the kalio patch that does nothing either , i think they are just over priced rubbish to con people in pain looking for help . i think i will give these ones a miss i was going to try them but not now

Thank you for doing all the research into this. I have had MS for 15 years now and I would like to think that if something that could help me had been found, The MS Trust or Society would tell us about it. Funnily enough, they haven’t mentioned this one.

Thanks Gaynor.
To play devil’s advocate for a second… large advocacy organizations can sometimes be slow to change. For example, it took the diabetes association years before they would acknowledge the benefits of a low-carb diet for those with diabetes.
The MS Society may or may not be similarly slow, but even so, the rest of the active MS research community is completely silent on TaoPatch. If TaoPatch really did have any promise, I’m sure you would have heard about it sooner than later from the experts in the field. The reality is the TaoPatch research papers are a sham, published in garbage journals. I would we confident that is why everyone is ignoring them….

hahaha this makes me laugh – they are both funded by pharmaceuticals the only thing they will tell you to take are drugs lol!! Sorry but I’ve had MS for years and not gained one useful bit of information from any neurologist or the MS society – yet Taopatches have definitely helped me and I’ve been wearing them since July 2020 – they are part of many other things I do to help my MS. You can choose not to do them or listen to the research of someone who doesn’t have MS and therefore can’t truly judge them or you can join the group on Facebook and read about people who wear them daily.

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Georgia, two things:
(1) do you know the definition of the placebo effect?
(2) If your doctor doesn’t have cancer, does that mean he can’t give advice on it?

I mean, seriously, if you don’t believe in modern medicine or science then this probably isn’t the right place for you…

And yes I know what a placebo is I have a degree in psychology but I also know when I’ve used something and then not used it and seen the difference over time. I don’t really understand why you are so against something that helps many people?!

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If you really knew what a placebo is, you would be discussing it as part of this conversation. If you had a degree in psychology you would also I know how important it is to have a placebo controlled study when doing a scientific experiment. If you read the Taopatch research paper you will see they did not have a placebo control group. I have nothing against scientific innovation, but I have a lot against fraudulent claims preying on vulnerable and desperate people. Also placebo testing on yourself is very difficult to do correctly since you are not blinded.

Right, and I’m not diagnosing your MS, nor am I advising you how you should treat it. Instead, I’m an engineer and a scientist, and I am commenting on the impossibility of this device doing what it claims.

Thanks for your research and report. MS is a highly undermining condition. Big pharma doesn’t earn their ridiculous profits from coming up with cures. The idea that there is someone looking outside the box and stumbled upon something is a very powerful attempt to influence. It has happened before with other treatments for other illnesses. I can afford this product. I could use a product that works the way they describe. I just don’t want to be scammed. Your article was helpful to me.

Thanks very much Sean. Appreciate the comment and fully agree. I wish I had something better to recommend it it’s place.

Well, Unfortunately, I came across this article AFTER I ordered the Tao patch. 🙁 It still hasn’t been delivered yet. I was expecting it 2 days ago, but it hasn’t arrived. If it ever gets here, I plan on trying it anyway….even though I’m now convinced it won’t work for me. I’m a little miffed that someone who said it worked for them had to go through some sort of detox. Sounds like a lot of work and maybe THAT’S what made them feel better! I do not have MS. I have dysautonomia…which is severe damage to the autonomic nervous system with many symptoms similar to MS. If the package ever arrives…I will write again and let you know what my experiences are, even though they would just be anecdotal. Cross your fingers for me, with the hopes I can get a refund.

I am a retired family physician
I retired on my neurologist’s advice
I like many MS patients am desperate for a cure
Tao patch info was sent to me from someone on a MS website. I am sad about but appreciate your research. What is your opinion of their money back guarantee? To me if valid, this seems like a good insurance policy

I’m sorry to hear how desperate you are for a cure. Unfortunately products like this are designed to target people like you. If you are a family physician then you will certainly understand the meaning of the word placebo! It’s your money, but all I can say is some people tell me they did get their money back, some people tell me they didn’t.

From a cursory look, it appears to be a pretty red-hot area of active MS treatment research, with a number of clinical trials currently underway.

However, this appears to be an extremely impactful treatment procedure. So far, it looks like HSCT has both significant benefits, and significant risks — which include death. With hope, the results of those clinical trials will help to improve the treatment procedure, improving the typical outcomes, and gaining understanding to help us reduce or minimise those potential risks.

If you are interested in HSCT, I’d of course recommend to talk to your MS specialist.

Yes death is a possibility as it is with aderall.

Unless you can detail how many have died out of how many then your review is a total fail.

Adrian, frankly that’s a ridiculous critique, and, when taking your comment in good faith, I think it demonstrates a lack of perception on your behalf toward understanding things in context.

This was a cursory glance, and I made no claims to have provided the complete picture. The science is not fully settled on this treatment modality, so I simply wanted to convey the significant impacts that it can potentially have. I’m doing my best to avoid both fearmongering and avoid providing a false sense of optimism.

Taopatch sure sounds like pseudo-science and like a scam. But still, having MS and being “desperate” I decided to try them after a friend with MS also told me a lot of good things about them.
This friend arranged for two taopatch trained Italian people (one an MD, the other a PT) to come to Paris, where I live, and they made me try the device together with other MSers.
Personaly I could see some small improvements on my balance and leg strength and they tested my grip strength with and without the patches with a medical device. On my right hand it was 28 kg before and 37 kg after. Others had more dramatic improvement of their symptoms.
Anyway it might be placebo but from my standpoint whatever works, is good to take, especially when the “science” does not.
Also I do think the people I met are honest and not “preying” on vulnerable people: for some reason that was not very clear to me (there were some communication issues as I do not speak Italian), they made me pay only the €100 consultation and told me they would send me their bank details by email so that I can wire the €600 for the patches.
I left with the patches and still have not paid (still waiting for the bank details)!
Plus their is a refund policy if you are not happy with the result.

Hi admin,
I just to inform you that the link to the Cannizzaro Hospital, where the first study was supposedly conducted points to another hospital, located in Armenia (the Cannizzaro Hospital is in Sicily). If you go to the website of the actual Cannizzaro Hospital, you will not find any information about the doctors working there but if you google seach the authors of the article, you will find information that seems to corroborate the fact that they do work (or worked) at the Cannizzaro Hospital, e.g. https://www.ctsnet.org/home/alomeo
Also, since you have written your post, new studies on Taopatch have been published, you can find 3 of them on pubmed.
I did not readthem so I do not know if they they are more convincing.

There are several issues being discussed here. One is the lack of scientific evidence for Taopatch. That seems unequivocal. There is none! But still it seems to work – for some people. Either this is because the necessary scientific studies have not been done (A) or the way Taopatch works is unknown to science, and therefore the scope of any study cannot be properly determined (B), or it is a placebo (C). I think A, even if it was done, would be unlikely to provide supporting evidence, B is entirely possible, and C is very likely. B or C both seem valid assumptions.

I have no idea how B could be determined but I do wonder why C is being denigrated? What is wrong with purchasing something that is guaranteed to work in a certain percentage of cases purely on the basis of suggestion? Obviously, it would be no good labelling the device as a ‘placebo’, as this would undermine its likely effect, which is based on it being believed in as curative.

C ‘works’ because B is believed in. The beneficial effect of C alone is a scientific fact, and this would be magnified if B turned out to be true as well. But for the moment, B remains unproven. It is generally accepted that roughly a third of participants in trials are helped by placebos. Personally, if I was suffering from a condition like MS, I would consider an investment in something like Taopatch rather like a wager on a three horse race. If I ‘won’, and my condition was helped, I would be over the moon. If I ‘lost’, and the device had no effect, I would take it on the chin and move on. However, if, as it seems, I could return to the bookmaker and ask for my money back, I would be laughing all the way to the bank. Even if it turned out that the bookmaker had scarpered, or refused my request, I would still feel it had been a worthwhile bet. 33% success rate odds is not at all bad!

However, if the placebo effect is the only one that is valid, and it’s efficacy relies on the purported ‘science’ behind any claims made, putting the dampener on those claims is a questionable tactic. I understand the author’s motivation, but I find it somewhat disingenuous of him to suggest that he supports any benefits people might experience from the placebo effect of Taopatch while simultaneously undermining the basis on which that effect rests.

Luckily, the alternative potentially curative effect of Taopatch still exists as B, and for most people, this is what they would probably, in their heart of hearts, tend to believe, anyway, as they will probably have already exhausted all the more orthodox avenues. There are distinct parallels here with homeopathy. This is also a pseudo science, as the author would define it. The modality has not been proven, scientifically. However, there is an alternative suggested reason for homeopathy working that lies outside the remit of conventional thinking. This is what users tend to believe in. And then there is the same placebo effect, which of course relies on that unconventional belief. Homeopathy’s success is almost entirely anecdotal – but then so too is the effect of hugging on mood. Anecdotal ‘evidence’ can be disparaged, and certainly found unscientific, but not ignored. The oddest part, to me, of homeopathic success stories is their effect on animals and young children, who, it is assumed, are immune to suggestion – on which the placebo effect depends.

The world is awash with scams that seek to separate people from their money. People should be helped to learn how to protect themselves from the worst of these, but really, in the end, it is up to each individual to decide for themselves whether they want to part with relatively modest sums in what is, in this case, a wager with well defined odds. I certainly wouldn’t agree that Taopatch is an out and out scam. A true scam has no defenders, after the event, whereas there are innumerable attestations of benefits gained from using Taopatch. There are also plenty of people saying it didn’t work for them. I haven’t ascertained the numbers here, but it would be intriguing to know what percentage had or had not benefited, as that might help determine whether B or C was the most likely causative agent.

My conclusion is that the purchase of Taopatch is a calculated risk, akin, as I said, to a wager on a three horse race, but one where the horse you chose might well have an unscientifically defined superpower. What’s not to like about that?

Thank you for your comment.

If we presume that the taopatch is just a placebo, then we are sucking financial resources that could be directed towards supporting other “genuine” pain relief products with active ingredients, or further supporting the research in these areas. I find the idea gravely offensive, that a company could produce little mylar disc placebos that they sell to desperate people for several hundred dollars a pop.

There is a reason the term snake oil salesman has a negative connotation.

I understand the desperation to find comfort and relief from distressing symptoms but I am seriously surprised that the pushers of this product that is not backed up by evidence have not been shut down. And now Djokovic is touting it as the reason for his tennis success. This is going to rip off his gullible fans. Where is the law prohibiting such scams?

I am a scientist with 50 years of pharmaceutical research and have met with streams of false “miracle” cures, in my working life.Fortunately, there are still good scientists like you who uncover the hyenas counting on suffering of people to make money. It is a pity that the big Tech like Google, Facebook etc do not police these gangsters that give hopes to unfortunate sufferers of incurable diseases and milk them for money.

This is why Novak Djokovic is still mostly unloved, despite probably being the greatest sportsman, and clearly the greatest tennis player, in history.
The official Taopatch is £250, and he has one taped to his sturnum area, which he is continually showing off when he plays.
According to Djokovic, the Covid vaccine is dangerous science, yet the Taopatch is perfectly fine – which might be true, apart from it does nothing but give people false hope and rob them of £250 they possibly can’t afford.
I suppose if you are mentally weak enough to be susceptible to the placebo effect then the Taopatch might actually do something, other than leaving you financially poorer – but you may as well just tape a 1 penny coin to yourself (which would still be a waste, but only of 1p).

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