Magnetic fields can stimulate nerves in the brain, using straightforward mechanisms of action.
Hebbian Theory [wikipedia.org] tells us that neuronal activity induces nerve growth. Nerves which fire at the same time tend to make connections.
If Hebbian theory is correct, then the likely mechanism of action is excess neurotransmitters in the inter-cellular fluid - a slight loss of neurotransmitter in synapses from firing makes its way into the fluid between cells, which acts as a growth stimulator for nearby cells.
(It's easy to imagine an evolutionary path for this - in effect, the cells are recognizing the neurotransmitter as a food source and will grow towards areas of higher density. Modify the food source over time to get a specialized cell that processes specific molecules as a growth signalling mechanism. Anyway...)
Simple experiments indicate that this neural plasticity is quite fast and pliable. Wear glasses which flip the visual image upside down and the brain will rewire itself to compensate in a couple of days. In other words, the brain will completely rewire the ordering of the input visual layer in about three days.
So it's not at all unreasonable to expect that magnetic stimulation would cause increased neuronal activity, or that such activity would enhance neuronal growth. Whether this induces the growth of new neurons or merely an increase of connections is an area for further research. Whether this works on all types of neurons (there are several types, each with a different function and using a different neurotransmitter) is an area for further research.
Furthermore, this is an area of research which could conceivably be carried out at the hobbyist level.
Yes, that's a bold statement and I can back that up. Medical science has largely stagnated for various reasons, and it would appear that good science will increasingly come from the Hobbyist arena [wikipedia.org] rather than peer-reviewed, government-funded studies which cannot be reproduced [slashdot.org].
Magnetic field stimulation is easily within the capability of an average hacker, is relatively safe, and if you have someone who otherwise cannot be helped by conventional medicine and is aware of the dangers, there's nothing wrong with it.
Previous poster stated that getting an MRI reduced Alzheimers symptoms for half a day. What's the risk/reward equation for someone diagnosed with Alzheimers trying some magnetic stimulation, versus doing nothing?
Anyhow...
Magnetic fields causing increased neuronal growth is entirely consistent with current theory of how the brain works.
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