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Prayer still helps healing

Many months ago I wrote about the power of prayer to promote healing. The response was overwhelming and positive. Many were pleased to see such a topic discussed openly and wished it was more visible in our society, especially when it comes to medical care.

Not all the responses were positive however. A professor and scientist from a medical school chastised me for overstating the case. To his credit, he dug deeply into the available medical data and presented a documented critique to debunk my fluffy assertions.

To balance the record, I agreed to include his position in my next article on this issue. Here is his critique.

The case against prayer in medicine

"It was stated that there have been more than 100 double-blind studies of the effects of prayer. It was also stated that most such studies have shown that patients who are prayed for do better and heal faster.

"These statements are incorrect.

"The more than 100 studies referred to were mostly not on people, but rather were on animals, plants, bacteria, enzymes, etc. In fact, a recent review found that there are only five double-blind studies of the effects of prayer in the medical literature; and only two of these indicated a benefit.

"Moreover, in these two studies the supposed effects of prayers were very weak. The prayed-for patients had to stay just as long in the hospital and suffered the same death rate as those not prayed for.

"Critics also found many flaws in the two studies. Thus, they cannot be considered very convincing scientific evidence for the benefits of prayer.

"What about the effects of prayer by patients? Many studies have found that spirituality in general seems to provide health benefits. (This is not necessarily evidence for the supernatural, since the results could be due, for example, to a more positive attitude or increased social support.) But these studies have also been criticized."

The letter goes on with more detail, but I think you get the point.

Rethinking prayer's role

I am guilty of overstating the scientific case in favor of prayer in healing. I didn't overstate intentionally, nor did I mean to mislead. I believe so strongly in the spiritual component of wellness and the power of prayer for healing that, when I did my research, I accepted at face value what I had read from well-meaning medical scientists who are engaged in trying to add the element of prayer to the science of medicine.

Admittedly, I viewed the data through rose-colored glasses and presented it in the best light. I was not as objective as I needed to be.

My intent in the original article was to show that some physicians, like Dr. Larry Dossey, are, through great effort (and, I might add, despite considerable personal ridicule), making strides to dent our medical system with such touchy-feely things as the power of love and prayer.

Is this a good thing? Intuition says yes. Given my critic's letter, however, it's obvious that determined opposition exists.

So, what do we do now? I guess we need to face facts. The power of prayer and the existence of a higher power probably won't be proven by scientists anytime soon.

Does this change anything? No. Whether scientific judgment is supportive or not, folks are going to pray just as hard, just as long and just as often that their loved ones be healed and relieved of suffering.

The bottom line

In this column I try as best I can to be accurate. I often add my strong opinions to the subject matter, and, in this case, my opinions and intuition overshadowed the scientific facts. For that I apologize.

I won't, however, back off the notion that prayer is good and that we ought to include a lot more of it as an integral part of the healing process. In retrospect, I should have limited my former column on prayer to simple common sense. It's common sense that being treated by a doctor who is attentive, compassionate, warm and loving makes us feel good and that feeling good may promote health and healing.

But because there are no double-blind studies on the impact of loving, warm and attentive doctors, should doctors be discouraged from acting this way? Obviously not. Similarly, should we stop praying for healing until medical scientists have enough facts to convince themselves that it's helpful? I believe the answer to this question is obvious as well.

Bryant Stamford is an exercise physiologist and director of the Health Promotion and Wellness Center at the University of Louisville. If you have questions about sports injuries, health, exercise or fitness, write to Body Shop, Gannett News Service, care of The Courier-Journal, 525 W. Broadway, P.O. Box 740031, Louisville, Ky. 40201-7431, or e-mail bastam01@ulkyvm.louisville.edu.