Do Detox Foot Pads Work?

I bought the Kinoki Foot Pads online about 2 months ago. and I've had a chance to use it several times now so I think it's time I shared my experience.

Price: PHP 150  for 10  patches.

Product Information from the Seller (taken online:)

Detox Foot Patch contains all natural combination of wood vinegar, bamboo vinegar, chitosan, dokudami, loquat leaf, vitamin c,vegatable fiber, tourmaline, & dextrin. Simply apply the detox foot patch to the bottoms of your feet, before you go to bed, and remove foot patch when you wake up. You will feel vitalized detoxified and fresh the next morning.

Directions for use :
1. Apply Kinoki detox patch one hour before bed-time.
2. Wash and dry your feet or body part before applying kinoki Detox Patch.
3. Take one adhesive sheet and slowly peel off paper.
3. Place the foot pad on the adhesive where noted to "Put adhesive sheet on this side" and place onto the soles of your feet or the desired area of other body part.
(Socks can be worn if necessary)
4. Wear for 8-10 hours then remove pad.
5. Wipe surface with wet towel until it’s no longer sticky.
6. Used patches will appear dark greenish or grayish as they absorb toxins and waste matter from your body.
7. Continue to use each night until the discoloration of the pad subsides.
8. When used kinoki patches show signs of lightening, apply once or twice a week for maintenance.

Benefit of Kinoki  Detox Foot Patch

1.  To relieve heel and foot pain [ideal for those who always wear high heels and stand too long]
2.  Help to lose weight
3.  Help to treat acne
4.  Help to treat sinus problems
5.  Relieve back pain
6.  More fresh and energetic
7.  Reduce allergic
8.  Increase the rate of metabolism in the body
9.  Reduce joint pain
10. Enhance the immune system
11. Reduce high blood pressure
12. Improves blood circulation
13. Reduce foot odour
14. Release surplus toxins
15. Reduce tiredness
16. Reduce stress
17. Better quality of sleep
18. Speeds assimilation of nutrients to cells

My thoughts after the jump:

 

More info:

One of the ingredients, tourmaline, is a mineral which is pyroelectric (electricity from heat) and piezoelectric.(electricity from pressure. Thank you, Wikipedia!)  It means that body heat from my foot) and the pressure of being stuck on my foot with a large sticker really might activate the ingredients to achieve the effects it promises.

My experience:

On the first night of using the patch, I woke up in the middle of the night feeling really weak and feverish. This must really be a side-effect of detox because I remember feeling the same way when I used a certain ionic feminine hygiene product (sorry, TMI)   When I removed the patch, the powdery stuff inside the patches became a kind of blackish  goo.and my foot was coated with a sticky slime (supposedly the toxins in your body.) The slime in the patches do become lighter with continuous use.

Why I think it works:

First, because I got sick. Think about it: if it's completely useless and ineffective, why would my body have reacted that way?  Like they say in rehab (or TV shows and movies about rehab because I lack in street cred and junk food is my drug of choice) "It's gonna get worse before it gets better."

I'm a big fan of traditional and alternative medicine. Acupuncture and accupressure are legit to me. The foot patches work on the same principle as the former two, which is that the nerves on the feet are linked to every organ in the body,

Why I still have doubts:

 

The heat and pressure could also have caused a chemical reaction in the other ingredients which made the patch turn black. Any number of chemicals could have that kind of reaction, right?
 

No apparent weight-loss yet. (However, I think using this product should be continuous and accompanied by a major change in lifestyle.)

Etc.

 

Always keep an open mind. A lot of medical and Science-y people min\ght dismiss this along with other alternative cures, but always remember that there are still a lot of diseases which can not be cured by medicine and things left in the universe which can not be explained by Science.

Disclaimer: 

 

This product was bought with my own funds and I was not paid for this review. Also, what works for me may not work for you and vice-versa.

Thanks for reading, 

Jackie