If You Can't Prove It, Don't Say It!

2 min read

What about all those brand claims?

Within about an hour of each other, I read two articles on kinesiology tape, which underscored our position here at Tape Geeks.

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While there’s plenty of anecdotal, and ever more scientific evidence, that kinesiology tape has efficacy for certain conditions, it is not the panacea for all human aches as some brands claims!

*The article first was a summary written by a healthcare professional about where/how kinesiology tape is being used.

He added a few good references from the scientific literature in support of the uses for kinesiology tape and the gist of the article is this:

- Kinesiology tape is NOT just for athletes

- Some research shows that certain types of pain/dysfunction do better with kinesiology tape than a placebo:

A *2017 study concluded that the use of kinesiology tape in patients with recent stroked-induced shoulder hemiplegia did better than a sham group for a reduction in pain and overall mobility.
A *2016 study showed that for elbow pain, kinesiology tape reduced pain and improved grip strength.
Another *2016 study on people with degenerative knee arthritis also showed that those in the kinesiology tape group showed a reduced perception of pain and increased mobility than the conservative therapy group.

The author also rightly points out that kinesiology tape has almost no negative side effects. Although there is a slight risk ofskin irritation as with any adhesive that is applied to the skin.

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The *second article was from a legal site that identifies class action suits in the USA against one of the most successful brands.

The issue for the plaintiff in the lawsuit against the company was the litany of claims that simply have no merit…“every KT Tape package claims to be able to treat 16 different types of injuries including runner’s knee, calf strain, plantar fasciitis, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel, and shoulder pain.”

The company settled for up to 1.7 million in reimbursements and will remove these statements from their packaging “it will keep you pain-free,” “prevent injury” and “provides 24-hour pain relief per application.”

So, what struck me reading those two articles back-to-back?

Kinesiology tape does have efficacy in certain areas and as more research is conducted, that list will grow. Companies, however, need to stay true to the facts and not make claims that surpass our current understanding of how kinesiology tape works.

That just makes for good business practice and allows for realistic expectations of results!

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