Is John Tavares scoring at a point-per-game pace because of an amulet?

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After John Tavares scored a hat trick in a Toronto Maple Leafs win over the Jets in Winnipeg on Monday, social media was again alight with people talking about his supposed amulet, with many wondering where they could acquire one of their own.

“Wait where did John Tavares get the amulet from? I need one really badly thanks,” @clearelypuck posted to X on Monday.

“That’s it @MapleLeafs where did Tavares get that amulet,” asked @earthto_ali.

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Meanwhile, @destscaredaf was professing thanks to “John Tavares’ magic amulet.” On X the user wrote, “I’m so sorry I doubted the Leafs thank you John Tavares’ magic amulet.”

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The device the Mississauga native promotes and uses is the Lifetune, made by Aires Tech, which claims its products offer users protection from the low-level radiation emitted by electromagnetic fields (EMF), whether from your mobile device, the Wi-Fi in your home and surrounding us in 5G networks. It comes in small wearable and stationary models.

To be fair, there’s no evidence Tavares wears his LifeTune beneath his hockey gear, but he is featured somewhat prominently on the company’s website as part of its partnership campaign with a handful of professional athletes.

A June press release announcing his partnership with the Ontario-based company – in which the “majority of the compensation” includes shares in the company for Tavares and his wife, Aryne – the Leafs star said he’s experienced “tremendous benefits” to his health and ability to recover since discovering the tech four years ago.

Tavares was the third pro to join the #airesathlete initiative, following UFC women’s flyweight fighter Maycee Barber and retired NFL running back Tiki Barber. Shortly after Canada Basketball signed a marketing partnership with Aires ahead of the Paris Games, Team Canada member and current Toronto Raptors’ guard R.J. Barrett became a brand manager.

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“Aires Tech is now part of my daily performance arsenal,” Barrett was quoted in a release. “Their products add a crucial layer of protection in today’s digital world, and I’m ready to get work on spreading the word about how they enhance performance and overall wellness.”

This fall, the company added UFC lightweight fighter Michael Chandler.

Aires also has marketing partnerships with WWE and UFC, both owned by TKO Group Holdings, and most recently signed on a NASCAR racing team led by driver Chad Finchum.

What is the cost of Tavares’ backed protection amulet?

Aires’ website offers mountains of their research and data – much of it their own – that confirm the efficacy of the “proprietary silicon-based resonator” used in their suite of devices, all of which have a “fractal matrix design” to modulate waves and form “a harmonious EMF environment.”

The company has 22 global patents on its tech – 10 in Russia and seven in Canada – and says its reported benefits have been proven in more than two dozen clinical trials.

It also boasts 9 peer-reviewed studies, all of which were conducted by The Planetary Association for Clean Energy, an Ottawa-based non-profit charitable organization that supports “EMF pollution advocacy.”

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There are five models to choose from, each purportedly offering broader and more robust protection.

At the bottom of the price scale is the Lifetune One, a sticker for electronic devices that retails for CAD$126, with the Go, a keychain or fob-sized device, ringing in at twice that – $307.

Those willing to spend $335 can upgrade to the Flex, a pendant endorsed by comedian Russell Brand.

For area coverage, Aires has the Zone, a small square no bigger than an AirPod case retailing for $362, and the Zone Max, at $488. (Wooden holders for both are sold separately for $28 and $70 respectively.)

Most models include free shipping.

On Monday, Aires said order volume has increased 61 per cent year-over-year to a record high of $4.92 million in the months since Tavares and other partnerships have begun.

What does Health Canada say about EMF?

Based on “thousands of scientific studies,” Health Canada says the low levels of radiofrequency EMF to which people are exposed daily don’t present any health risk, including causing cancer.

“There have been some studies reporting an increase in incidence of brain cancer among long-term, heavy cell phone users. However, other studies conducted around the world, including studies assessing brain cancer trends among large populations, do not find changes in brain cancer incidence.”

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However, the government agency acknowledges there are “adverse health effects” from exposure at certain frequencies and dependent on duration and distance from the source.

For instance, anything above 100 kilohertz might cause your skin to grow warm while frequencies below 10 megahertz can result in a “tingling sensation” in the skin.

The World Health Organization has been conducting dedicated research by way of the International EMF project since 1996 and, while conceding “some gaps in knowledge about biological effects exist and need further research,” the vast amount of existing evidence indicates the low levels surrounding humans aren’t harmful

“In the area of biological effects and medical applications of non-ionizing radiation, approximately 25,000 articles have been published over the past 30 years. Despite the feeling of some people that more research needs to be done, scientific knowledge in this area is now more extensive than for most chemicals,” the WHO writes.

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