Biofeedback vs Neurofeedback | What’s the Difference?

Jump to: The Difference Between Biofeedback and Neurofeedback | When is Biofeedback Used? | The Different Types of Biofeedback | Types of Neurofeedback Equipment | Comparing Biofeedback and Neurofeedback to Drug-Based Treatments

Biofeedback and neurofeedback are innovative noninvasive mental health applications that help improve physiological and psychological functioning by increasing awareness and control of our internal states, all by capturing data from your own body. 

However, while biofeedback and neurofeedback are related, there are some important differences you should know when deciding which is best suited for your own needs.  

This article will cover everything you need to know when comparing biofeedback versus neurofeedback. 

The Difference Between Biofeedback and Neurofeedback

What is Biofeedback?

Biofeedback is a method for obtaining more awareness and learning to control your body’s functions using data gathered from electronic sensors.

Simply put, any time you measure an aspect of your physiology and receive information about it, you are utilizing biofeedback. 

Biofeedback data enables you to make minor adjustments to your body, such as relaxing specific muscles or controlling your heart rate. This leads to positive outcomes such as relieving pain, reducing tension, easing stress, relieving headaches, and more.

What Is Neurofeedback?

Neurofeedback is a subset of biofeedback in which users measure the electrical activity specific to the brain, typically through neurofeedback devices like EEG headcaps or headbands. 

Neurofeedback is often paired with audio or visual inputs that change or react in reference to specified brainwave patterns.

Users can then leverage this data to inform their future neurofeedback sessions, thus improving the performance of specific brainwaves. 

For example, when pairing neurofeedback with meditation, users can focus on developing healthier patterns of brain activity to feel calmer, happier, reduce stress, improve sleep and relieve anxiety.

When is Biofeedback Used?

According to the Mayo Clinic, biofeedback is used to help manage many physical and mental health issues, such as:

– Anxiety or stress

– Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

– Chemotherapy side effects

– Fibromyalgia

– Headache

– Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)

– Chronic pain

– Irritable bowel syndrome

– Constipation

– Fecal incontinence

-Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ)

– Urinary incontinence

– High blood pressure

– Stroke

– And more

The Different Types of Biofeedback

Aside from Neurofeedback, the different types of biofeedback include:

– Electromyography (EMG): determining muscle tension.

– Thermal biofeedback: measures the temperature of the skin.

– Electrodermography (EDG): determining skin electrical activity.

– Heat Flux: measuring the rate of heat being dissipated from the body.

– Pneumography: measures the movement of the abdomen and chest when you breathe.

– Capnometry: measuring end-tidal carbon dioxide.

– Hemoencephalography: determines the color changes in light reflected through the scalp.

– Photoplethysmography (PPG): measuring peripheral blood flow and heart rate variability.

Types of Neurofeedback Equipment

Those interested in specifically utilizing neurofeedback can essentially follow two different paths: buying the equipment to practice neurofeedback at home or locating a neurofeedback therapy clinic to conduct their sessions in a clinical setting. 

Each method comes with its own set of advantages as well as their own ecosystem of neurofeedback equipment, which we’ve broken down in detail in a separate neurofeedback equipment buyer’s guide. 

Quickly summarized, you’ll want:

– A device to capture your brainwaves.

– Software to help combine brainwaves to an auditory or visual signal. 

– A system to track and store your data as neurofeedback sessions continue

How to Practice Neurofeedback at Home

Thanks to Healium, neurofeedback can be practiced safely and effectively at home today. 

Healium is the only neurofeedback system that lets you see your brainwave data in virtual and augmented reality in real-time. Healium works in tandem with external neurofeedback or biofeedback wearable devices to help you train and reward your ability to relax and focus.

You don’t even need expensive EEG headcaps or professional-grade neurofeedback equipment to get started. 

All you need to begin collecting your brainwave data is an EEG Headband. It’s adjustable, lightweight, and rechargeable! 

For maximum benefits, you’ll also want software or an app to interpret your brainwave data once captured. Then, for our virtual reality meditation experiences, you’ll also need a virtual reality headset.

How does neurofeedback at home work?

Healium will be your journey towards training your brain and learning to self-regulate. 

Healium works to remove the mystery from meditation by granting users like you access to brainwaves in real-time, right as you’re undergoing a meditation session.

Healium also helps you understand your brainwave data so you can work towards improving your mental fitness at large. By providing you a baseline, a score following each neurofeedback session, and even specific brainwave band measurements in a data dashboard, you’re given all the tools you need to treat your brain like a muscle.

Comparing Biofeedback and Neurofeedback to Drug-based Treatments

When comparing and contrasting biofeedback and neurofeedback to drug-based treatments, the difference becomes rather obvious. 

Drug-based treatments involve an outside substance entering your body, while biofeedback and neurofeedback use data from your body to drive change.

Biofeedback and neurofeedback are natural techniques for improving (and gaining more awareness of) your body to feel better and achieve desired goals. Both biofeedback and neurofeedback present drugless, self-managed alternatives to the approaches of traditional medicine for many conditions. 

For many, this self-guided approach is simply their preferred route.

However, there is still a middle ground to be found for those who prefer a more structured, clinical approach, but are also interested in bio or neurofeedback options. Many specialized clinics throughout the country offer both biofeedback and neurofeedback therapy sessions for a variety of uses. 

So, What’s the Difference Between Biofeedback and Neurofeedback? 

Biofeedback and neurofeedback are two very closely related terms; however, there are key differences between the two that are important to grasp when you’re interested in pursuing either option. 

Biofeedback is a larger, umbrella term used to describe the method of capturing data from your body, typically from sensors. Neurofeedback, meanwhile, is a type of biofeedback that narrows its focus specifically to your brainwaves, which are captured and measured through EEG sensors.

Both biofeedback and neurofeedback are great options for those looking for self-guided techniques driven by data that can help to drive change in your body or brain’s function.

If you’d like further explanation on the differences between these two terms, here’s one of our favorite resources available online, where Dr. Trish Leigh explains biofeedback versus neurofeedback in terms of clinical applications.

Further Research on Biofeedback 

Biofeedback in medicine: who, when, why and how? – PMC

Biofeedback Intervention for Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among Graduate Students in Public Health Nursing

Biofeedback for Everyday Stress Management: A Systematic Review

Further Research on Neurofeedback

Assessing the Effectiveness of Neurofeedback Training in the Context of Clinical and Social Neuroscience

Neurofeedback: A Comprehensive Review on System Design, Methodology and Clinical Applications

Current Status of Neurofeedback for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review and the Possibility of Decoded Neurofeedback

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About the Author

Sarah Hill, a former interactive TV news journalist at NBC, ABC, and CBS affiliates in Missouri, gained recognition for pioneering interactive news broadcasting using Google Hangouts. She is now the CEO of Healium, the world’s first biometrically powered VR/AR channel, helping those with stress, anxiety, insomnia, and other struggles through biofeedback storytelling. With patents, clinical validation, and over seven million views, she has reshaped the landscape of immersive media.