I live on the east side of Los Angeles, and even though the beach really isn’t that far away, getting across town through all the traffic is no fun, which is why it’s the end of summer and I’ve only been twice so far. But when I do make it, even if only for an hour or so, I find that my mood is significantly improved. I’ve always noticed feeling better after walking barefoot on the grass or the beach, but I generally chalked it up to being on vacation, extra relaxation, and being in nature. However, emerging research on the healing impact of grounding has uncovered exciting results that go far beyond just improved mood.
What is grounding?
Grounding, or earthing, is when your skin comes into contact with the earth, through walking barefoot, lying on the earth, or swimming. The theory is that electrons from the earth’s electromagnetic field can neutralize free radicals in our body and calm inflammation and our nervous system. Benefits reported from grounding range from reduced inflammation, quicker recovery from sore muscles, better sleep, faster wound healing, less depression and anxiety, pain reduction, and lowered blood pressure. While anecdotal evidence of these benefits have been around for quite a while, and grounding practices have long been part of numerous indigenous cultures, scientific research on the matter has only been more recent.
A 2015 report in the US National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health (1) looked into more than a dozen studies on grounding published in peer-reviewed journals, and found that the practice produced ‘intriguing effects on physiology and health.’
In one example, a 33 year old woman was suffering from chronic pain and swelling in her right knee due to a gymnastics injury at age 15. She was unable to stand for long periods of time, and even simple activities like driving increased symptoms. After six days of grounding, she reported a 50% reduction in pain, which was also confirmed with medical infrared imaging. A few months of grounding and pain had diminished by 90% with no more swelling, and after six months, she was able to complete a half marathon without issue.
Other studies cited showed decreased white blood cell counts, reduced cortisol and lowered inflammation in injury and muscle recovery, and improved sleep. The sleep study addressed subjects who were having difficulty sleeping due to pain. After eight weeks of sleeping while grounded, cortisol levels decreased and subjects reported improved sleep and less pain and stress. It seems that sleeping while grounded helped the body shift into the parasympathetic nervous system, or what is known as ‘rest and digest’ mode, as opposed to ‘fight or flight.’
Here’s the conclusion of the overall report:
“Accumulating experiences and research on earthing, or grounding, point to the emergence of a simple, natural, and accessible health strategy against chronic inflammation, warranting the serious attention of clinicians and researchers. The living matrix (or ground regulation or tissue tensegrity-matrix system), the very fabric of the body, appears to serve as one of our primary antioxidant defense systems. As this report explains, it is a system requiring occasional recharging by conductive contact with the Earth’s surface – the “battery” for all planetary life – to be optimally effective.”
WOW.
Another 2018 study by Howard K. Elkin, MD, FACC and Angela Winter, RN, BSN (2), was the first study to look into the effects of grounding on lowering blood pressure, with only anecdotal evidence prior. In the study, ten patients with high blood pressure underwent three to four months of grounding therapy. At the end of the experiment, all ten patients had significantly lowered their blood pressure.
The studies so far have been mostly pilot studies with limited numbers of subjects and varying lengths of time of grounding therapy, but due to the drastic improvements of the patients shown, they certainly warrant more research.
Since we generally don’t spend a lot of time in direct contact with nature in our modern world, as many of us work in office buildings and live in houses and apartments elevated from the ground, most of us are not getting this potential opportunity for natural healing. However, numerous products are being developed and sold to allow grounding at home or in-office, including mats, bedding, skin patches, and wrist and ankle bands that are attached to a grounding cord that can be plugged into the ground port of an electrical outlet. Sounds crazy that these types of products could work, but much of the above-noted research in fact used these types of products for the grounding treatments. The good news is that, while studies continue, you can practice grounding naturally and for free on your own, with no side effects, by prioritizing more time in direct contact with nature.
There’s two weeks left of summer. Go play barefoot in the grass and on the beach! At the very least it will boost your mood:)
(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4378297/
(2) Alternative Therapies Nov/Dec 2018 issue, Vol. 24 No. 6, http://alternative-therapies.com/openaccess/26-6_Elkin.pdf
2 Responses
Barb Herzberg
Thank You Jaime, I really enjoyed reading about grounding. I learned a lot.
Barb
Jaime Saginor
So glad to hear that Barb!