Modern medicine has discovered that most of the most destructive diseases, as well as the aging process of life, are driven by inflammation within the body - and oxidative stress caused by too much free radical exposure.

New research is backing up the ancient practice of earthing - suggesting that this direct contact with the Earth’s surface has strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

What is earthing?

Earthing is an ancient practice of making direct contact with the Earth (particularly by walking or being barefoot for an extended period of time). Earthing, reconnecting to nature and the power of the Earth as a healing modality is, however, often overlooked in today’s society.

Instead, disconnected from nature and the power of the Earth, people pay out big bucks for top doctors, therapies, supplements, and treatments to overhaul their health - not realizing that the power to overhaul their health might actually be right beneath them the whole time. 

How does it work?

Good question.

It might seem a bit abstract - but to understand earthing, you need to understand the concept of frequency. There is a frequency to everything in this world - either positively or negatively charged based on what types of particles things are made up of.

The Journal of Environmental and Public Health confirms that it is an ‘established but not widely appreciated fact’ that Planet Earth and its surface has a continuous supply of free or mobile electronics, which are known as having a ‘negative charge’. So, Planet Earth has a negative charge.

Our body absorbs charges around us because our skin is a ‘conductor’ - and so even though the planet we live on has a negative charge and we have the ability to absorb this through our skin (particularly through our feet), modern living means we are actually disconnected from the negative charge of the Earth and don’t absorb much of it as we should.

We are disconnected by wearing shoes, living in high rises above the ground, and living in concrete jungles with tarmac, pavements, and streets covering the ground for as far as we can see. This is a long way from our ancestors, who walked barefoot and couldn’t sleep if they weren’t touching the ground.

We also absorb a lot of positive charges from our day-to-day life (EMFs from all of the technological devices we use, our wifi that is always on, the escalators and elevators that we ride every day) - and more.

Add into this that we are busier than ever before and spend less time in nature than our ancestors, and what this means is that we are likely absorbing more positive charges than negative ones.

How does this positive or negative charge impact our body?

Earthing expert, Clint Ober, says that ‘the human body is electrical first and chemical second’ - meaning that all of our physiology and the way our body works (including our brain, our reliable heartbeat, our neurotransmitter activity, etc.) all rely on electrical signals to work.

The Earth's negative charges can create a stable, internal bioelectrical environment for the normal functioning of the body - and not enough of this negative charge can interfere with the homeostasis that our bodies are trying to find and maintain.

A 2012 report in the Journal of Environmental Public Health explained this mechanism of earthing allows every part of the body to balance with the electrical potential of the Earth and ‘thereby stabilizing the electrical environment of all organs, tissues and cells’

Basically, earthing helps the body function the way that nature intended - no interruptions.

Earthing & Inflammation

It is thought that inflammation, which is the driving force behind a huge number of disease and autoimmune disease states, is actually thought to be caused by a lack of electrons (negative charged particles) in your tissues.

When your body senses that something is going wrong, it delivers reactive oxygen species (known as ROS) to the site of the injury, and this is known as the inflammatory response. When this happens, and the body shifts into a state of inflammation, free radicals (highly reactive atoms that have one unpaired electron) can transfer and leak into the surrounding cells, tissues, and organs and do their own damage.

These free radicals can drive inflammation, dysfunction, and even faster aging.

HOWEVER - when earthing or putting the soles of your feet in contact with the natural ground (think out in nature, not in the city) - the influx of the negative charge from the Earth’s surface that transfers into the body actually neutralizes these free radicals, in turn reducing inflammation, reducing systemic dysfunction and reducing the onset or development of aging.

What are the other benefits of earthing?

1. It increases circulation

Experts believe that it can improve the circulation of the body so that your body can better distribute nutrients around the body to where they are needed, as well as better removing waste and toxins from the body. 

2. It reduces stress hormones & our stress responses

One double-blind study in 2011 showed that, after earthing, about half of the participants showed a rapid, abrupt, and almost instant change in their EEGs and brain activity. It is thought that these changes signify lower stress reactions and lower stress and tension levels than the control group.

3. We can get better sleep

A 2007 research study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine showed that earthing while sleeping actually normalized the daily cortisol cycle and rhythms of the participants. It is thought that the Earth’s ‘diurnal rhythms’ are electrical-based and, much like the electrical signal that drives our heartbeats, these drive and set the biological clocks of the hormones that regulate our sleep and wake activity. 

A 2006 study published in the Journal of European Biology and Bioelectromagnetics equally looked at this stress response - but through the lens of cortisol. They found that after earthing, the participants' levels of cortisol were more in line with the natural rhythms of the Earth, and they had the correct (and higher) levels of cortisol at the right times (i.e., in the morning when you should be waking).

4. We experience lower pain levels and quicker recovery
   
   Inflammation is a major source of chronic pain - particularly with conditions like arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and endometriosis - but is also something that is experienced by those who train or exercise hard when their body goes into a state of recovery - known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). 

A 2010 study looked at the muscular pain level of adults who had grounded vs. a control group. They registered complete blood counts, looked at their blood and enzyme chemistry, logged their serum and saliva to test cortisol, and also looked at MRI imaging, spectroscopy, and self-assessment of pain levels.

The results showed that the ungrounded men experienced sharp spikes in white blood cells (connected to inflammatory responses) and a greater perception of pain post-exercise. The grounded men, however, received lower scores across the board, suggesting less inflammation, less pain perception, and quicker recovery.

So, there has never been a more cost-effective way to manage our health - and all it takes is by getting our skin to meet with the Earth. 

Try to get outside totally barefoot for 30 minutes every day to get this earthing as part of your daily wellness routine. But if that isn’t possible? You can also Earth and ground through earthing mats which offset the EMFs that we come into contact with constantly. 

Earthing is the real deal - reduced inflammation, slower aging, less pain, less stress, better sleep, and better energy levels.

And even better? It’s totally free.

***THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR REGULATED BY THE FDA. WE ARE NOT DOCTORS; THEREFORE ALWAYS CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR FIRST.