How Grounding Can Help You Feel Less Stressed & More Balanced!

Did you know the Earth is like a giant battery?

The surface of the Earth has an electrical charge (a negative one). Since this natural, electrical energy comes from the ground, electrical systems must be “grounded” for safety purposes.

Dangers of Being Ungrounded

One of the main jobs of an electrician is to make sure that a house or building is grounded. This includes any part of the structure where electricity will be running through wires or circuits. It also includes wall outlets, which can be extremely dangerous to children if they aren’t protected.

An ungrounded outlet increases the possibility of an electrical fire. If an outlet isn’t properly grounded, sparking or arcing may occur, which could set nearby furniture or fixtures on fire. This could lead to health hazards and/or a loss of property or life.

Though perhaps not as immediately catastrophic to your health, living an ungrounded existence may be depriving you of influences that can help keep you healthy over the long-term.

The sad reality is that while we’re being deprived of the Earth’s electrical potential for healing, we’re also being subjected to the harmful electrical energy that’s part and parcel of modern living.

Harmful Effects of EMFs

With the prevalence of technology such as cell phones, TVs, computers, and other electronic devices, we’re constantly being bombarded with electromagnetic frequencies (EMF).

Though the full impact of EMFs isn’t known at this time (there’s a distressing dearth of independently conducted impact studies regarding the effects of EMFs on humans, especially with respect to the new 5G network for cell phones), it’s believed that the radiation generated by these devices can damage healthy cells and perhaps cause or contribute to an array of negative health issues.

A comprehensive health maintenance program is needed to neutralize the potentially harmful effects from EMFs and other environmental toxic influences.

One way to reduce the effects of EMFs is to remove TVs, computers, and other electronic devices from your bedroom. Another helpful suggestion is to establish a time when all devices will be turned off for the remainder of the evening. Not only will this provide a break from calling, texting, and browsing the internet, and playing video games, it will help reduce the EMFs in your home.

A natural way to protect yourself from the negative effects of EMFs is to engage in the practice of “grounding” (or “Earthing”).

What Is Grounding?

An emerging field of research suggests that just as electronics and appliances need to be grounded, humans also can benefit from being grounded.

This research is based on evidence that touching the ground directly with our skin – which can be achieved by walking around barefoot or by sleeping on grounded surfaces – may allow for electrons to enter our body from the Earth and improve our life functions. These electrons may act as antioxidants, to neutralize “free radical” toxins which are known to be deficient in electrons.

Unfortunately, modern living keeps us separated from the ground much of the time, depriving us of access to these health-giving electrons. Most of us wear shoes as we walk around our house, our place of work, inside stores and other buildings, and when we sit in a car, bus, or other form of transportation. Even when we’re outside walking, jogging, or hiking we wear shoes.

This presents a health challenge since we’re disconnected from the Earth’s natural electron sources when walking on manufactured surfaces and wearing manufactured foot protection. In centuries past, people walked around on bare feet. Of course, the many hazards (thorns, rocks, snakes, etc.) of walking barefoot led to the sandal and eventually to today’s wide array of footwear.

But have we lost something by covering our feet for protection, comfort, and style? Most of the footwear worn today leaves us ungrounded. Some holistic practitioners are convinced this deprives us of the Earth’s healing power and recommend a daily practice of grounding.

Benefits of Grounding

Results from some small, double-blind, controlled trials suggest that grounding may improve numerous aspects of human health.

Many people have responded that their health has improved by grounding themselves regularly. Benefits of grounding include feeling less stressed and more balanced. Here are three other ways that grounding may be beneficial for you…

3 Ways Grounding Can Help Improve Your Health & Well-being

Pain Reduction

In clinical trials, some individuals have reported reduction in back or other bodily pain after several sessions of grounding. Others have reported less soreness and stiffness in their muscles. One of the many benefits of grounding is improved sleep, which may be the result of pain reduction.

Less Stress

Stress can increase the hormone cortisol, a steroid that can kill brain cells and has an overall devastating effect on health over time. Controlled trials suggest that cortisol levels tend to improve when people under stress are allowed to be grounded.

Grounding also may have a significant impact on sleep. An 8-week study of a dozen men and women found that grounding (with a conductive mattress pad) helped provide better quality sleep.

Based on self-reporting, the study revealed that 11 out of 12 of the participants fell asleep faster, and 9 out of 12 woke more refreshed and with more energy. Also, 9 out of 12 subjects reported having less stress, irritability, and mood issues after being grounded.

Cardiovascular Health

A randomized, blinded controlled trial was conducted at the University of Salzburg in Austria, and published in the journal Frontiers in Physiology in 2019. Healthy participants (22 in all) were subjected to a period of downhill treadmill running, guaranteed to cause muscle soreness.

Then, 12 participants were allowed to sleep grounded and 10 ungrounded. They were monitored for 10 days. The grounded group showed less loss of muscle performance, less muscle damage, and less blood inflammation markers, versus the ungrounded group.

One double-blind trial found that grounding lowered HRV (heart rate variability), which suggests it may support cardiovascular health. Improved heart rate variability is an accepted positive indicator of heart health.

Get Grounded

Grounding is an activity that allows you to get back in touch with the natural world by having direct skin contact with the uncovered ground.

The practice of grounding may offer a variety of health enhancements. Benefits of grounding include reduced stress, improved sleep, and better balance in life. There’s also growing evidence that grounding can help boost the immune response, prevent pain, and even promote wound healing.

Walking on dirt, grass, or sand is a tangible way to enjoy the benefits of grounding (and is also an excellent way for many to re-align their spine). However, some may not have the time, or inclination, to walk around barefoot. Fortunately, there are alternatives to outdoor grounding that you can adopt for your home or office.

Many grounding products can be used while relaxing, working, or sleeping. These include desk chairs, chair mats, mattress pads, and blankets.

Whatever method appeals to you, give grounding a try. Let us know below if you notice a difference.

At BrainMD, we’re dedicated to providing the highest purity nutrients to improve your physical health and overall well-being. For more information about our full list of brain healthy supplements, please visit us at BrainMD.

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Keith Rowe

Keith has been a member of the BrainMD team for several years, providing his research and writing talents. Keith is grateful to have the opportunity to write about supplements since many of them have made a dramatic difference in his life. He is often heard around the office saying, “We have supplements for that.”