Health Benefits of Earthing

We are learning more and more these days that being able to find ways to relax, destress and calm ourselves helps us live happier and healthier lives. Meditation, exercise, massage, reading a novel, and being with a loved one are all ways to help us achieve this. More recently, an ancient technique called Earthing has hit the mainstream wellness scene.

Earthing, or grounding, is the practice of walking outside barefoot so your feet can make direct contact with the surface of the earth. This may seem different at first, but there is evidence that having your feet sink into the sand or feeling the movement of the grass beneath your toes can bring benefits such as decreased stress, inflammation and pain.

Earthing allows the exchange of positive and negative ions between our bodies and the earth. The body naturally produces free radicals (positive ions) to help combat anything unwanted inside of it, but too much of this can do more harm than good, causing excess inflammation in the body. When we connect with the earth (which holds a lot of negative ions) we actually, without knowing, transfer these ions between the ground and our bodies, reducing the number of damage-causing free radicals.

Throughout history, humans mostly walked barefoot or with footwear made of animal skins. They slept on the ground or on skins. They had contact with the earth many times a day—significantly more than we do today. We all know that the sun gives us warmth, light and vitamin D, and the earth provides us with fresh air, water, food, and a surface to live on. When your bare feet make contact with the earth’s surface, your body uptakes a natural and subtle energy. The earth produces a limitless energy supply of abundant free electrons which are electrically conductive. Our bodies, being bioelectrical in nature, are able to absorb this electrical energy that, in turn, will help balance our own internal bioelectrical environment for healthier functioning of bodily systems. Think about the last time you were barefoot with nature, and how it made you feel.

Earthing has amazing benefits. Here are some reasons you should make earthing part of your daily routine:

• Decreases inflammation, and improves or eliminates the symptoms of many inflammation-related disorders
• Reduces or eliminates chronic pain
• Improves sleep in most cases
• Increases energy
• Lowers stress and promotes calmness in the body by cooling down the nervous system and stress hormones
• Normalizes the body’s biological rhythms
• Thins blood and improves blood pressure and flow
• Relieves muscle tension and headaches
• Lessens hormonal and menstrual symptoms
• Dramatically speeds healing and helps prevent bedsores
• Reduces or eliminates jet lag
• Protects the body against potentially health-disturbing environmental electromagnetic fields (EMFs)
• Accelerates recovery from intense athletic activity

Earthing is simple, basic, powerful and free. It has been regarded as a genuine missing link in the health equation—something with astounding potential to do much good for our health and humanity. It really doesn’t take much and can be done anywhere. Swim in the ocean or lake, garden with bare hands, lay on the earth, walk barefoot on the grass or sand and watch the body begin to heal.

If you would like to read more about the earth’s natural healing benefits, Earthing by Orber, Sinatra and Zucker is a must-read.

I suggest 20 min. of walking outside barefoot to get the full benefit of earthing.  If you do have trouble sleeping or want to improve energy you can get an earthing sheet which you sleep with that produces negative ions when you sleep or a mat to put your bare feet on while you are sitting at the desk.  You can also put a Himalayan salt lamp on your night stand.  The moisture in the air will pull the salt in the air.  As you breath in the salt which is negative ions it attracts the positive ions in your body and neutralizes them, taking stress off the body just like walking outside does. To get a real therapeutic dose try our Himalayan salt booth where you sit and relax while breathing in a concentrated amount of salt to get amazing benefits not just from the negative ions but also for the lungs and skin.