I’m going to share with you what I consider one of the most powerful things you can do for your body. I’m talking about something that can have an almost immediate impact, an almost immediate feel-good response, and is backed by legitimate scientific evidence. It’s going to seem so out there because it’s so basic that you might think I’ve lost my mind, but just stick with me. Hear me out on this. I’m talking about grounding—also known as earthing—the simple act of getting your feet connected to the earth.
The only reason it sounds crazy is that we live in a world where if there isn’t a supplement to buy or a complex protocol to follow, we tend to dismiss it. As a science-minded person, I’m guilty of getting so deep into clinical evidence and randomized controlled trials that I can forget about the fundamental things. But what if I told you that this simple, free practice not only makes intuitive sense but also has a growing body of impressive scientific research behind it? You’ve become disconnected from the planet you live on, and it’s time to plug back in. In this article, we’ll explore the science behind grounding and how you can use this ancient practice to profoundly improve your health. (Based on the insights of Thomas Delauer).
Key Takeaways
- What is Grounding? Grounding is the practice of making direct physical contact with the Earth’s surface (like walking barefoot on grass, dirt, or sand). The theory is that this allows your body to absorb free electrons from the Earth, which has numerous health benefits.
- Reduces Inflammation: Scientific studies, including thermal imaging, show that grounding can significantly reduce inflammation throughout the body, a key driver of chronic disease.
- Improves Blood Flow: Grounding has been shown to change the electrical properties of your red blood cells, making your blood less viscous (thinner) and improving circulation to your tissues.
- Lowers Stress & Improves Sleep: By calming the nervous system and normalizing cortisol rhythms, grounding can lead to deeper, more restorative sleep and a greater sense of calm during the day.
- Easy and Free: You don’t need expensive equipment. The simplest way to ground is to take off your shoes and socks and walk on a natural surface for 15-20 minutes a day.
1. It’s a Potent Anti-Inflammatory
One of the most fascinating benefits of grounding is its powerful anti-inflammatory effect. Chronic inflammation is at the root of nearly every modern disease, from heart disease and diabetes to autoimmune conditions and even certain cancers. Your body’s inflammatory response is a natural healing process, but when it’s constantly active, it causes damage. Grounding appears to be a direct and effective way to calm this process.
A major review of research published in the journal Explore compiled data from multiple randomized controlled trials on grounding. One of the early, landmark studies from 2004 used medical thermal imaging to visualize inflammation in the body. The images, taken just 30 minutes apart, showed a dramatic reduction in inflammatory hotspots after the subjects were grounded. Another compelling study from the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine looked at athletes. Researchers induced delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) by having them perform strenuous exercise. The group that was grounded using special patches experienced significantly less pain and had lower levels of creatine kinase, a key marker of muscle damage. Even more impressively, their white blood cell counts were modulated, suggesting the influx of electrons from the earth was directly influencing the body’s immune and inflammatory response. The authors of the review concluded that the rapid impact of grounding can’t be explained by slow-moving chemical reactions but rather by the direct influx of anti-inflammatory electrons from the Earth.
2. It Boosts Your Blood Flow and Speeds Up Healing
If you want to heal, you need good blood flow. Your blood delivers oxygen, nutrients, and immune cells to your tissues while carrying away waste products. Poor circulation can slow down healing and impair the function of every organ in your body. This is where grounding gets really interesting because it provides a clear, measurable mechanism for improving circulation.
Research published in the Journal of Inflammation Research presented a case study of a non-healing wound that finally began to improve after grounding treatments were initiated. While a single case is just an anecdote, other, larger studies support this. A dermatological study had one group of people sit in chairs while grounded for an hour, while a control group was sham-grounded. The results, visualized with imaging technology, showed a remarkable increase in blood flow to the face in the grounded group. But how? A study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine provides the answer. Researchers took blood samples from participants before and after grounding and looked at their red blood cells under a microscope. They found that grounding significantly increased the cells’ “zeta potential.” In simple terms, zeta potential is the negative electrical charge on the surface of your red blood cells that causes them to repel each other. By increasing this charge, grounding prevented the cells from clumping together. This reduced blood viscosity—making the blood literally thinner and less sticky—allowing it to flow more freely. This is a powerful mechanistic explanation for why grounding can improve everything from skin health to wound healing.
3. It Calms Your Nervous System and Fights Stress
Do you ever feel like your skin is crawling or you’re buzzing with a nervous energy you can’t shake, especially in a busy city? You’re not imagining it. You’re surrounded by man-made electromagnetic fields (EMF) from Wi-Fi, cell phones, and electrical wiring. Your body is a bioelectrical system, and this constant EMF exposure can disrupt your natural state, pushing you into a sympathetic “fight-or-flight” mode.
A truly remarkable study published in the journal Neonatology looked at premature infants in incubators—a very high-EMF environment. They grounded some of the incubators and left others as a control. The results were astounding. Grounding reduced the electrical voltage on the babies’ skin by 95%. More importantly, it increased their vagal tone by 67%. Your vagus nerve is the main highway of your parasympathetic nervous system, the “rest-and-digest” system that opposes fight-or-flight. A higher vagal tone means you are calmer, more resilient to stress, and better able to recover. This study suggests that connecting to the Earth’s natural energy can protect your nervous system from the stressful effects of our modern environment. So, if you’re feeling stressed, anxious, or unable to recover, one of the best things you can do is go find a patch of grass and let your nervous system recalibrate.
4. It Can Dramatically Improve Your Sleep and Balance Your Hormones
Poor sleep is an epidemic, and it wreaks havoc on your health. One of the biggest culprits behind disturbed sleep is a dysregulated cortisol rhythm. Cortisol, your primary stress hormone, should naturally be high in the morning to wake you up and gradually fall throughout the day, reaching its lowest point at night to allow for deep sleep. For many stressed-out people, this pattern is flipped: they feel tired and groggy in the morning and wired and anxious at night.
Once again, grounding comes to the rescue. A study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine took a group of people with sleep disturbances and pain and had them sleep on a conductive mattress pad connected to the earth. After eight weeks, the participants reported falling asleep faster, waking up less during the night, and having less pain. But the objective measurements were even more impressive. By measuring their salivary cortisol levels throughout the day, researchers found that grounding had completely normalized their 24-hour cortisol profile. Their cortisol levels dropped significantly at night, allowing them to sleep, and then rose appropriately in the morning, giving them energy for the day. This normalization of a key stress hormone is likely tied to the calming effect on the nervous system and the increase in vagal tone, allowing your body to finally enter a true state of rest and repair.
5. It’s Simple, Free, and Easy to Integrate Into Your Life
You don’t need to dedicate hours to a complicated new practice. The beauty of grounding is its simplicity. The goal is to make it a regular habit, just like drinking water or getting sunshine. I make it a point to go for a 15 or 20-minute walk barefoot as often as I can. I walk on the pavement in my neighborhood, and whenever possible, I find some grass or even just dirt to stand on. When I’m feeling particularly stressed, I will literally just go stand in my yard for a few minutes, even if I’m scrolling on my phone. The point is to make contact.
You can start by taking your shoes off and walking in a park during your lunch break. You can sit in your backyard with your bare feet on the grass while you read a book. If you live in a climate where this isn’t always possible, you can look into grounding technologies like conductive shoes or indoor grounding mats that you can use while you work or sleep. The key is to overcome the initial feeling of it being weird and just do it. Embrace the fact that there is real, tangible science behind this practice.
Conclusion
For millennia, humans lived in direct contact with the Earth. We walked barefoot, we slept on the ground, and we were in constant connection with its natural electrical rhythms. It’s only in the very recent past that we’ve insulated ourselves with rubber-soled shoes and elevated beds, effectively severing that connection. While there is a spiritual or mystical element to feeling connected to nature, the evidence we’ve discussed here is rooted in bioelectricity and physiology. Grounding isn’t about blocking out the modern world; it’s about re-establishing a vital, natural connection that supports your body’s ability to heal and thrive. From an anti-inflammatory and energetic perspective, the benefits are too compelling to ignore. So go ahead, take off your shoes. Who cares if it looks a little crazy? Your body will thank you for it.
Source: Thomas Delauer