It is not a secret that spending time in nature is good for you. For years, researchers have been detailing how people who live near green spaces — parks, greenbelts, tree-lined streets, rural landscapes — have better physical and mental health, and practices such as Japanese forest bathing and Nordic hygge, which has a strong outdoorsy component, are being embraced here in the United States. Could grounding be next?
I was intrigued when a colleague recently recommended a mutual patient — seeing her for stress management and me for nutritional advice — experiment with walking barefoot in the grass for a short time each day. A few weeks later, I stumbled across an article that gave a name to that practice — grounding. The idea behind grounding, also called earthing, is humans evolved in direct contact with the Earth’s subtle electric charge, but have lost that sustained connection thanks to inventions such as buildings, furniture and shoes with insulated synthetic soles.
Advocates of grounding say this disconnect might be contributing to the chronic diseases that are particularly prevalent in industrialized societies. There is actually some science behind this. Research has shown barefoot contact with the earth can produce nearly instant changes in a variety of physiological measures, helping improve sleep, reduce pain, decrease muscle tension and lower stress.
Nature's antioxidants?
There are many reasons connecting with nature is good for mind and body, but electricity probably is not one you have considered. If you think back to the last time you took a science class, you may remember that everything, including humans, is made up of atoms. These microscopic particles contain equal numbers of negatively charged electrons, which come in pairs, and positively charged protons, so an atom is neutral — unless it loses an electron. When an atom has an unpaired electron, it becomes a “free radical” with a positive charge, capable of damaging our cells and contributing to chronic inflammation, cancer and other diseases. In this case, “positive” is not a good thing.
One reason direct physical contact with the ground might have beneficial physiological effects is the earth’s surface has a negative charge and is constantly generating electrons that could neutralize free radicals, acting as antioxidants. You may think of antioxidants as coming from food, and indeed a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and other foods that provide beta-carotene, selenium, lutein, lycopene and vitamins A, C and E helps prevent cellular damage from free radicals. Still, it is interesting that we may be able to get them directly from the earth, too.
Circadian rhythms and the nervous system
Research also suggests physical contact with the Earth’s surface can help regulate our autonomic nervous system and keep our circadian rhythms — which regulate body temperature, hormone secretion, digestion and blood pressure, among other things — synchronized with the day/night cycle. Desynchronization of our internal clocks has been linked to a number of health problems, as evidenced by research on shift workers.
The key may be the impact on the vagus nerve. This is the largest nerve of the autonomic nervous system — extending from the brain to the colon — and plays a key role in heart, lung and digestive function. Strong vagal tone helps you relax faster after experiencing stress, while weak vagal tone is associated with chronic inflammation. Inflammation, in turn, is associated with a number of chronic diseases — including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer. Vagal tone is often assessed by measuring the variation in your heart rate when you breathe in and out, and in one study, grounding was shown to improve heart rate variability and thus vagal tone in preterm infants. In another small study of adults, one two-hour session of grounding reduced inflammation and improved blood flow.
Trying it out
While many clinical studies have demonstrated beneficial physical changes when participants are grounded, studies tend to be small and are done indoors using wires that connect to ground outlets. This is partly because using a lab is more practical than taking study participants outdoors, but also so participants will not know if they are grounded or not — to avoid a placebo effect. There is little research specifically on the effects of grounding in nature and whether it results in the same positive effects on stress, pain and sleep.
Still, since being outdoors is proved to be good for you, it probably would not hurt to try it yourself to see if you notice any benefits. So how do you ground? Simply allow your skin to be in contact with any natural conductors of the earth’s electricity, working up to at least 30 minutes at a time (unfortunately, studies do not seem to have addressed how often grounding should occur). You can walk barefoot on grass, moist soil, sand, gravel or concrete (but not other types of pavement). You can swim in the ocean, a lake or other natural body of water. You can sit under a tree, leaning against the trunk.
If you have concerns about whether it is sanitary to walk barefoot outside, there are options. Keep a patch of lawn off-limits to your dog. Or put a blanket or towel between your skin and the ground; natural fibers such as cotton and wool do not interfere with grounding. You can even wear leather-soled shoes. Or, garden instead. Digging gloveless in the garden also puts you in direct contact with the earth — just make sure you are not using chemical pesticides or fertilizers.
If you do notice you are more relaxed, or you are sleeping better, or you have less pain or fatigue — is it the grounding or a placebo effect? Research continues at several universities, but while many integrative and mainstream health-care practitioners use grounding as one treatment tool, it is far from widespread. If you are curious, you can learn more on the Earthing Institute website.
Dennett is a registered dietitian nutritionist and owner of Nutrition by Carrie.
My personal experience...
Three years ago, I started having 1-2 panic attacks a day. I didn't know what they were though - had heard the term before, but didn't realize I was experiencing them. And nothing I was trying was stopping them.
I stumbled across an article about Earthing from a friend's newsfeed and thought the idea was interesting enough that I found the book for dirt cheap and ordered it.
The first page recommends that you go into your yard, put your bare feet in the grass, and actually try the thing you're going to read about. I thought it was weird but figured there was no harm in trying. So I grounded myself for an hour while I read the book.
That day, I didn't have a panic attack.
I went out the next morning to read with my bare feet in the grass again. No panic attack that day either.
I didn't know if it was responsible for this or not, but I didn't want to have another panic attack, so I kept it up. Eventually ordered one of the grounded bed sheets and slept for 8 solid hours that night without moving. I didn't know what it was doing exactly, but I knew it was doing SOMETHING.
Three years later, I've not had anymore. They stopped overnight as soon as I started Earthing.
Hope people will give this a shot before laughing the idea out of the room. Can't say it'll work for everybody, but it's made a profound difference in my life, and it's such a simple and free solution.
Three years ago, I started having 1-2 panic attacks a day. I didn't know what they were though - had heard the term before, but didn't realize I was experiencing them. And nothing I was trying was stopping them.
I stumbled across an article about Earthing from a friend's newsfeed and thought the idea was interesting enough that I found the book for dirt cheap and ordered it.
The first page recommends that you go into your yard, put your bare feet in the grass, and actually try the thing you're going to read about. I thought it was weird but figured there was no harm in trying. So I grounded myself for an hour while I read the book.
That day, I didn't have a panic attack.
I went out the next morning to read with my bare feet in the grass again. No panic attack that day either.
I didn't know if it was responsible for this or not, but I didn't want to have another panic attack, so I kept it up. Eventually ordered one of the grounded bed sheets and slept for 8 solid hours that night without moving. I didn't know what it was doing exactly, but I knew it was doing SOMETHING.
Three years later, I've not had anymore. They stopped overnight as soon as I started Earthing.
Hope people will give this a shot before laughing the idea out of the room. Can't say it'll work for everybody, but it's made a profound difference in my life, and it's such a simple and free solution.
It might be great until a tick bites you.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ticks-that-carry-lyme-disease-are-spreading-fast/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ticks-that-carry-lyme-disease-are-spreading-fast/
These are a few comments for the folks dismissing grounding out of hand. Who knows what we will eventually find out, but it's not unreasonable to test the idea.
You are probably familiar with the notion that we are mostly made of water. There is good reason for us to have retained all that water in our makeup.
Water is polar. In other words, it is more negative on one side and more positive on the other.
Our cell membranes are made up of long polar molecules that are attracted to water on one end. The watery environment keeps all those long molecules lined up, side by side, and keeps all the cell contents inside the cell unless the cell makes an effort to put something outside.
Nothing but electrical charge keeps our cell membranes intact. The idea that electrical fields might have effects on our cells and perhaps on our health is plausible.
Measuring the effects of getting back to the charge balance we evolved under seems worthwhile. There could be less direct field effects of negatively-charged ground, too, such as altering which air pollutants stay in the air, available for breathing in. (See Jamieson, Simon, Jamieson, Bell, Yost, et al., 2007, The effects of electric fields on charged molecules and particles in individual microenvironments, Atmospheric Environment, Vol: 41, Pages: 5224-5236, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231007002774.)
Over time, scientists will either map the effects and determine any usefulness, or save us from spending money on grounded beds. It will be interesting to see which!
You are probably familiar with the notion that we are mostly made of water. There is good reason for us to have retained all that water in our makeup.
Water is polar. In other words, it is more negative on one side and more positive on the other.
Our cell membranes are made up of long polar molecules that are attracted to water on one end. The watery environment keeps all those long molecules lined up, side by side, and keeps all the cell contents inside the cell unless the cell makes an effort to put something outside.
Nothing but electrical charge keeps our cell membranes intact. The idea that electrical fields might have effects on our cells and perhaps on our health is plausible.
Measuring the effects of getting back to the charge balance we evolved under seems worthwhile. There could be less direct field effects of negatively-charged ground, too, such as altering which air pollutants stay in the air, available for breathing in. (See Jamieson, Simon, Jamieson, Bell, Yost, et al., 2007, The effects of electric fields on charged molecules and particles in individual microenvironments, Atmospheric Environment, Vol: 41, Pages: 5224-5236, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231007002774.)
Over time, scientists will either map the effects and determine any usefulness, or save us from spending money on grounded beds. It will be interesting to see which!
I was a little farm kid, and we went barefoot as soon as we could and stayed barefoot all summer. I'm sure my feet are very strong and healthy - though larger than other women may have - and my overall health is very good. However, isn't there always a "however," I had pinworms as a child. When I got old enough to wonder why would I have had those, I did some research and learned that parasites can pass to the body via bare feet. I gather it's common in rural economies and 3rd world countries. So, maybe not a problem for the people who are taking this up in the comfort of US suburbia, but if dogs are in the yard, or other animals, maybe it's not so wise.
My father is a robustly-healthy 91 year old who spent his childhood working in nurseries and his adulthood gardening every summer. He's never gone barefoot in the yard, but he's also never worn gardening gloves or sunscreen. He takes low dosage medication for blood pressure and cholesterol. That's all. In the summer most of his meals include vegetables he's raised. Often his lunches are unwashed tomatoes picked while weeding. I see my 50-something friends struggling with their weight, diabetes, heart issues, cancer. How has my dad lived so long without illness? I started reading the comments to this article expecting stories similar to mine. Instead, I am surprised by the cynicism and sarcasm. For my health I'm closing out these comments and going outside to weed my yard. Barefoot.
Small sample size. You have described anecdotal evidence to a "T".
Of course my story is anecdotal. But every person I know with a chronic or debilitating illness looks for the cause. Attributing illness to problems with food, mobility, genetics and unhealthy exposures are anecdotal as well. I would rather spend my energy emulating the habits of a healthy person, than guessing at the reasons for my poor health.
I am a landscape designer, a professional gardener who is up there in age and has been hands and feet to the ground my whole life. Much of my day is spent in the office or a car these days. But as often as possible, I get down in the dirt. Anyone who does will tell you, without awareness of any research though research does exist, that the benefits are profoundly healthful to mind and body. Troubles disperse. Stresses release, there is an overriding sense of wellbeing. For those who fret about bugs and bacteria, watch where you are, and wash up afterward!
Thank you, Carrie Dennett and The Washington Post, for the article. Walking barefoot costs us nothing, feels good, and may be beneficial. What's not to like?
Assuming walking barefoot is good for us, speculating about the mechanisms at work is a good thing, even if found to be incorrect as it eliminates one possibility and may lead to another, correct one. Aspirin, through the use of willow leaves, has been used for thousands of years. It wasn't until the 1960's that a true picture of how aspirin worked biochemically began to emerge. The most recent speculation up until than was that it worked on the central nervous system. Down through the centuries there were likely a number of reasons given to why and how it worked that we might find laughable today.
Assuming walking barefoot is good for us, speculating about the mechanisms at work is a good thing, even if found to be incorrect as it eliminates one possibility and may lead to another, correct one. Aspirin, through the use of willow leaves, has been used for thousands of years. It wasn't until the 1960's that a true picture of how aspirin worked biochemically began to emerge. The most recent speculation up until than was that it worked on the central nervous system. Down through the centuries there were likely a number of reasons given to why and how it worked that we might find laughable today.
What we call 'modern society' is one big experiment in ways to alter the human experience. On one hand, we have given ourselves barrages of light, sound, information, materials, and food; on the other, we have reduced connection with the natural environment in which we evolved. The changes have happened over a couple of centuries, far outpacing ordinary evolutionary timescales, so it is likely we have created an environment that affects us in unpredictable ways.
No idea if this is true or not but I do know that I have walked barefoot for app. 6 months every year for 65 years. I absolutely need to go for short walks in the snow too. By March /April by legs and feet ate screaming to throw my shoes away. But whether it is a habit or beneficial- not a clue. however, I have never been to a doctor for 40 years
Until his dying day, well into his eightys, my Dad swore walking a few minutes barefoot in the snow helped energize him and alleviated pain. It was truly a delight to watch him. His face would light up like a small child splashing in a mud puddle. Yes, I tried it. It's amazingly refreshing ! I also walk barefoot in the grass or sand or mud as often as I can. It's ..well...quite grounding indeed.
Nothing odd about that. Our bodies do conduct electricity. You are about 90 percent water with several pounds of salts and minerals. Your heart contracts based on electrical impulses and your brain works with electrical impulses. It's not hocus-pocus, but medical fact.
Picking up a few worms might actually improve the health of those fighting autoimmune diseases.
Here's one example of research suggesting that:
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Erin_Mckenney/publication/279988197_Got_Worms_Perinatal_Exposure_to_Helminths_Prevents_Persistent_Immune_Sensitization_and_Cognitive_Dysfunction_Induced_by_Early-Life_Infection/links/5a8d9a58aca272c56bc31e84/Got-Worms-Perinatal-Exposure-to-Helminths-Prevents-Persistent-Immune-Sensitization-and-Cognitive-Dysfunction-Induced-by-Early-Life-Infection.pdf
A less random approach is already working its way into the mainstream:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helminthic_therapy
Here's one example of research suggesting that:
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Erin_Mckenney/publication/279988197_Got_Worms_Perinatal_Exposure_to_Helminths_Prevents_Persistent_Immune_Sensitization_and_Cognitive_Dysfunction_Induced_by_Early-Life_Infection/links/5a8d9a58aca272c56bc31e84/Got-Worms-Perinatal-Exposure-to-Helminths-Prevents-Persistent-Immune-Sensitization-and-Cognitive-Dysfunction-Induced-by-Early-Life-Infection.pdf
A less random approach is already working its way into the mainstream:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helminthic_therapy
Okay, loved this, but I've also been going barefoot since my entire life (unless I had to wear shoes for work/travel/hiking, or walking on lava, etc-but Hawaiian kids walk barefoot on the same lava just fine) - including in chicken coop and barnyard/cow barn as a child thru my teen years. The concerns of 'sanitary" made me chuckle as a result. But, I'd not go barefoot in a dog-park! ha, or in such a place with open cuts on my feet. But common sense has served me well, and I remain healthy and med free with a stomach of iron (I can eat most anything without GI complaints - maybe did help my vagus nerve transmissions remain healthy.)
We worry about the negatives — bees! pesticides! chiggers! — but forget about the positives. It’s worth the risk.
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