MissLJBeauty

Pexels. CCO Licensed.

Have you ever noticed how great it feels to walk barefoot on a beach or through a park? That sense of calm could be the result of grounding (also known as ‘earthing’).

Grounding is a way of tapping into the natural healing powers of the earth. Studies have suggested that grounding may improve immune function and even sleep quality. However, one major potential benefit is reduced inflammation.

While there are many ways to relieve inflammation from fixing your diet to reducing stress, one simple solution could be to simply connect your feet with the earth. This post explains more as to exactly how to do this and why it may be the cure for inflammation.

What is grounding?

Grounding focuses on realigning your electrical energy by connecting with the earth.

Throughout most of human history, people walked barefoot, slept on the ground and cultivated the land with their bare hands. Today, we wear rubber-soled shoes and live in elevated buildings, insulating ourselves from the earth’s natural surface charge.

Grounding is a way of restoring that lost connection with the earth. By making physical skin contact with the dirt and rock beneath us, it’s believed that we can rebalance our internal electrical levels.

How can grounding help inflammation?

Inflammation is the body’s response to injury, infection and stress. Electrical signals detect a threat and histamines are released, causing blood vessels in the area to expand so that more blood can reach the area. This in turn leads to redness and swelling. Nerve endings in the area meanwhile become extremely sensitive causing pain.

While inflammation can help with healing, there are many times when inflammation can be more of an inconvenience than an aid - as is the case with chronic conditions like arthritis where too much inflammation exacerbates the problem. This is where anti-inflammatory treatments like grounding become necessary.

Positively charged free radicals in our body help to contribute to chronic inflammation. Grounding helps to neutralise these radicals - the earth’s surface is practically overflowing with a limitless supply of negatively charged electrons, which are soaked up by the body when we connect to the earth. Holistic health advocates and researchers suggest that this helps to rebalance our body’s charge, which eases inflammation and pain.

What are some ways to ground yourself?

The simplest way to ground yourself is to kick off your shoes and walk on the natural ground outdoors. Surfaces like grass, dirt, sand and unpainted concrete all enable connection. Swimming in natural bodies of water outdoors has a similar effect.

If you live in a dense urban jungle or cold climate where walking barefoot outdoors isn’t practical, there are indoor alternatives. Options like grounding mats can be plugged directly into a ground port of a wall outlet to mimic that physical outdoor connection - you can place these mats under your bare feet while at a desk or while sitting on the sofa watching TV.

Is grounding the cure for inflammation?

To call grounding a miraculous ‘cure’ is probably going a bit too far, however research surrounding grounding is very promising. As a result, it’s worth trying next time you’re feeling stressed or achy. Stepping outside barefoot doesn’t cost anything and 30 minutes may be all that’s necessary to have an impact.