The health benefits of earthing & grounding are almost incalculable.

I’ll get more into all the amazing things earthing does for our bodies below.

But you know the best part about grounding? Btw, I’ll be using earthing & grounding interchangeably in this article. The best part about grounding is that it’s free.

So many biohackers today are promoting devices that cost thousands of dollars. I’m one of them. There are many great devices out there (like saunas and red light panels, cold plunges, ozone machines etc) that cost a lot of money to make and manufacture. There’s nothing wrong with that.

But nothing beats reconnecting with nature and earthing is the most powerful way to do that.

I’ve been grounding since around 2008 when I first heard David Wolfe talk about it. I was a member of his website for many years and learned a ton during that time.

Then in 2014 I read the book called Earthing which really opened my eyes to the power of reconnecting to the earth. I’ll get more into that below.

But first….

What is Earthing/Grounding?

The concept couldn’t be more simple, it’s standing barefoot on natural substances. If you’re wearing rubber soled shoes, you’re not earthing, no matter what you’re standing on. Also if you’re standing barefoot on substances that do not conduct electricity (like foam padding on concrete in your home gym for example) you’re not earthing.

You must be barefoot standing on rock, grass, stone, sand, wood etc.

Earthing is standing barefoot on the earth.

Simple concept right?

But what’s the big deal about that? Isn’t that what hippies did years ago and we made fun of how uncivilized they were?

Seems like standing barefoot on the earth would do nothing for your health right?

You couldn’t be more wrong.

So let’s explore the…

5 Health benefits Of Earthing & Grounding

The earth is struck by lightning 1.4 billion times per year. This voltage enters the earth and is discharged as electrons from its surface. This is not “woo woo” science. It’s measurable. There is no debate about this. You can find studies showing this and experiments confirming this is the case.

We know from TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) that our feet have the most receptors for receiving electrical flow, especially when our feet are moist or have some sweat on them. Morning dew on the grass or walking near a creek, river or ocean has the same conductive electrical effect on your skin.

According to TCM the kidney 1 (K1) acupuncture point,  on the ball of your foot, is a major entryway for absorbing Earth Qi (chi). From K1, the energy moves through your urinary bladder meridian and travels to your vital organs like your heart, brain, lungs, and liver​.

To take this concept a little further the soles of your feet have more nerve endings per square inch than any other part of the body, making them very sensitive to contact with the Earth. According to Dr. William Rossi, a podiatrist, your foot acts as a radar-sonic base, drawing energy from the Earth, similar to how plant roots extract moisture from the ground​.

So with that in mind….

When your skin (particularly your bare feet) touch the earth, the earth’s electrical charge comes into direct contact with the skin on your feet. This electrical charge transfers electrons from the earth to your body.

Most of you reading this will know how antioxidants work. When a molecule becomes oxidized, it loses and electron. If a molecule in your body is supposed to have 8 electrons and it loses one because of heavy metal exposure, stress, chemicals or toxins then it becomes unstable and imbalanced.

Now, that molecule needs another molecule to donate an electron back to it, to take it from having 7 electrons to 8 which is more balanced.

When you are living under blue light, eating toxic food and living a stress filled lifestyle this is called oxidative stress. This means that your cells are losing electrons at a more rapid rate than are being donated back to them.

This eventually shows up as heart disease, cancer, stroke, COPD, blindness etc.

All dis-ease is caused by oxidative stress (electron loss).

Antioxidants are able to donate their electrons to help fight this oxidation inside the body.

The problem is you can only eat so many antioxidant rich foods.

This is where grounding comes in.

You’re able to flood your body with electrons to help lower inflammation.

Think of grounding or earthing like eating massive amounts of electrons through your feet.

Now let’s look at 5 health benefits of earthing & grounding

1. Inflammation

Remember inflammation is simply massive electron loss in the body.

The 4 best ways to lower inflammation are…

1. Stop participating in the cause
2. Eat lots of antioxidant rich foods
3. Ground to the earth as much as you can
4. Do things that are anti-inflammatory (have fun, laugh, be entertained etc)

A 2015 randomized, double-blind, pilot study tested the effects of grounding on inflammation and blood flow. Conducted at an independent laboratory, the study found that one hour of contact with the Earth’s surface significantly improved blood flow and reduced markers of inflammation. Participants showed a decrease in blood viscosity, which is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and systemic inflammation​.👉 Study

2. Sleep

If you can master the art of perfect sleep,  you’ll win at the health and healing game. Many times we cannot sleep because our inflammation levels are sky high. Restoring electrons to the body through earthing can be a game changer for your sleep.

A 2004 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine investigated the impact of grounding on sleep and cortisol levels. Conducted with 12 participants experiencing sleep disturbances, the 8-week study found that grounding during sleep normalized cortisol secretion, improved sleep quality, reduced nighttime awakenings, and decreased stress-related symptoms​. 👉 Study

3. Stress

Stress increases inflammation and inflammation increases stress. It’s a cycle that continues forever unless we break that endless loop. Stress comes in many forms. One way to combat stress (other than to eliminate its cause) is to have the available electrons to deal with its effects (electron loss and inflammation).

A 2023 animal study examined the effects of grounding on stress-induced anxiety and neuroendocrine changes in rats. Conducted at a university research center, the experiment found that grounding significantly reduced anxiety-like behaviors and regulated stress-related hormones such as cortisol. The study suggests grounding as a potential tool for managing chronic stress and anxiety​. 👉 Study

4. Mood

I bet nobody ever told you that reconnecting with nature through grounding can be more effective than taking a medication to alter brain function. We are not sad and depressed because of a lack of pharmaceutical drugs, we’re feeling stressed and angry because we’re living lives disconnected from nature.

A 2015 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine examined the effects of grounding on mood. Conducted as a clinical trial, the study found that participants who engaged in grounding reported improved mood, reduced irritability, and enhanced emotional well-being. The results suggest that grounding may influence the autonomic nervous system and reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety​. 👉 Study

5. Cardiovascular Health

When most people think about cardiovascular health, they think they need to stop eating animal foods and processed junk. Or maybe they think about takin statin drugs. But going back to my original point, all disease is caused by inflammation.

Inflammation is caused by electron loss and a lack of antioxidants.

Eating high antioxidant foods while grounding to the earth solves the #1 driver of death in the world today.

A 2013 study found that grounding the human body reduces blood viscosity, a major factor in cardiovascular disease. Conducted in a clinical setting, the research used darkfield microscopy to analyze blood samples before and after grounding. Results showed that grounding thinned the blood, improving circulation and reducing the risk of blood clots​. 👉 Study

When You Shouldn’t Ground

When speaking with Brian Hoyer (I’ll put the interview we did with him below) he mentioned that it might not be best to ground using pads if you’re in a room that has WiFi signals and other electronic devices.

I wrote an article some time ago called Earthing Grounding Bed Sheets – Do They Work? Here’s What The Evidence Says…that talked about using grounded bed sheets. This is a great option but you have to make sure you’re doing it correctly.

Rather than trying to ground inside I like to go outside a few times per day and put my bare feet on the grass in our backyard.

If you are grounding in cities, you might not get the full effect as if you were grounding somewhere more natural like a forest a desert or the ocean.

The reason is in cities and suburban areas, many times they’ll run electrical wiring underground back to their sub stations and power plants. This impacts the earths ability to properly emit electrical voltage in areas with lots of wiring.

Earthing & Grounding Tips

Did you know that if you wear sunglasses and rubber soled shoes while at the beach or lake, you’ll get a sunburn faster? When grounding I always take off my shoes (obviously) but also as much clothing as possible and always sunglasses.

If you wear reading glasses or have contacts in, I would remove them for the time that you are outside.

Grounding to the earth upon sunrise is the most important time to do this because it sets your circadian rhythm, releases cortisol and activates your melatonin signals for the day.

I call this grounded morning sungazing.

How I Ground

If you watch my Instagram stories, you’ll see me earthing in the morning. I watch the sunrise for 5 or 10 minutes with no sunglasses on (no I don’t stare directly into the sun!) and no shoes on every morning. This is a free and powerful way to invest in your health every single day.

Then 4 or 5 times per day, I’ll go outside for a couple of minutes to pet the dogs, check on the garden or fruit trees while grounded. Other times I’ll watch the kids jump on the trampoline or pick up dog poop. I use any excuse to get outside even for 1 or 2 minutes.

The other way I ground is by working out in my home gym (which is in our courtyard outside). This is powerful because when you’re working out lifting weights you’re creating inflammation and oxidative stress in your muscles.

Grounding in between sets allows me to lower inflammation and repair my muscles faster so that they’re repaired and healed by my next workout.

Sometimes I’ll take my rebounder outside as well and ground myself with a special ankle strap while I’m getting sun and rebounding all at the same time.

Basically I use any excuse possible to get outside and reconnect with nature.

My primary focus is getting that morning sunrise grounding though because that is the most powerful of all the times I do earthing each day.

Conclusion

As you can see the health benefits of earthing & grounding are pretty miraculous. I only highlighted 5 of them but if you read the book you can read much more reasons to ground along with many more scientific studies about it.

Since earthing makes so much sense and there are hundreds of studies supporting the idea, I just do it now without thinking about it too much.

Try earthing for 30 days and see what happens. When you do come back and leave a comment here to let us all know!

Questions:

1. Have you ever grounded on a regular consistent basis?
2. If so, what results did you notice?
3. Would you ever consider grounding your bed? If so, why?

Comment below, I’d love to hear your thoughts!