I’ve gotten lots of emails asking if grounding is a good idea as a way to boost health during this pandemic.
The medical literature suggests the answer to this is a resounding “Yes!” for many reasons, probably more than you think.
As you might know, most patients who suffer serious illness during Covid19 infection do so because of the body’s inflammatory response (the often referred to “cytokine storm” in the lung adds to this), subsequent hypoxia from lung inflammation, and hypercoagulation of the blood, leading to blood clots.
These three reactions the body creates as a response to coronavirus (inflammation, hypoxia, and hypercoagulation) infection is usually the cause of death… not the virus itself.
Which is why although anti-viral therapies may help play a role in decreasing infection severity, another way to support the body is by decreasing inflammation, boosting oxygenation, and keeping the blood flowing smoothly, to decrease the risk of a deadly clot.
It is the body’s reaction to the virus (instead of the virus itself) that is thought to be responsible for the high the mobility and mortality rates in Covid19 infections.
So today I want to walk you through exactly how grounding might just prep the body to be more resilient in the face of this pandemic, and why you definitely don’t want to be cut off from the healing support of the earth — right now more than ever:
Issue #1: Inflammation
1. Grounding decreases whole body inflammation:
In a study published in 2009 in The Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine, researchers found that grounded subjects had statistically significant decreases in blood markers of inflammation, as well as lowered white blood cell counts, neutrophils and lymphocytes, compared to non-grounded subjects.
In addition, decreases in inflammation as a result of grounding are well documented using medical thermography imaging in this study.
An overview of how grounding decreases whole body inflammation was published June 2014 in the Journal of Inflammation Research.
In April, 2011, a study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine found that grounding enhanced the immune response after vaccination, which might be of interest as scientists all over the world are trying to develop a coronavirus vaccine. Grounding may be an important compliment to vaccinations, increasing the effectiveness of future covid19 immunization therapies.
2. Grounding decreases cytokines:
In this important study, published January 2019 in Frontiers in Physiology, researchers found that cytokines such as such as IP-10, MIP-1α, and sP-Selectin, all decreased in grounded subjects, compared to non-grounded controls. The average drop induced by grounding a patient was a 10 – 20% drop in cytokine concentration.
In fact, right this very minute doctors are testing drugs that decrease cytokines (targeting the cytokine interferon) for use as a possible treatment for severe covid19 infections.
Issue #2: Hypoxia
3. Grounding improves lung function and stabilizes blood oxygenation:
In this study, published in 2010 in the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine, researchers showed that grounding for as little as 40 minutes boosted respiratory rate and stabilized blood oxygenation.
This study, published in 2011 in Integrative Medicine, shows that grounding is able to boost vagal tone and directly impact autonomic nervous system function, which has a direct impact on lung function. The vagal nerve not only impacts airway perfusion and secretion, it also directly impacts breathing pattern and even lung inflammation.
Grounding may be the easiest holistic therapy to directly support lung function and blood oxygenation that we know of.
In fact, this study, published in 2017 in Neonatology, found that grounding premature infants in the NICU boosted their vagal tone by almost 70%. If grounding can support the autonomic nervous system function of high risk infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, it’s probable that grounding can have a similar supportive effect on adults in ICU who could benefit from a boost to their autonomic function as well.
Issue #3: Blood clotting
4. Grounding boosts circulation:
This study, published August 2015 in Health, was a double blinded placebo study that showed clear evidence of dramatically boosted circulation throughout the body after only one hour of grounding.
Published 2014 in the Journal of Cosmetics, Dermatological Sciences and Applications, researchers showed that grounding through the soles of the feet boosted blood circulation all the way up in facial skin tissues, suggesting the positive effects of increased circulation are available even in distant sites of the body that are far away from the grounding point of contact.
Grounding is likely to increase blood flow throughout the body, by improving blood velocity and decreasing red blood cell aggregation, as described below. In addition, published in 2018 in Alternative Therapies, grounding was found to normalize high blood pressure, with an average decrease in high blood pressure measurements by 14%.
5. Grounding decreases risk of blood clots:
This very important medical study, published in 2013 in the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine, shows that grounding for only 2 hours significantly reduced clotting risk, by decreasing the zeta potential on red blood cells and making them flow through the circulatory system or the body more smoothly.
The zeta potential of the red blood cells were boosted, on average, by 270%. This in turn increased the average blood velocity of the patients by 260%.
In addition, grounding significantly decreased red blood cell aggregation, dramatically dropping the number of red blood cells that clumped together in groups of 4 or more by more than half. This suggests that the risk of developing a serious blood clot might be decreased dramatically with routine grounding practices.
As if that wasn’t impressive enough,
Grounding provides many additional benefits:
6. Grounding decreases stress on the body:
In this study, published in 2004 in the Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine, subjects who slept grounded had a complete normalization of their cortisol patterns, suggesting deep recovery from stress.
This study, published 2006 in European Biology and Bioelectricmagnetics monitored patient’s brain waves on EEG and noted an immediate shift of the central nervous system upon grounding.
And this article, published in 2011 in Medical Hypotheses, noted that EEG studies on grounded subjects suggest that grounding significantly influences the electrical activity of the brain.
7. Grounding improves sleep, which in turn improves immune system function:
These same patients from the sleep study above had such a dramatic improvement in their sleep that their sleep improved or completely normalized, and they subjectively felt less stress and experienced less pain once grounded.
Optimizing sleep is so incredibly important, particularly during pandemics or other times of increased infectious exposures, because sleep is directly and intimately tied with our immune system.
This fantastic medical study on identical twins (published 2017 in Sleep) clearly showed that the twin with decreases sleep had depressed immune function compared to their twin sibling that had longer sleep times.
Why? Sleep appears to increase immune system memory and enhances our immune system’s T cell response.
8. Grounding outside in fresh air increases ventilation:
This awesome study, published 2009 in the American Journal of Public Health, showed that open air hospitals treating patients during the 1918 pandemic actually had lower mortality rates than closed air hospitals, citing fresh air, direct sunlight, and use of respiratory masks in substantially reduced deaths over indoor hospital facilities.
Breathing and re-breathing the same indoor, recirculated air is a bad idea. Especially if you share your home with anyone else, or if you live in an apartment or multifamily unit that has central air.
This medical literature review, published in 2013 in the Journal of Hospital Infection suggests that infections caught indoors is a major contributor to worldwide morbidity and mortality rates and urges medicine to consider optimizing sunlight and ventilation when designing architecture for healthcare facilities like hospitals and clinics.
9. Grounding outside under sunlight decreases viral exposures:
Did you know that sunlight is directly germicidal?
This medical study (recently published in 2020 in the Journal of Infectious Disease) found that sunlight exposure decreased the survival of aerosolized influenza virus by 93% — decreasing viral lifespan from 32 min (with no sunlight exposure) to 2.4 min in full sunlight.
And this study, published 2004 in the Journal of Virological Methods, shows that UV light in activates coronavirus.
In fact, UV light is so helpful in decreasing transmission of viral illnesses that the New York Transit System is using UV light to disinfect thier public transportation vehicles.
10. Grounding outside naturally boosts Vit D levels:
We’ve long known that Vitamin D directly supports immune function, through complex metabolic signaling to immune cells, anti-inflammatory effects, and modulating the cytokine response.
It’s so beneficial to our immune function that Vitamin D supplementation has been shown to directly prevent respiratory tract infections.
Many scientists believe that blood levels of Vitamin D are a major factor in the morbidity and mortality of covid19. Vitamin D is so promising as a therapy that there are 20 ongoing clinical trials using Vitamin D supplementation in treating covid19 patients right this very minute.
Click here to review them all.
Unless you have had your vitamin D serum levels tested and they are above 60 ng/mL, I highly recommend you begin to supplement Vitamin D with a high quality, pharmaceutical grade supplement. I have these waiting for you in my online dispenary, so that you know you are getting a potent, bioavailable form of Vitamin D that has optimal absorption and has been stored in a medical facility under optimum conditions.
Bottom line: the earth is your best friend right now.
If you want to know exactly how to stay in touch with the earth, not just to support your health during this pandemic but forever more… I wrote a book that will explain exactly how and why the earth will boost the function of every single cell in your body, and give you hundreds of ideas on what to do when you go outside.
More surfaces than you think will ground you — you can get grounded on a city sidewalk just as easily as at the beach. You can get grounded in your garage or basement just as easily as outside camping. It’s true. This book will show you how.
Grounding can decrease your whole body inflammation, improve circulation, decrease clotting risk, support healthy respiration, and strengthen your immune system.
Know the feeling of spending a morning in your garden or an afternoon walking along the beach and how calm, centered, and supported you feel?
Grounding your body is at work here, decreasing the stress hormones (like cortisol) in your bloodstream and decreasing blood inflammatory markers (like C-reactive protein and Creatinine Kinase) as it completely naturally reduces inflammation in your body… no drugs necessary!
Excited to try grounding but not sure exactly where to go, what to do, or how long to do it for?
I wrote an uplifting, inspiring guide filled it with hundreds of ways to get that support from nature, no matter where you live (even if you live a city, it’s actually super easy to get grounded outside!) and no matter what the weather is like:
You can grab a digital book, like Kindle or Nook, or a paperback book anywhere books are sold, like: Amazon, Barnes&Noble, IndieBound: Independant Local Bookstores, New Harbinger’s website, and more!
As featured on New Harbinger’s blog last week, grounding is the perfect healing tools to reach for during times of uncertainty. Grab your copy of The Earth Prescription to inspire you to start a healing practice of grounding simply, effortlessly, from your own home, and boost your health for a lifetime.
Recommend this healing practice to everyone you care about, and let’s spread awareness of grounding’s impressive health benefits.
Please share.
Next week I will be back with a detailed article on 6 healing routines to get into to keep your innate health boosted now and no matter what we face in the future. You know grounding will be one of them — woot! — but are you doing the other 5?
Be sure to sign up for my weekly newsletter on my homepage right here if you’d like to receive the latest health care information from the medical literature, always with an uplifting attitude (never fear based like the rest of the medical world) and packed with lots of actionable things you can do to support your own innate health, directly into your email inbox.
Because I believe that innate health is natural and that we are designed to be resilient. See you next week!
With much love and faith in your Well Being…
xoxoxo, Laura
