Feel the Earth Beneath Your Feet 🌎

Thank you for joining The Holistic Alternative, a holistic health community geared towards providing you with applicable tools for your health and well-being 💪. This bi-weekly newsletter will provide you with resources and information that you can use to positively impact your overall health 🙌

This week, we’re diving into Grounding, also known as Earthing. Beneath your feet lies an omnipresent source of natural healing energy provided by nature. Recall the last time your bare feet touched the earth, be it sand, dirt, or grass. Do you remember how good it felt? 🦶

In today’s modern age, We’re increasingly recognizing that the further we drift from basic elements like sunlight, proper hydration, movement, optimal sleep, clean food, and nature, the more our health suffers. The concept of grounding carries with it substantial scientific evidence supporting the benefits of grounding on our physiology, including improved mood, reduced inflammation, and enhanced quality of life 🤯.

Imagine always wearing padded gloves, making everything you touch feel muffled and distant 🤔. That’s exactly what’s happening to our feet when we wear shoes all the time! We’re disconnecting ourselves from Mother Earth and losing the natural connection that helps us feel grounded and balanced ⚖️. We all have an abundance of nerve endings on our feet and by constantly insulating our feet, we may miss out on the sensory feedback and health benefits that come from direct contact with the ground.

This disconnection can lead to a range of issues, including poor posture, weakened foot muscles, reduced circulation, and diminished sensory perceptions in our feet. So, should we start going everywhere barefoot? No 🤣 If you’re feet looked like mine, you’d get canceled! However, it is important to know that embracing barefoot activities or grounding practices can help restore this vital connection, promoting overall health and well-being and enhancing our physical and emotional health! Below we have some great tools and actionable steps for you to explore 🙌.

Research Articles on Grounding 🧐 

There are many studies on grounding, and further research is important to continually study the benefits of this free hack! Check out these research articles on the different benefits of grounding:

Earthing/Grounding Explained

The topic of grounding can become extremely jumbled as it often triggers people’s “conspiracy radars” to go off. The concept seems rather esoteric but it is actually very basic at its roots.

The human body is an electrical system ⚡️. You can do a simple measurement by taking a volt meter to measure body voltage. We also know that the human heart's pumping action is regulated by an electrical conduction system that coordinates the contraction of the various chambers of the heart. As soon as your body comes into contact with the earth’s surface, your body “discharges” (aka changing the electrical field of the body) your body’s excess energy which is positively charged, into the earth which is negatively charged ⚛️. When this happens, free electrons from the earth flow into your body. In fact, your body saturates with electrons so fast that it’s almost impossible to measure it 💨! Your body and Mother Earth begin to exchange ions, which are simply just a group of atoms that have an electrical charge, and by doing this, your body voltage neutralizes to zero. This allows over 32 trillion cells in your body to re-polarize, also known as the resetting of the electrochemical gradients of the cell to prepare for a new action potential, bringing your body back into homeostasis which allows for healing to occur 💪. If you take a voltage meter and measure yourself while earthing, your body voltage will measure at somewhere close to zero. This decrease in body voltage puts your body in a “calmer” state, allowing cellular functions to be performed more efficiently.

All biological life requires DC (direct current) voltage to live, the human body operates on DC Voltage. AC voltage on the other hand is foreign to all biological life forms. Mother Earth itself is negatively charged with DC Voltage, thus explaining why when you’re grounded, your DC Voltage measures increasingly negative. Mother earth is an electron donor 🥹🙏! When your body receives these negatively charged electrons, they neutralize the positively charged free radicals within your body, working as a natural antioxidant!

Special Shoutout: Check out the team at Healing For The AGES. They just recently put out a virtual summit with an abundance of knowledge and lectures on the benefits of earthing and grounding! Be sure to check out their free EMF guide as well!

Earthing Vs. Grounding: Is There A Difference?

Yes and no! The concept is the same, the only major difference being the method at which we are connecting ourselves to the healing frequencies made by Mother Nature. With Earthing, our bodies are in direct contact with Mother Nature’s electron-rich surfaces. A primary example of this is having your bare feet in the grass or dirt, or walking barefoot on the beach. Grounding on the other hand is using some form of modern device or technology to mimic these effects and connect us to Mother Earth. One example is using a grounding mat and connecting it to a properly grounded electrical outlet in your house and placing your feet or some other portion of your body onto that grounding mat. The concept is the same, the only difference being the method used to connect to Earth. We prefer earthing when possible, because not only are you receiving the benefits of being in contact with earth but you’re benefiting from the elements of nature as well! Earthing and sunshine being our favorite combo 🌞.

• A “Biohackers” Solution - Here at the Holistic Alternative we believe in using solutions that are as close to nature and the natural world as possible. In this case earthing is practically free!!😆 With that being said, many people in the biohacking industry have touted the benefits of a PEMF (pulsed electromagnetic field) mat that sends magnetic frequencies that actually mimic the magnetic fields of mother earth. In this way you can receive similar benefits to grounding or earthing.

Get Outside!

Here is a list of our favorite places in New York City and Westchester where you can go outside and enjoy some time in nature this season:

• Where my Queens, NY people at? Check out these nature attractions to enjoy in Queens. Get out there and get barefoot.

• Brooklyn in the building? Check out this events calendar for Prospect Park for some free events these next few months. Visit Oko Farms to get some time in nature. They have markets selling their produce starting in July!

• Westchester is stunning in the summer, there is an abundance of nature you can go visit and spend some time under the sun. An escape from the city that can sometimes feel like you are in another state or country! Check out these parks.

• The most common place to ground is the beach, and we highly recommend getting some beach time! Wherever you are, find a beach close by and make it a day trip. Here you’ll get your longest earthing sessions in and feel great.

Support Local Businesses and Resources

• Earthing.com and Ultimatelongevity.com are the two brands that we trust for household grounding products. Both of these companies are produced by Clint Ober’s time tested grounding technology.

• Visit your local Barnes and Noble or other book store to purchase Clint Ober’s book Earthing! 

• There are so many new products coming out to make it easier for us to stay grounded in our modern environment! The grounding footwear industry is growing each day allowing you to stay grounded in situations where being barefoot isn’t the most practical! Earth Runners has a variety of grounding sandals. The Earthing brand has also been piloting some new grounding footwear. Ive had the pleasure of testing out a pair of their sandals and have been loving them so far!

DISCLAIMER: The Holistic Alternative Newsletter is for general educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of giving medical advice, and no nurse/patient relationship is formed. The content of this newsletter is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.