Is there any science behind the practice of ‘grounding’ or ‘earthing’?

After a long day, walking in nature or sitting in a park is sure to restore your mood.

But proponents of “grounding” say it’s not the environment that makes you feel good, but the flow from the earth.

Grounding, also known as “earthing,” is increasingly practiced in the belief that placing bare feet on the earth balances electrical charges and helps resolve issues such as inflammation and mood issues.

But is there any scientific backing to this?

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Norman Swan recently spoke on ABC Radio National’s What’s That Rash?, calling the practice “complete bullshit” and the health claims “nonsense”.

Grounding is a term used by scientists, but it does not mean creating a healthy balance.

According to Karen Livesey, a theoretical physicist at the University of Newcastle, ‘grounding’ has long been a physics term and refers to the process of removing excess positive or negative charge build-up.

However, lack of grounding is unlikely to make humans sick.

“The fact that we have been accumulating electrical charge for thousands of years throughout human history seems to indicate that it does not harm us,” Dr. Livesey said.

A conductor is required for grounding

Most people have experienced static electricity, which occurs when negative or positive charges build up. on your skin.

This is a fairly regular occurrence, caused by the friction of two objects sliding against each other, causing one object to gain electrons and the other to lose electrons. This creates one slightly positive object and one slightly negative object.

Walking on carpets, playing with balloons, or slipping down playground slides can cause these symptoms, which can also cause your hair to stand on end.

We’ve known about static electricity since at least ancient Greece.

“There were no balloons back then,” Dr. Livesey said.

“They had rabbit fur and amber sticks and knew they could rub them together to create magical static electricity and impress three-year-olds.”

However, these overage charges do not remain forever.

These extra electrons try to spread as far as possible, trying to get away from each other, and eventually end up in your hair, causing it to stand on end.

Then, at some point, when you touch a conductor, the sound will come out from inside your body. A conductor can be anything from a piece of metal to an unsuspecting friend. This is what physicists mean when they talk about grounding.

But metals and other objects aren’t the only things that can act as conductors. The Earth itself does this as well.

“The Earth has an overall negative charge…and the entire atmospheric system of the Earth must be neutral, which means there is a positive charge in the atmosphere,” Dr. Livesey said. Ta.

“When we touch the earth, a transfer of electrons occurs and we end up at the same potential.”

What about grounding exercises?

For grounding proponents, the positive effect of this practice is thought to be the Earth’s ability to shed excess electrons (which they call “vitamin G”).

Getting outside and spending time in nature is associated with mental health benefits, but the idea that chronic disease can be caused by an electrical imbalance between us and the Earth is It makes no sense,” Dr. Swan said.

Those who practice grounding believe they can benefit indoors by using a variety of products, including what are known as grounding mats.

These are plastic mats that plug into the power point, but only into the third hole at the bottom.

In the case of a house, the hole in the bottom of the outlet is connected to the earth to protect against electrical leakage, rather than to supply electricity.

However, Dr. Livesey said there are unlikely to be any health benefits to grounding practices using mats or other objects.

“From a physics perspective, I can’t think of any process by which an excess or deficiency of electrons on the surface of our bodies could affect our health,” she said.

“There are 10 occilions. [a 1 with 28 zeros after it] electrons in our bodies. Even a few electrons short compared to Earth’s charge is very unlikely to change the way our bodies use electricity. ”

Charge is essentially important

Long before humans invented ways to power modern life, nature has been working with positive and negative electrical charges.

The interaction between bees and flowers is one example.

Flowers have a slight negative charge because they are part of the earth, but when a bee flies, a positive charge is created.

Bees can sense electrical fields in flowers, and it is this static electricity that causes bees to get covered in pollen.

When the bee visits the next flower, the positively charged pollen lands on that flower again.

“Flowers are like little lightning rods,” Dr. Livesey says.

”[Bees] In fact, it has to fly around for a long time to regain its positive charge so that it can be attracted to the flower again. ”

Electric charge also plays an important role in the human body.

“How our cells talk to each other, how we mount an immune response, and how neurons fire in our brains all happen by sending electric charges,” Dr. Livesey said. said.

Positive elements or “ions” such as potassium and sodium exist in varying concentrations inside and outside cells, along with negative elements such as chloride.

As cells take on different functions, these ions switch positions, allowing nutrients to enter and exit, allowing for cell transport and regulation of size.

Dr. Livesey says it takes more than static electricity to throw the system out of balance, but certain diseases and toxins can.

Epilepsy is caused by excessive bursts of electrical activity in the brain, and the neurotoxins in spiders and snakes can interfere with the transfer of electrical charges, damaging or even killing neurons.

Hear from Dr. Norman Swan and Teagan Taylor Unraveling why scientific research on grounding is so difficult to analyze What is a rash? and subscribe to podcast Learn more.