Earthing- The secret energy beneath our feet- Part Two

This is a continuation from the previous article on earthing! If you didn't get a chance to read that one and you're not familiar with earthing, please see it here.

"The moment your foot touches the Earth, or you connect to the Earth through a wire, your physiology changes, An immediate normalization begins. And an anti-inflammatory switch is turned on. People stay inflamed because they never connect with the Earth, the source of free electrons, which can neutralize the free radicals in the body that cause disease and cellular destruction." 

~James Oschman   

Clinton Ober was an entrepreneur in the cable industry in Colorado. In 1972 he started his own business specializing in developing, marketing, and installing cable television systems that eventually became one of the largest of its kind in the country.  

In 1993 he developed a serious abscess in his liver from a root canal procedure. He had a major portion of the liver removed and was in recovery for several months. One day during the long healing process he had a realization that changed his life; He was living in a way where most of his energy was spent taking care of his 'stuff.' He decided to free himself from his possessions and pursue something more meaningful. 

This journey is what eventually lead him to his discoveries about the earth and its connection to the human body. 

Along with struggles from the abscess in his liver, Clinton also had back pain from previous surgeries which led to needing pain and sleep medication daily. It was because of these problems that he took particular interest in health.

Being in the television industry, Clinton understood how important it is for cable systems to be 'grounded.' Lots of electronic devices need to be connected with the earth in order to work effectively and safely. Grounding is connecting a device's electrical flow to the earth. It protects the system from static electricity and interference from other frequencies, and also prevents user contact if something has particularly dangerous voltage. Grounding can be accomplished by plugging something into a three-pronged outlet. The big half-circle spot on most of your outlets is connected to the ground. It can also be done by simply connecting a device to a conductive rod driven into the earth.

One day Clinton was watching the people walking around him and he thought about how in the industrialized world, most people have little or no connection with the ground. We live in insulated non-conductive housing. We drive cars everywhere. We wear synthetic soled shoes the moment we step outside. Electricity doesn't conduct through rubber, wood, asphalt, or plastic, and thus has the ability to separate us from the natural energy of the earth. Clinton started to wonder: 

Could this disconnection be affecting our health?

Soon after this thought, he took a voltage meter and connected a wire to it, the other end he attached to a rod in the ground. He was then able to measure the electrical charges being created on his body as he was insulated from the ground in his home. He could measure the differences in static electricity with every step he took. When he would step towards any electrical device (lamps, TV, etc) the voltage would go up. Except when in front of his refrigerator and computer tower, which were both grounded.

His bedroom was where the highest electrical voltage was created on his body. Where he slept was next to a wall full of hidden wires. He began wondering what type of effects this had on his sleep.

Curiosity peaked, he began constructing a 'grounding pad.' Using metallized duct tape, an alligator clip, and wire strung out through the window to a ground rod, he made a grid to lay on while he slept. When he laid on this grid, the volt meter showed nearly zero. It was equivalent to laying out on the ground. The earth's energy was free to flow through his body. He was brought to the same electric potential as the earth.

He lay there pondering the implications and the next thing he knew it was morning, and the volt meter was laying on his chest. It was the first night he'd slept without medicine in a long time. 

Clinton found that earthing had tremendous influence on his health and well being! Not only did he begin sleeping better and waking up more rested, but he was able to go off pain medication as his chronic pain had reduced significantly. He began making grounding pads for his close friends. Surprisingly the same friends began coming back to him reporting less arthritic pain and better sleep.

Clinton wasn't a biologist. His discoveries were hardly given an ear in the professional world for a long time. But eventually he was able to connect with Dr. Ghaly, a retired anesthesiologist who was interested in electric field research. He agreed to organize a pilot study where he would measure the circadian secretion of cortisol (the hormone released in response to stress) of people before and after they slept grounded. His main motivation was to prove Clinton wrong. 

Though the study was small, the results were impressive. Out of 12 participants, all but 1 developed more natural cortisol rhythms.

Many of the patients:

• Fell asleep faster
• Woke fewer times in the night
• Felt less fatigued upon waking
• Felt reductions in their emotional stress 
• Had improvements of gastrointestinal symptoms 
• Experienced PMS symptom improvement 
• Experienced less pain

More studies followed! Some that I found particularly interesting were ones monitored using Thermography. These photos are FACINATING and I was lucky enough to find them online so that I could share them with you now! This is scientific EVIDENCE of how grounding affects us physiologically.

Photo 1. Through infrared imaging we can see inflammation in the legs. Red=inflammation. These pictures were taken 30 minutes apart, before and after grounding. They show a rapid resolution of inflammation as a result of connecting to the earth.

Photo 2. These are pictures of the back of an 85-year old man who had intense lower back and shoulder pain. The second picture was taken after 2 nights of sleeping grounded. After four weeks the patient reported TOTAL RESOLUTION of back and shoulder pain and only some stiffness,

Photo 3.
These are the feet of a 52 year old woman before and after 30 minutes of grounding. The right foot and ankle had pretty significant inflammation, while the left foot is barely seen because of poor circulation. Look how grounding helped both!



It doesn't end there. I've been reading story after story of people who have started turning around their health by taking off their shoes and reconnecting with our beautiful planet.

So what does this mean for you?

..Kick off those shoes! This actually works. Go try this out for yourself and let me know what you find. When I started to think about it, I realized how little my feet actually touch the ground. Now, while it is still warm, I go out on the lawn during my lunch breaks and try to spend at least 30 minutes in contact with the ground. Figure out what works for you. If you're interested in grounding products, or want to make your own, please see the links below.

References
Earthing- The most important health discovery ever? Authors Ober, Sinatra and Zucker.

Dr Ghaly's study on earthing and cortisol: Ghaly M and Teplitz D "The biologic effects of grounding the human body during sleep as measured by cortisol levels and subjective reporting of sleep, pain, and stress." Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2004

Thermography Earthing studies done by William Amalu, D.C. president of the International Academy of Clinical Thermography.

Ground (Electricity)
Grounded Electrical Outlets
Earthing equiptment
DIY Earthing Pad