How does a grounding mat work?
A grounding mat is intended to take the place of the direct earth contact we would experience while walking barefoot. Nowadays, in Western culture, we hardly ever go outside barefoot.
An equalization occurs when the negative electric charge on the earth’s surface and the positive charge on human flesh come into touch. A static electric charge can accumulate within the body as a result of excess electron uptake. The Earthing Hypothesis is what’s behind this.
An individual can bring the earth’s electric current into their home or place of business with the help of a grounding mat. In the majority of biochemical processes in the body, electron transfer occurs.
That said, not everyone will enjoy this. Be careful of any nearby unground electrical sources as there is a risk of drawing current from other sources. A potentially hazardous electrical shock could result from this.
According to Debra Sullivan, earthing or grounding mats establish an electrical link between your body and the earth. The goal is to imitate the kind of physical connection that occurs when one walks barefoot on the ground. Through this link, electrons can travel from the earth into your body and produce a balanced electrical charge.
Humans barely make physical contact with the earth because we spend the majority of our time indoors or outside in rubber-soled shoes. These mats enable this connection indoors and restore the electron charge equilibrium.
The mats typically use a wire to connect to the ground port of an outlet. The mats can be positioned on the ground, a desk, or a bed so that a person can conduct the energy of the earth by placing their bare feet, hands, or body on the mat.
Is it important for health to walk on natural surfaces such as grass and dirt?
DRW: Just being outside offers numerous health advantages. People who go barefoot say it makes them feel incredibly happy. Improvements in blood glucose, osteoporosis, immunological function, blood flow, and stress reduction have all been reported.
Measurements have been made of the benefits of exercise-induced muscle repair as well as the reduction of inflammation.
DS: It makes sense that walking barefoot on natural surfaces would be advantageous, given studies shows that grounding has great effects on the human body. However, be careful when going barefoot because we made shoes to protect our feet for a reason.
While wearing shoes, it is possible to make an electrical connection while walking on grass and dirt. Finding leather-soled shoes or grounding shoes that are specially made will be necessary, though.
Is there any solid research on grounding mats?
DRW: The advantages of grounding mats are becoming more and more clear. Sleep, biological clocks and rhythms, and hormone release are all affected.
It is generally known how antioxidant electrons render free radicals inactive. We are aware that these free radicals affect immunological response, inflammation, and chronic illness.
Four distinct experiments looking at grounding and its impact on human physiology were published in a 2011 paper. Grounding enhanced electrolytes, thyroid hormone levels, glucose levels, and even the immunological response to vaccinations.
There are advantages to being barefoot outside, and those advantages carry over to grounding mats when the weather and ground conditions permit. In these experiments, grounding mats are frequently employed.
In the meanwhile, I urge you to walk barefoot and deliberately put aside your tension until I see further study.
DS: Research on earthing or grounding does provide strong support for its ability to improve general health through improved blood flow, less inflammation, and better sleep.
The majority of the time, subjects for this study are asleep, but some effects have also been measured in awake subjects. Making an impact took as little as an hour.
Does the body’s electric current correspond to stress level?
DRW: Everything has an impact on everything when seen holistically. Stress causes us to become out of balance. Cellular changes take place.
DS: This review demonstrates that using a grounding mat while sleeping reduced stress levels, even though I was unable to locate proof of electric currents correlating to heightened stress levels.
However, more investigation will be required to demonstrate whether those are related. Here’s more to grounding mat dangers.