Authors: Laura Koniver MD.
Directly touching the earth outside connects our conductive human body to the natural electrical output of the earth, a holistic healing practice known as grounding. This direct contact immediately grounds the entire human body from head to toe, as all of the living cells and tissues and fluids of the body are highly conductive and become grounded to the earth nearly instantaneously. Although in medicine we are very familiar with monitoring the electrical activity of the body to diagnose disease (such as using an electrocardiogram to evaluate heart function or an electroencephalogram to evaluate brain function) much less is known about supporting the conductive health of the body in a preventive, proactive way. Over the past several decades, numerous studies have started to reveal the incredible health benefits from spending time in grounded contact with the earth, and these studies suggest that not only are there immediate health benefits to grounding, but that these benefits accrue over time. That begs the question, if one practices grounding routinely over an entire lifetime, could this healing modality potentially be anti-aging, boosting the resiliency of all the different organ systems it supports and ultimately, extending longevity? This review article examines what we know so far from medical studies on grounding and suggests possible pathways that grounding to the earth may in fact offer long term benefits to the body, including protecting muscle mass, bone density, sleep quality, cognitive function and skin health, which together just might protect against age related health changes, decreasing the development of frailty, and increasing health span.
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