Natural electrical currents run throughout the ecosystem. This is about how
everything in nature practices multiple ways of grounding to receive the
nurturing electric influence of the planet.
Text © Sander Funneman, Illustrations © Peter Brouwers
Natural electrical currents run throughout the ecosystem. Below ground, electricity whizzes from tree to tree and from flower to flower. It connects insects to the earth’s magnetic field, influences people’s brains and enables bacteria to communicate wirelessly – as do birds and fish. Everything in nature appears to be connected to an electrical circuit that even charges ocean water.
Where does that planetary circuit come from
The sun bombards the earth’s atmosphere with large positively charged protons, making the atmosphere positively charged. In addition, a constant stream of small fast negatively charged electrons penetrates the earth’s surface. This current contributes to the earth’s negative charge. Thus, the soil and the plants rooted in the soil carry a negative charge, whilst the atmosphere carries a positive charge.
How do humans fit into this picture
In 1924, Willem Einthoven received the Nobel Prize for measuring and recording the heart’s signals in an electrocardiogram (ECG). It was one of the first instruments that could visualize electrical currents in the human body. For many centuries, the heart was only considered as a physical organ. However, now the heart was found to have an electrical side as well. Then thereafter it was discovered that the circulatory system also carries an electrical charge. The insight of the heart and circulation as a bioelectric circuit was born. The brain and nervous system also appear to have electrical sides – as do muscles, skin and skeleton. Remarkable in this regard, is that both the heart and brain use electrical frequencies in the same range as the frequencies of the earth.
Food for the feet
Like the roots of a tree, we too can connect the body with electricity from the soil. We only need to reach out our hands and touch a branch or blade of grass. It is that simple. However, living without that electrical connection has consequences. To understand those consequences, we will highlight main points in the history of shoes.
Throughout the ages, people walked barefoot or mainly used leather as footwear. When leather becomes moist, as a result of perspiration from the feet or the wetness of the ground, conduction occurs. Through the feet, a natural flow of electrons then starts to occur between the earth and the body. The negatively charged electrons from the earth thus flow into the body. The same thing happens in animals, from the smallest insect to the largest elephant. The legs of animals and the feet of humans, regularly have to feed from the negative charge of the earth, also called grounding – feeding with earth-electricity.
The body functions better when it is connected to the earth. For example, the supply of electrons provides protection against chronic inflammation – the underlying cause of many common health complaints. Good circulation is one of the foundations of a healthy body: it stimulates digestion, contributes to the proper functioning of the heart and brain, and increases overall physical vitality. When blood circulates properly, oxygen and nutrients go to our organs and tissues. At the same time, waste products are removed.
The images below show the blood flow before and after grounding. The first image on the left is before grounding, the image on the right is after grounding. When red blood cells clump together, blood flow becomes thick and slow. The current perception is that this clumping seems to be caused, among other things, by a lack of negative electrical charge from the body; in fact, negative charge repels blood cells and keeps them separated.
Blood flow before grounding(left) and blood flow after grounding (right)
Research shows that the health benefits of grounding may well be enormous: sleep quality improves, stress and muscle stiffness decrease, inflammation as well as chronic pains reduce, wound healing accelerates, etc.
Why did we stop grounding
After World War II, oil products were spread across the world. Since plastic is a waste product of oil, new cheap trendy shoes were made from it in the 1950s and 1960s. Plastic is an insulator and blocks the flow of negative electrons from the earth to the body.
In 2022, Stephen Sinatra, an American cardiologist, found a direct link between the rising sales of synthetic shoes and the emergence of the global diabetes epidemic. After all, since the enormous success of shoes with synthetic soles, inflammatory diseases – such as diabetes, high blood pressure and arthritis – are increasing exponentially. Of course, other aspects may underlie these diseases, but the connection to this new cause is certainly remarkable. And the question is: Are shoes with plastic soles making us sick? More and more research is suggesting the worst.
Source diagram based on: S.W. Sinatra, et al, 2022
How to begin with grounding
Exposing the body regularly to the refreshing flow of negative electrons from the earth provides a variety of health benefits. One of the best, cheapest and most effective ways to ground, is to take off the shoes and socks and stand barefoot on the grass for 15 minutes. Bare skin on the ground is the fastest way to ground. Another way is, whilst walking, wear shoes with leather soles, or walk with a fresh wooden stick that regularly touches the ground. The electrons from the earth then whiz up along the stick into the body.
Another way to contribute to the grounding process is to go gardening with your bare hands. Furthermore, it is possible to go swimming in a river, a lake or the ocean. This gives the negative electrons of the earth immediate access to the entire body. And indoors? Showering is also a way to ground, as the water comes out of the ground through pipes, carrying masses of negative electrons that splash onto the body along with the water droplets. Natural earth-electricity is available to everyone anywhere, anytime; simply connecting your body to it increases well-being!
This article was originally published in Dutch Optimist Magazine nr. 216, May/June 2024
Sources of food for the feet
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