Bare foot Walking The surface of the Earth holds elusive health promoting energy.

All we have to do is touch it and become truly active. Earthing is as simple as walking on the beach, lying down on a rock or in other ways connecting directly to the earth's surface with our bare skin. The earth's negative ions help balance the positive ions we build up every day through stress, unhealthy foods and exposure to electronic and cellular devices. The Earth is negatively charged, so when we ground, we're connecting our body to a negatively charged supply of energy. And since the Earth has a greater negative charge than your body, we end up absorbing electrons from it. Hindrance in Earths Energy Flow Chances are very less that we are experiencing the benefits of grounding, as most of us spend most of the time walking wearing shoes with rubber or plastic soles. These are insulators and they also effectively disconnect you from the Earths natural electron flow. Leather soled shoes also allow staying grounded with the Earth, but walking bare foot is the easiest and best way. Good grounding surfaces include:

Sand Moist Grass Bare soil Concrete and brick (If not painted or sealed) Ceramic tile

The following surfaces will not help in grounding:

Asphalt Wood Rubber and plastic Vinyl Tar or tarmac

Before You Take Off Your Shoes We have to be prepared that our gait will be different than it is with our shoes on. We have to listen to our body and try to tune in to our inborn knowledge of how to run and walk barefoot, and allow our feet, ankles, knees and hips to naturally change position in response to the piece of ground. When one start going barefoot it is best to initiate on naturally softer ground like grass, mud paths and sand, not cement, asphalt or hardwood. When the muscles and joints of foot become more stable and the skin on the bottom of feet thickens, one will be able to handle progressively more time barefoot and on a wider variety of surfaces. Benefits of Earthing Simply by going out barefoot, touching the Earth, and allowing the excess charge in our body to discharge into the Earth, we can palliate some of the stress continually put on our system. For example, walking barefoot can help amend the constant assail of electromagnetic fields and other types of radiation from electronics, cell phones, computers and Wi-Fi. Regular contact with the natural electrical field of the earth helps restore our body's natural electrical balance. Following are some benefits:

Reduce chronic pain Improves sleep Lowers stress Improves energy Lessens hormonal and menstrual symptoms Accelerates recovery from extreme athletic activity

Study found that Earthing changed the electrical activity in the brain, as measured by electroencephalograms. Still other research found that grounding benefitted skin conductivity, moderated heart rate variability, improved glucose regulation, reduced stress and boosted immunity. Grounding is Anti-Inflammatory and Blood thinner One of the primary health benefits of grounding is its antioxidant effect. It helps alleviate inflammation from our body as inflammation is the root of most diseases. According to Dr. Sinatra, inflammation thrives when blood is thick and there is lot of free radical stress, and a lot of positive charges in the body. Grounding effectively alleviates inflammation because it thins blood and infuses negatively charged ions through the soles of feet.

Grounding helps thinning of blood by improving its zeta potential, which means it improves the energy between red blood cells. Research has demonstrated it takes about 80 minutes for the free electrons from the earth to reach our bloodstream and transform our blood. Thick & slow moving blood contributes to chronic inflammation, because when blood does not flow well, oxygen does not tissues Grounding Calms Nervous System Grounding also calms sympathetic nervous system, which supports heart rate variability. And, hence promotes homeostasis, or balance in autonomic nervous system. Induces Sound Sleep A review published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health looked at a number of studies that highlight how drawing electrons from the earth improves health. In one, chronic pain patients using grounded carbon fiber mattresses slept better and experienced less pain.

Walking Barefoot A Way to Health Modern lifestyle has increasingly separated humans from the primordial flow of Earth's electrons. For example, since the 1960s, we have increasingly worn insulating rubber or plastic soled shoes, instead of the traditional leather fashioned. During recent decades, chronic illness, immune disorders, and inflammatory diseases have increased dramatically. We can clearly make out that moving away from Mother Nature is disease, sickness and death. But returning to her is health and longevity. We just have to modify certain aspects of our so called modern life and adopt simple measures to live closer to nature.

Dr Awantika Nanda NIN, Pune