Tag: earthing

Can Grounding Reduce Stress and Improve Sleep?

Published on by Nikken

The modern movement of grounding or earthing began in the early 2000s when Clinton Ober began to research the effects of grounding on the body. Since then, numerous studies and research have been conducted on the efficacy of grounding, and the results have been promising.Here are some examples1:

  1. In a 2004 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, researchers found that grounding the body during sleep can improve sleep and reduce pain and stress levels in people with chronic pain.
  2. In a 2010 study published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health, researchers found that grounding the body can reduce inflammation in the body and improve blood flow.
  3. In a 2012 study published in the Journal of Inflammation Research, researchers found that earthing the body can reduce inflammation in the body and improve immune function.
  4. In a 2013 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, researchers found that grounding the body can reduce pain and improve mood in people with chronic pain.
  5. In a 2015 study published in the Journal of Inflammation Research, researchers found that grounding the body can reduce inflammation in the body and improve sleep quality.
  6. In a 2018 study published in the Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, researchers found that earthing the body can improve balance and stability in older adults.

The Earthing Institute, a pro-grounding group, says that spending time connected to the ground can improve sleep, lower inflammation, ease stress, improve blood flow, and boost physical healing, among other things.2 

Researchers attribute many of their positive findings to the changes in cortisol levels of those who practice grounding. Results indicate that grounding during sleep reduces night-time levels of cortisol and resynchronizes cortisol hormone secretion more in alignment with the natural 24-hour circadian rhythm profile. Furthermore, subjective reporting indicates that grounding during sleep improves sleep and reduces pain and stress.3

The only true way to see if grounding can improve sleep or reduce stress for you personally is to try it for yourself. Allow your bare skin to be exposed to the elements on a daily basis, especially the earth. Consistency is key, so give yourself a few weeks or months of grounding to see some positive results!

 

1 https://www.nestacertified.com/earthing-exercises-for-improved-mental-and-physical-health/ Studies and Research on the Efficacy of Grounding or Earthing

2 https://www.webmd.com/balance/grounding-benefits

3 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15650465/

Beginner’s Guide to Reconnecting with the Earth’s Energy

Published on by Nikken

You don’t have to be a guru to connect with the Earth’s energy and stay connected! According to Jagadish “Jaggi” Vasudev, also known as Sadhguru, “The Earth is the basis of life. The more you are in touch with it, the better it is. If your hands and your bare feet are in contact with the earth, it will harmonize the physiological process in your system. Whenever it is in contact with the earth, the body reorganizes itself. Try to spend at least a few minutes a day in the garden, barefoot, touching plants or trees. This is a simple way to connect with the earth.”1

Primitive peoples (think cave men) lived similarly to animals, a way that was “down to earth.” With industrialization, the human race started distancing from the earth. Sadhguru explains, “Animals are very connected to the earth because they do not have the intellect and awareness that human beings have. When it comes to humans, their psychological space dominates over their existential presence. In a way, an earthworm experientially knows the connection to the earth, but it cannot consciously realize it. If you pull it out of the earth, it wants to go straight back into the earth. If you pull a fish out of the water, it wants to go straight back into the water. This is not only essential for survival but also just because of the familiarity of habitat. In that sense, they know the connection.”2

In recent decades, “grounding” and “earthing” have been studied and known to be simple and effective ways to incorporate connectivity in your daily regimen. Here are a few grounding activities to help you reconnect with the Earth:

•          Practice deep breathing. Count to four as you inhale, hold it and exhale twice as slowly. Slow breathing is a way to become aware of your body and to release tension.

•          Stretch. Notice how a dog or cat stretches throughout the day, especially when they are rising from a nap or a night’s sleep. It doesn’t have to be specific “poses” or asanas as in yoga or Pilates. Just stretch and focus on how you feel—try a combination of toe touches, arm raises, side bends or windmills.

•          Get wet outdoors. Taking a shower may help wash away some anxiety, but have you seen the joy that running on the beach and taking a dip in the ocean can bring to children and grownups alike? Look at the children playing with the garden hose on a summer’s day—they’re barefoot and spraying each other and without knowing it, connecting to the earth’s energies!

•          Be aware of your surroundings whenever you are outside. Use all five senses to connect. Consciously see, hear, touch, smell and taste. Obviously if you are not eating something, you are not actually tasting, but you can sense the “flavor” of the air around you.

•          Visualization can be powerful for grounding. Imagine roots growing from the soles of your feet into the earth, providing stability and strength.3 Visualization is a way for you to become physically one with the natural environment.

Grounding is another facet of empowered living and a way to help you feel good every day. When you can’t connect with the earth outdoors, the KenkoGround® is a simple way to bring grounding indoors—inspired by nature and adapted for contemporary lifestyles.

1, 2 https://isha.sadhguru.org/en/wisdom/article/connecting-with-earth-methods-significance

3 https://www.coreenergetics.org/grounding-techniques-in-body-psychotherapy-finding-stability-in-a-chaotic-world

5 Simple & Neat Grounding Techniques!

Do You Practice Grounding?

Published on by Nikken

We talk about being connected to nature as a way to get back to the way we were intended to live. In the beginning of time as we know it, humans lived like all other creatures, with nothing separating us from the earth beneath our feet. That means there was direct contact with the ground and its negatively charged electrons. These beneficial electrons help us to stay in balance and creates the effect that is now known as grounding or earthing.

Grounding has been researched over the years, and it has been found that “when connected, the electrons we absorb work as natural antioxidants that neutralize the positively charged free radicals that can damage the body. Exposure to the electrons is vital for functioning at our best.”1 In fact, grounding has been found to improve sleep, support the healing process, and support the reduction of inflammation linked to a variety of health ailments.2

As we consciously work to get reconnected to nature, our contemporary lifestyles pose a challenge in that we spend so much more time indoors than our ancestors did.

The upcoming generations are even more cloistered as they fixate on video games and all manner of electronics rather than on outdoor activities and sports. We can set a good example by taking our youngsters to the beach, to lakes, to natural parks, to wherever being barefoot is safe so connection to earth, sand and natural bodies of water can be made—in order to allow natural grounding to take place. When going barefoot outdoors is not an option, Nikken has an alternate solution.

Nikken is serious about the importance of reconnecting with nature. Our products therefore often emulate or replicate what is found in nature. One prime example is the KenkoGround®. The name really helps to define what the product is about: Kenko means “health” and Ground is for grounding. The KenkoGround plugs into a grounded outlet. When you expose bare skin—whether it’s your feet, arms, shoulders, neck, etc.—to the KenkoGround, you receive the beneficial electrons that neutralize the positive ones that are potentially harmful.

How and where you use the KenkoGround® is up to you. Some people sit at a computer with the KenkoGround under their bare feet. Others drape it around their neck and shoulders while relaxing on the couch. Many sleep with the KenkoGround underneath their bodies. Grounding researchers recommend doing it regularly and building up to longer periods of time, for example, starting out with 10 minutes a day, then increasing to 20 and more than 30 if you can.3

The KenkoGround® is made of conductive fabric that is silky to the touch: it’s 20% silver and 80% nylon and is made to be anti-radiation, anti-bacterial and anti-odor.

As we are already approaching the hectic holiday season, try out the KenkoGround to help maintain your equilibrium. Also be sure to check out the 2024 Holiday Gift Guide!

1, 2, 3 https://www.webmd.com/balance/grounding-benefits