The Cult of Crunch: Breaking Down the Good, the Bad, and the Biblical (or not) of Natural Living Part 4: Grounding and Nature

“Devin, I need a break. I love these kids, but gosh I can’t stand them right now. I need to go for a walk. That makes everything better.” Half an hour later I came back more peaceful and patient with the kids. I was kinder to my husband. And I was more fully convinced that I needed a walk, ideally barefoot, in nature daily in order to not want to ship my family off to the zoo.

This is a layered topic and one that I’ve had to shift my thinking on even recently. Which is why I wanted it to be my first topic I wrote on. I didn’t want to go guns blazing on something that I personally have not practiced or had to shift my thinking on. I wanted you repeat what I’ve been saying from the beginning: I’m not judging anyone in any way that I have first not judged myself.

First, this is the perfect topic to add in a point that probably should have been in the last blog.

In health, there are bullets and BBs. And only one magic bullet.

First, the magic bullet. All the supplement companies in the world are going to claim this, but they’re lying to you. They probably BBs or maybe even foam Nerf bullets. But the only thing that will radically change your life is Jesus. The God of the universe made flesh to pay for your sin. He is the only thing out there that will drastically change your life with you only needing to contribute the sin that makes your salvation necessary. Christ brings regeneration. We were once dead in our sins, but now are alive in Christ (Ephesians 2:1-5). Now, that doesn’t mean that all your physical problems will be solved; we still live in a sinful world that is perpetually touched by the effects of the fall. But our souls will be saved. And though we are justified, God declaring us righteous while still in a sinning sate, upon belief in Christ, sanctification, the continual process by which God is actually making us righteous, takes time. So yes, in my view, God and his saving us is the only “magic bullet” out there. He is the only one who can heal our souls which is the most important healing there is.

Second, we have regular bullets in the health sphere. These are things like a healthy, balanced diet, appropriate movement, quality sleep, putting your faith into practice, and time spent outside in natural light with fresh air. This is the natural living we need to live! They are the things that are actually going to move the needle in your health. Eating as high quality as we can afford of whole foods will do wonders for our health versus loading up on ultra processed foods. Daily movements like strength training and/or walking will help everything from digestion to longevity. Not much else matters if we’re drastically lacking on sleep, and other parents of littles and myself can attest to this! Prayer and time spent reading the Bible will likely be one of the absolute best things you can do for your health as it brings “peace that surpasses understanding” (Philippians 4:7). And letting natural light hit your eyes while breathing in fresh air will do more than any device you can buy would. Many of the bullets for our health are just the free, normal things to do.

Lastly, BBs are all the little things that your favorite influencer will tell you that you NEED (don’t forget to use their code!). Drinking water without watermelon flavored electrolytes? WHY BOTHER?? Can’t sleep? Don’t put your phone down, take this supplement and get these blue light blocking glasses! Blood sugar off? Just buy this tincture! Family making you outraged? Don’t repent! Just ground a bit! Don’t worry about opening your windows, you can get this air purifier! You definitely need a vibration plate. Don’t forget your coffee enema! Okay, enough of the sarcasm. Some of these things can help! But their impact is that of a BB. If you’re not using your bullets first, you probably won’t see much of a dent in your health from the BBs.

I am lumping grounding and time in nature together as there is a good amount of overlap in both practice and ideology. I would consider getting outdoors as a bullet, but far from a magic bullet as some may claim. Let’s get into it.

What is “earthing” or “grounding?”

Nope, it’s not when you were sent to your room or not allowed to go to a party as a teenager. Instead, it’s the practice of directly touching the earth with bare feet or hands. Alternatively, some companies have made earthing shoes or sheets. The shoes usually have a piece of copper that goes on the bottom with wires that go through the straps, and the sheets plug into the ground part of an electrical outlet so you can “ground” as you sleep. The proponents of grounding claim that it can reduce inflammation, help wound healing, combat stress, improve immune health, help autoimmune diseases, work as a natural blood thinner, and aid in sleep quality. The material ideology supporting grounding is that the earth has a negative electrical charge which your body can absorb the free electrons. The earth can act as a “universal regulator.” It is regularly practiced in Ayurvedic medicine and traditional Chinese medicine though they don’t use the more scientific language of electrons. Instead, in those practices, it’s thought of as “balance” or “harmony” with nature.

What’s the history of grounding?

Prior to industrialization, it was mostly just normal. We walked around barefoot or with thin leather footwear. Daily work was done with contact to the earth. That being said, channeling the earth’s energy goes back past when it was just “normal” to be in contact with the earth. Though it was common in ordinary life, ancient civilizations such as the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians. Traditional Chinese medicine believed in Earth Qi, or earth wisdom, which is made up of patterns or energy, magnetic fields, and heat underground. They believed and still believe that the earth’s energy can balance our own energy.

Clint Ober brought earthing to the forefront as we know it. As a former cable executive, he observed that people were disconnected from the earth. He compared electrical grounding in cable which cleared static and stopped disruption from other systems to human grounding and improved sleep, lower stress, and overall wellness. He funded a study that was published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine in 2004 which revealed the benefits of grounding on people’s health. Clint developed grounding products to get the benefits of the earth back into modern day life. His website, Earthing, now sells everything from earthing sheets to yoga mats to patches to adapters for different outlets around the world.

Is grounding effective?

Well, that depends on who you ask. If you’ve made a business out of it and funded studies, you’re probably going to say yes. But as Max Lugavere said on one of his podcasts, “if you torture the research enough, you can get it to confess to anything you want it to.” It should be noted that while some studies do show the benefit of grounding, most studies have small sample sizes and have subjective measures such as self-administered therapy or self-reported effects. It should be alarming that some of the main studies for the benefits of grounding were funded by someone who profits off of earthing devices.

Another factor in the claims of grounding may be the effect of sunlight if grounding is done outdoors. Natural sunlight can help with circadian rhythm regulation, reducing inflammation, and improving the immune system. The full spectrum light can help your internal clock know when to start producing melatonin to aid in better sleep. Sunlight can reduce inflammation via vitamin D synthesis and UV light triggering anti-inflammatory substances in the skin. Sunlight not only boost vitamin D for immune function, but it also regulates cytokine levels and enhances the movement of T-cells. For certain claims of grounding, it may be hard to tell what effect the earth has and what effect the sun has.

I need to add in here that you will see my kids perpetually barefoot outside and likely myself also in the summer. I think that it is vitally important to have strong feet. Our feet have almost 30 muscles in them, and, often, from a young age we throw shoes on toddlers and those muscles stay underdeveloped contributing an array of problems. Restrictive shoes early on in kids can impact their arch development, stability, gait, and more. I think one of the best things we can do for our kids it to leave them barefoot as often as possible. And as adults, we also can redevelop our own foot muscles. Going barefoot more often, even, if it’s just in our homes, can strengthen our foot muscles contributing to more balance and combating deformities. I’m a big fan of bare feet inside and outside.

There may be some benefits to going barefoot outside. And pending on the research, it may be beneficial to use some grounding devices. I hope more peer reviewed research will come on this topic so we can see better what is the true, unadulterated effects of grounding. I do think many grounding devices would fall in the BB category. They could have some effect, but it won’t be much of a dent if you’re not already using your bullets. Also, one needs to consider if they’re worth the cost. Do you have the expendable income to invest in something that may or may not help? As Christians, we should be considering whether this would be a beneficial use of the resources that are given to us.

Lastly, how should we view grounding through our biblical worldview?

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with walking outside barefoot! And I would go so far to say that it isn’t inherently wrong to use some kind of earthing device, though I personally would not. But we need to proceed with caution.

Where do you think your healing is coming from? Do you think that the earth has an energy that can heal us? Are you trying to get more in balance with nature? Then we need to pump the breaks. This elevation of nature can lead us into pantheism or panentheism. Pantheism believes that God is everything therefore there is divine presence in all things. Panentheism believes that God is both in everything and transcends everything. Theist, Christians and other religions, believe that God created everything and transcends His creation. Our God is omnipresent and a creator. He made all and is everywhere, but He is not in everything. He is everywhere and did make good, natural things in this earth to aid in our healing and good. But he is not in the trees or sun or earth. He transcends those things. There is not some supernatural “energy” in the earth that will fix all your ailments. The earth is not all wise, God is. If we’re looking to the earth for healing over the transcendent Creator of the earth, we should not be earthing or grounding. We are then worshiping the creation over the creator (Romans 1:25). To look to the earth to heal or nature as having some kind of supernatural power is to invite demonic activity into our lives as we are partaking in worship of another god than the one true God.

Even if we don’t consciously believe that we are getting some kind of healing energy from the earth, I still think there are areas of caution for the Christian. Sure, at points I did believe in the calming effect of grounding (and have repented for seeking peace through dirt over Christ), but that inro story I wrote was in the dead of winter. No way were my bare tootsies touching the snow. But I did think I needed some outside time to regulate myself. While there are benefits of nature, to what or whom are we looking to for peace? Are we trying to regulate our anxiety by long walks, or are we casting our cares as the Bible commands us to do? 1 Peter 5:6-8 says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” If we’re taking our stress and worries to nature over the Lord, we are sinning even if we aren’t explicitly worshiping nature. Again, this is an area where I’ve personally needed to practice repentance. Let us be vigilant to cast our cares on Him who cares for us so that in something as simple as spending time in nature we can avoid being devoured by the devil who is seeking every “simple, good” thing to take our eyes off Christ.

Being out in nature is not all bad or unbiblical! Looking back through history, we see many wonderful hymns written about God’s handiwork. “This is My Father’s World” or “How Great Thou Art” come to mind thinking of beautiful songs about nature. Additionally, the Psalms are full of praise for God’s creation. Psalm 8, 19, 29, and 104 are just a few that celebrate and marvel at God’s creation in nature. Psalm 19:1 says, “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” Being in nature can remind us of just how wonderful our God is. Looking around at the beauty of creation, we should be led not to worship nature, but the One who made it! We can find joy and peace in nature not because it has a god in it, but because there is a God above it who made it and us and He is worthy to be praised! (Psalm 145:3)

In conclusion, getting out in nature is great. There are many benefits to the fresh air and sunlight (likely topics for later blogs!). Being barefoot in nature or in our homes is also great. But we need to check our beliefs with the word of God when it comes to how we believe we will be healed. Do we think that the earth is endowed with a supernatural healing energy? Or, are we spending time in nature to reflect on the majesty of the Creator and worshiping Him for His good work? Check your worldview before you buy the latest grounding shoes or run out barefoot in an arctic blast. You may just save some money and frostbite.