We’re really pleased that Seb Francis, Director & Co-Founder of Groundology, and a loyal Greenscents trade customer has taken the time to talk to us. With a background in electrical engineering and having studied physics, he has some fascinating information to share.
Can you tell us a bit about Groundology and the type of products you sell?
My wife and I came across the concept of ‘grounding’ the body in the early 2000s – that is to say making an electrical connection between the human body and the Earth. Research, led by a gentleman called Clint Ober, was finding that this connection produced dramatic improvements in various disease conditions, and in general health. The research also found that grounding significantly reduced the effect of external EMFs (electromagnetic fields) on the body.
This was of particular interest to us, as my wife was highly electro-sensitive, to the point where she was unable to use a computer or be in the same room as someone using a mobile phone, let alone use one herself. Even the EMF coming from standard domestic mains wiring was a problem for her.
With my background in electrical engineering, I put together some home-made devices for grounding the body. After we found great benefits ourselves, both in our general health and dramatic improvements in my wife’s electro-sensitivity, we started sharing these home-made devices with friends, and also with alternative health practitioners whom we came into contact with through my wife’s work.
Fast forward to 2010, we formally started the Groundology business, selling products of our own design, and then later also adding Clint Ober’s US-made products to our range. Today we stock a very wide range of different solutions for getting grounded in everyday life, and are market-leaders in this field.
Can you explain the concept of ‘earthing’ to our readers?
Grounding or Earthing is the practice of re-connecting the body electrically to the Earth. This connection is something we have naturally had throughout human evolution, and only really lost in the last 100 or so years since we started wearing shoes made from insulating materials such as rubber or plastic (being barefoot on the Earth or wearing leather soled shoes maintains our electrical connection). We also live in houses where the floors are electrically isolated from the Earth due to plastic damp proof membranes and other factors.
It’s very easy to regain this connection to the Earth, by walking barefoot on grass or a beach for example, but it’s not always practical in our modern lives, particularly to do so for an optimally beneficial length of time – hence the kind of solutions that Groundology offers.
Our products have a conductive surface which is connected to the Earth, either through the domestic mains Earthing system, or via a separate grounding rod. We offer products such as grounding sheets which ground you all night long without having to do anything outside of your normal routine, or grounding mats which can be used in many situations around the home or office. We also have products which can convert conventional shoes into grounding footwear.
What are the benefits of using your grounding products or of grounding in general?
The most common thing which people notice initially is they just ‘feel’ better, with a greater sense of peace, and often improved sleep.
When the body is grounded, it gives access to the Earth’s massive reservoir of free electrons, which allows the cells in our body to become electrically balanced.
One visually dramatic effect is that clumped blood cells will normalise. The image shows blood samples taken from 3 individuals, viewed using a dark field microscope. On the left are the initial samples – this clumping of the blood cells is not uncommon, and occurs as a result of various factors in our modern lifestyles. The samples on the right are from the same individuals after 40 minutes of grounding and show the blood cells now properly separated, which has numerous health effects such as cardiovascular and immune system benefits, and has been documented in various scientific studies.
Another key benefit of grounding is the reduction of chronic inflammation. Short-term (acute) inflammation in itself is a normal part of the immune system response. But if it becomes long-term (chronic) it can be problematic, and is a major underlying factor in many modern diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis, digestive disorders, and chronic pain.
There have been several scientific studies of the effects of grounding/earthing on chronic inflammation. The image below is taken from one of the studies, and uses medical infrared imaging to map the areas of inflammation in the body before and after 4 nights of sleeping grounded.
The varied research done over the last 20 years also documents many other benefits, such as stabilisation of the body’s basic biological rhythms, balancing of cortisol levels, improved immune response.
What success have you seen personally from grounding?
We regularly hear of amazing results from our customers, although sadly because of UK medical regulations we are unable to publish anecdotal reports of healing of illnesses/conditions. The Earthing Institute is a good independent source of such reports, and contains a wealth of other information too.
It’s also worth mentioning that many people simply use earthing/grounding to optimise and maintain health, rather than to address any particular health issues. It is my strong belief and experience that regular grounding is a key component in supporting the body to reach its full potential. We supply a number of athletes and sporting professionals who use grounding as part of their training and recovery programmes.
Lastly, we know that you sell Greenscents Nonscents Laundry Liquid to your customers. Can you explain why you recommend it for washing your fabric grounding products?
Our fabric based products such as bed sheets and pillow cases are a special weave of organic cotton and silver thread. The silver is what provides the conductivity and grounding effect. However, it will quickly become oxidised and non-conductive if it comes into contact with strong chemicals such as the bleaching or whitening agents which are present in many commercial detergents. Also, strong chemical fragrances and to a lesser extent some essential oil based fragrances can shorten the conductive life of the silver. The optimal conductive life can be obtained by using a simple liquid detergent without strong chemicals or fragrances.
Greenscents Nonscents Laundry Liquid fits the bill perfectly. We use it personally, and recommend it to our customers. In fact we include a free sample with every silver/fabric product we sell.
We also love that it is 79% organic, and the strong ethical stance of Greenscents as a company fits perfectly with our own personal outlook and how we run our business.
Another strong point in favour of Greenscents Laundry Liquid is that it is highly concentrated, which saves on packaging, as well as reducing volume and weight when sending to our overseas customers.