Research on Grounding

The research on grounding

Grounding research is early, and it's mixed. Some studies report changes in measurements like blood viscosity, cortisol, or self-reported sleep and mood; others are small pilot studies that haven't been repeated at scale. We're not going to inflate what's here. Below is what's been published, grouped by topic, with a link to each original study so you can read the methods and conclusions yourself.

Sleep & stress

  • Ghaly & Teplitz (2004), Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine — measured cortisol levels and self-reported sleep, pain and stress in participants who slept grounded over an 8-week period. Read on PubMed
  • Lin et al. (2022), pilot study — tracked sleep-quality scores (PSQI) in adults with mild Alzheimer's disease before and after a period of grounding. Read on PMC
  • Chevalier (2010) — measured pulse rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygenation, perfusion index and skin conductance in participants during grounding sessions. Read on PubMed
  • Chevalier et al. (2011), Physiologic Processes — a review summarizing physiological measurements (skin conductance, EEG, blood flow) reported across earlier grounding studies. Read on PMC

Muscle recovery

  • Brown, Chevalier & Hill (2010), JACM — pilot study comparing delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in grounded vs. ungrounded participants after exercise. Read on PubMed
  • Brown, Chevalier & Hill (2015), Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine — measured markers of muscle damage after moderate eccentric exercise in grounded vs. ungrounded participants. Read on PubMed
  • Müller et al. (2019), Frontiers in Physiology — examined recovery markers after intensive eccentric loading in participants who slept grounded. Read on PubMed · Full text
  • Chevalier et al. (2019), EXPLORE — a randomized controlled trial measuring pain and quality-of-life scores in bodyworkers (massage therapists) who used grounding. Read on ScienceDirect

Blood & circulation research

  • Chevalier, Sinatra, Oschman & Delany (2013), JACM — measured blood viscosity, a factor studied in cardiovascular health, before and after grounding. Read on PubMed
  • Chevalier, Patel, Weiss, Chopra & Mills (2019), JACM — measured blood viscosity in participants doing yoga on a grounded yoga mat. Read on PubMed
  • Sokal & Sokal (2013), eCAM — compared blood urea and creatinine levels in grounded vs. ungrounded subjects during and after cycling exercise. Read on PubMed
  • Elkin & Winter (2018), Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine — a case-history series tracking blood pressure in patients with hypertension who used grounding. Read on PubMed

Mood

  • Chevalier (2015), Psychological Reports — measured mood-state questionnaire scores before and after a grounding session. Read on PubMed
  • Sokal & Sokal (2011), JACM — recorded changes in EEG (brain electrical activity) during grounding. Read on PubMed
  • Passi et al. (2017), Medical Hypotheses — a theoretical paper proposing how grounding may influence nervous-system signaling. Read on ScienceDirect

Settleground is not a medical device company. The studies above describe research that has been done on grounding in general — not claims about our specific product, and not a promise of any particular result for you. If you have a health condition, talk to your doctor before adding anything new to your routine.