Zap-proof your home and ground your body.
Recently a friend I hadn’t seen for some time complained that she couldn’t lose weight—no matter what she did. A highly skilled massage therapist very attuned to the physical body, this woman had mysteriously put on 30 pounds and also developed a strange growth on her thyroid that even her doctor couldn’t explain nor understand.
As we spoke and I told her about electropollution, the topic of my book Zapped, it suddenly dawned on her that she first began to experience mono-like symptoms of fatigue when her family installed an electronic device to rid their home of mice! In an almost stream of consciousness, she went on to say that she was fascinated with technology, and that the family has no less than five cordless phones throughout the house and numerous wireless laptops because three of her children still live at home. She carries her laptop with her wherever she goes and uses her smartphone nearly 24/7.
I tried to explain to my friend that non-ionizing radiation—from seemingly low dose electromagnetic fields (EMFs) emitted from cell phones, cordless phones, and smart meters—can have negative biological effects on health, especially if that individual is electrosensitive.
We know for sure that the more highly potent X-rays and other high-dose ionizing radiation medical scans—have been shown— in study after study to zero in on the thyroid gland. It’s as though the thyroid had a target painted on it.
I told my friend that according to my research, animal research in Toxicology Letters reports that exposure to low-level background radiation that’s increasingly common today—both 50 Hz in some electrical systems and 900 MHz emitted by cell phones—lessen the production of thyroid hormone, a marker for hypothyroidism or slow thyroid function. Symptoms of sluggish thyroid include fatigue, depression, joint pain, heart rate variability, and weight gain—and they’re also symptoms common among people who are sensitive to electromagnetic pollution.
I know firsthand how electronic pollution can impact health.
Like my friend, I also suffered baffling symptoms—mine included a benign parotid gland tumor (one of the salivary glands below my ear). It’s a very rare tumor, most often caused by ionizing radiation. But I hadn’t been overly exposed to X-rays or a CT scan previously.
I had, however, been addicted to my cell phone! Like most Americans, I was under the false assumption that this technology was perfectly safe—until I read a study published by Israeli researchers who found that individuals who kept their cell phone against one side of their head for several hours a day were 50 percent more likely to develop a rare salivary gland tumor on that side. The truth is that the very electronic and digital innovations that have made modern life more convenient and efficient are also exposing people to millions of artificial and manmade electromagnetic frequencies and wavelengths never before experienced by human beings.
My own enlightened self interest promoted me to write Zapped two years ago—and try to figure out the ways to protect the thyroid (one of our most vulnerable glands to radiation exposure) and the rest of the body from electropollution caused by cell and cordless phones, digital toys, faulty wiring, microwaves, WiFi and the soon-to-roll-out WiMAX (high powered antennas destined to be part of our landscape within the next few years).
I learned that the subliminal or “stealth” stress caused by electropollution elevates cortisol (stress hormone) levels. Not only does excess cortisol raise blood sugar levels, creating belly fat and weight gain, but it also uses the body’s supply of the amino acid tyrosine—required to make the thyroid hormone. This results in fatigue, weight gain, and hypothyroidism.
The Earthing Connection to Your Thyroid
Just one of the 1,268 solutions in Zapped—Earthing or grounding ourselves infuses our bodies with electrons that stamp out free radical induced inflammation and pain, and cool down the nervous system allowing the glands (including the thyroid and adrenals) to naturally rebalance themselves. People have reported less brain fog, fatigue, insomnia and normal thyroid levels.
Much the way that early TV images (back in the days before cable) were marred by flecks (or “snow”) when they were disrupted by electromagnetic interference, our bodies (and thyroids) can be disrupted by the proliferation of EMFs today.
Life in 2012—which includes wearing rubber soled shoes rather than “grounding” leather soles—has insulated us from the natural and normalizing energy of the Earth, while at the same time immersing us in man-made electromagnetic pollution 24/7.
Your Experiences with Earthing
Because it’s hard to go barefoot (as our ancestors did) or walk on the sand throughout the year, UNI KEY offers a variety of products including sheets, floor and desk mats, as well as travel items that bring the Earth’s natural energy inside for use in homes and offices.
I told my friend that I have been using the Earthing products for more than a year—and not only have I never slept better, but my own TSH and T3 levels have completely become balanced—no more Armour!
Here’s what some of my Facebook Fans shared with me about Earthing:
• “I read ‘Zapped‘(loved it). I got ‘Earthed’ (loving it). I have autoimmune thyroid disease. After three weeks of Earthing, my TSH [thyroid-stimulating hormone] levels went from 1.75 (normal) to 0.2 (hyperthyroid)!!! I will need to have my dose [of medication] halved. I mean I felt better right after Earthing, but now I have measurable proof that…this stuff really works. You must try it.”
• “I tried herbs, acupuncture, and other remedies for sleep to no avail. Finally gave in to a friend’s Xanax, but absolutely refuse to take for long term! I decided to go out and stand in our (very cold) sand pile for 20 minutes to try this Earthing thing out. The first night I slept much better, but the second time I slept all night without waking!”
• “My husband and I have been using a grounding sheet for less than three weeks. We’re sleeping better, we don’t wake up with the aches and pains we used to, we’re calmer during the day, and suddenly I didn’t want/need caffeine. I just stopped drinking coffee with zero side effects. I also stopped craving sugar, and it’s helped mitigate some hormone-related symptoms I was having.
The morale of this story: My dear friend is now so motivated to get well and lose weight, that she is buying Zapped for all her friends and family members. She also ordered the Earthing sheets and universal mats for her household. For the first time in a very long time, she has hope and a very good chance of fixing her thyroid by outsmarting electropollution.
Sources:
Zapped: Why Your Cell Phone Shouldn’t Be Your Alarm Clock and 1,268 Ways to Outsmart the Hazards of Electronic Pollution
Hot Times, How to Eat Well, Live Healthy, and Feel Sexy During the Change
www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1667/RR0922.1
www.earthinginstitute.net/commentaries/gaetan_electrical_surface.pdf
www.earthinginstitute.net/studies/earthing_human_physiology_2007_pt2.pdf
www.earthinginstitute.net/studies/grounding_body_2000.pdf
www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/11/23/prweb4821354.DTL
www.townsendletter.com/May2010/earthing0510.html
Anne Louise-
I started grounding with a Unikey mat last December, I had a pain in my shoulder for almost 2 years from carrying my work bags. I had also been (diagnosed) hypothyroid for more than 10 years. After 2 weeks, not only did the pain go away (and has not returned) my thyroid blood work showed me as HYPERthyroid for the first time in my life. BUT-My eyes became odd looking, dark circles I’d never had with a sunken-in look… after I stopped using the mat and my T3 was lowered my eyes went back to looking normal.
I find that grounding with the mat is a double edged sword for me, I use it sparingly but the possible results are interesting.
In the IT world, we have know about grounding for a long time when working on computers due to static electricity. Is that the same concept here? There are grounding wrist straps, grounding mats and other equipment through the computer industry that could seem to simulate the effect here. Let me know if I am way off with this. Thanks.
If you are connecting to the grounding port in the electrical outlet and have something conductive in the wrist strap or mat ( a metal square or carbonized rubber) then you would be doing the same thing.
I have recently found out I have hashimotos. Was retested recently and my TPO is currently 296.5, in August it was 247. I am wanting to deal with this in the most natural way possible. Any suggestions. Thanks!
Hi Beth,
You may benefit from a combination of a few things. Firstly, following a diet like the Fat Flush Plan will probably help more than anything else. Secondly, assessing yourself with a Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis would give great insight into why your thyroid isn’t functioning normally. Often times correcting mineral imbalances can make an extraordinary difference in your metabolism. Thirdly, if you haven’t seen a drastic improvement after implementing the first two steps, you may wish to assess your iodine saturation with an Iodine Loading Test. Iodine is crucial to the thyroid, and also breast tissue, and a deficiency can really throw our hormones out of whack. Best wishes!
Beth, Sierra, while iodine is important, it can make the Hashi’s autoimmune response worse. So be careful when trying this, some of us have had our antibodies spike just from iodine.
As hashimoto’s is an autoimmune disease, the key is to heal the immune system, which means mainly, healing the gut and restoring the other important organs. Yes, essential minerals and vitamins will usually be low, and absorption is poor, as most of us have compromised and leaky guts with dysbiosis. Explore autoimmune diet protocols which are a stricter version of paleo, with low allergenic protein, vegetables and good fats. Fat Flush or a version of it may work, but you should not undereat!! Dieting stresses your adrenalsm, and these are usually compromised in thyroid patients. The key is healing and restoring endocrine function so that the metabolism improves, not to starve a weak body that is unable to absorb nutrients anyway. Gluten, dairy, soy, sugar and all known allergens are out. Vit D, glutathione, selenium, zinc and often gut repairing supplements like Clearvite are very helpful. I highly recommend finding a functional medicine practitioner wh can help you get the right labs and design a healing program tailored to your needs. The best Doc in this field is Dr Datis Kharrazian. He has trained many others, many of whom also work via skype and email if necessary. Good luck!
I am a massage therapist and I have had hypothyroidism since 2000. I think I got my first computer and cell phone in 1999 and your article put it all together for me.
One week ago, I visited a psychic who told me I needed to ground myself. I thought it meant because I’m a massage therapist I have to remember to wipe myself off after a session to get rid of the other persons energy. This makes so much more sense to me now, and maybe there is an explanation for why I’ve lost some hearing in my right ear. I had a brain MRI for a neuroma but it was negative. Maybe I will have the glands checked too! I do have 2 thyroid nodules that i had biopsied and they were negative so far.
My husband just had a benign brain tumor removed and we think it might have come from being in the military vehicles that have radar to block IEDs. He was a gunner and his head was outside the vehicle close to this device.
Thank you thank you thank you for such great information. I will get the book immediately and hope that making some changes will make me and my family a lot better off!
Sincerely
Debra Duddy