Grounding: what the word means, and what it does to the body
Grounding is the English word. In French, it is called mise à la terre. Both terms refer to the same action: restoring electrical contact between the body and the ground. Here is the principle, what our measurements show, what they do not show, and the three ways to perform it.
Grounding, or being grounded: the same gesture, two words
The word grounding comes from the American English. Its British equivalent is earthing. In French, the dedicated translation is earthing, Sometimes anchorage or Reconnection to the Earth.
If you’re looking for what grounding means in French, the answer is really simple: it’s the grounding of the body. The rest of this page explains what it entails.
The principle, in two sentences
The Earth carries a permanent negative electrical charge. When the skin is in direct contact with the ground, or with a conductor connected to the ground, the body's electrical potential is equalized with that of the ground.
It's the whole mechanism, and it's not esoteric at all: it's the principle of grounding an electrical appliance, applied to a body. This contact was permanent for most of human history. Synthetic soles, insulating floors, and raised beds have interrupted it in just a few generations.
What our measurements show, and what they don't show
In 2024, a pilot study conducted at the CNEA in Font-Romeu followed 27 trail runners, with and without a mat connected to the ground.
The RMSSD is an indicator of variability of heart rate. It increases when the parasympathetic nervous system takes over, that is, when the body recovers. Furthermore, the muscle recovery in the ischiopsoas and quadriceps was almost complete in the equipped group, incomplete in the control group.
The limits, because they count as much as the result. This is a pilot study, on a reduced sample size, of a trained population of athletes, and it has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal. A doctoral thesis is currently being conducted at the CNEA until 2028 to expand the population and formalize these observations.
As things stand, these figures describe what was observed on 27 people. They do not allow for an individual result to be promised.
The three ways to ground oneself
Direct contact
Walking barefoot on grass, sand, or wet soil is the original method; it is free and it works. Its downside is practical: it depends on the weather, the season, and the location, and few people maintain a daily practice all year round.
The driver's seat
A textile covered with conductive wires, connected to the ground terminal of a wall outlet. This is the most common and cheapest option on the market, in a range of approximately 25 to 130 euros depending on the model. Two common uses are: the cloth moves during the night, and the user has no simple means to verify that the ground connection is actually working.
The earthing mattress topper
The conductors are integrated into the thickness of the mattress, which maintains contact regardless of the position. This is the approach adopted by IAKOTA, with one difference: the textile combines grounding and a second mechanism, the remote infrared return. The details are explained in How a ground-fault relay works.
Grounding alone, or grounding with infrared
Grounding and far-infrared are two different physical phenomena, and it is useful not to confuse them.
La earthing It equalizes an electrical potential. It does not produce either heat or radiation.
Le Return of distant infrared It is based on a layer of metallic oxides deposited on the textile. This layer absorbs the thermal radiation that the body emits continuously, then re-emits it towards it, weighted by its own structure. It does not emit anything of its own and does not consume any energy. Without a user present, nothing happens. The complete operation is described on the page Minoxis technology.
Three details that the commercial literature of the sector often omits:
- A passive layer does not create any energy. It redistributes the spectrum with constant energy. No more energy, energy otherwise placed elsewhere. Any promise of amplification would be false.
- Far infrared light does not penetrate deeply. The water of the tissues absorbs it massively in the very first microns of the skin. The figures of several centimeters that are sometimes encountered are incompatible with the optical properties of water. What happens deeper lies within the skin and its vascularization, not the radiation itself.
- The textile does not heat up. There is no resistance, no battery, no diode, and no active electromagnetic emission.
Why night is the right time
Grounding requires contact, and prolonged contact. The night is the only time of the day when one stays in the same place for seven to eight hours without changing one's routine. It is also the time when the body devotes the majority of its resources to its own repair, especially during the phases of deep sleep.
In other words, nocturnal grounding does not require adding a practice to your daily routine; it requires changing the way you sleep.
Frequently asked questions
Grounding and earthing, is it the same thing?
Yes. Earthing is the British term, grounding the American term, and both translate into French as "grounding".
Can I use it without a ground connection?
Yes, but the benefit of grounding is lost. What remains is the return of infrared, which does not depend on any wiring. If you are unsure whether your outlet is properly connected to ground, a plug tester checks this in a few seconds.
Is there an electrical hazard?
No. The device is passive and connects only to the ground pin, never to the live wires. It does not carry any power current.
After how long?
It varies from person to person, from a few days to a few weeks. The most honest way to know for yourself is to track your heart rate variability on a connected watch over thirty consecutive nights, rather than relying on a feeling.
Is one sheet of cloth enough, or do you need a mattress topper?
A conductive fabric ties well to the ground, and that's already the main thing. The over-mattress brings two more things: a contact that doesn't break when you move, and the second mechanism, the infrared return, that a conductive fabric doesn't have.
Regulatory precision. IAKOTA designs products for well-being and comfort, not medical devices. Nothing on this page constitutes a claim of diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of a disease, nor a medical opinion. If you experience persistent discomfort, consult a healthcare professional.
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