#EarthDay: Why Staying Connected With The Ground Is Must For Us, Our Homes

Dirt is killing us faster, data show. According to a report put together by researchers of the University of Texas, the University of Minnesota, the University of British Columbia and the Health Effects Institute last year, nearly 80 people die in India’s national capital Delhi every day because of air pollution caused by particulate matter 2.5., the fine particles that enter our system and cause heart attacks, strokes, respiratory diseases, cancer, etc. That should explain our growing obsessiveness towards cleanliness. Since ridding the entire world of this ill may be beyond our control, we have taken the obvious — call to do the best we can in our limited capacity. We won’t allow any dirt inside of our homes, for sure! We would not let dirt to intrude on our physical form in any way.

Businesses are well aware of our obsession and are seen supplying more than the demand might have been — the personal hygiene market in India had an estimated value of $3 billion in 2017. One enters a super-market and observes endless racks of neatly placed hygiene products that would make our bodies dirt free. The same is true of home cleaning products, too. India’s cleaning chemicals market stood at $2,388 million in 2016, and is projected to reach $9,655 million by the end of 2026. According to Euromonitor, India's hygiene product market will grow to become a $1.5 billion market by 2020.

In our pursuit to stay clean, however, we seem to have lost all touch with mother earth. Our aversion to getting our hands or feet soiled is simply tremendous. Come to think of it, our very existence is possible because of the earth, but we make no physical contact with this element in our day-to-day life partly by choice and partly by lack of time, unless, of course, it forces itself on us the form of fine particulate matter. This wilful desertion is doing us more harm than good, researches show.

Feet to the ground

The human evolution process certainly did not factor in the all-pervading presence of footwear as it unfolded through ages. It is to say, walking barefoot would be the best way to walk, with earth under our feet.

Throughout its history, the humankind did that which enabled the ground's abundant-free electrons to enter the electrically conductive human body.

“Through this mechanism, every part of the body could equilibrate with the electrical potential of the earth, thereby stabilising the electrical environment of all organs, tissues, and cells,” says a study published in the Journal of Environment and Public Health.

It may neither be practical nor reasonable to expect you to walk barefoot often. But, in the privacy of your home, this is something you may regularly do to restore your natural walking pattern. This would help you in many ways.

“The earth's electrons induce multiple physiological changes of clinical significance, including reduced pain, better sleep, a shift from sympathetic to parasympathetic tone in the autonomic nervous system, and a blood-thinning effect,” the study points out.

Taking matters in your hand

We are quick to blame the sedentary urban life for all the ills it has brought upon ourselves even as we make the most of it monetarily. It is not in our hands to stay close to the ground while living in high-rises, you say, upon being told the various benefits you could reap if you stayed close to the roots. Now then, this might be the time to take a hobby that involves taking matters, earthy to be specific, in your own hands. Why not take pottery for a hobby — it is the new yoga, they say?

Apart from the fact that this hobby would help you unfold your creative side, pottery would mean an exercise for joints in your hands that seldom see motion, that would lower pain and stress levels. At a time when excessive use of technology is adversely impacting our mental health, pottery is a remedy experts on mental health recommend.

Earthenware should certainly be included in your home décor and kitchen. They cut down the risk other sorts of materials such as plastic pose on our heath.

Grow green fingers

Studies indicate one tree is enough to sustain one life in one city. Such revelations have turned us into tree-lovers, encouraging us to plant.  But, there is this little problem.

Easy availability of affordable labour is a great benefit we enjoy in India, but this phenomenon is not without its disadvantages.  We don’t really appreciate “doing-it-ourselves”, a concept quite popular in the west; labour is neither easily available nor cheap there.

For our own good though, it would be better to grow green fingers, if you don’t already have them, even if expert supervision is required. Since we have already stated the many health benefits of getting your hands dirty, let us tell you some different benefits of keeping your premises green.

Global studies show green neighbourhoods have lower crime rates. People will be more inclined to stay outdoors in such areas; this would dissuade criminals from targeting these. By their calming effects, such areas also deter us from exhibit violent tendencies. In greener areas, for instance, neighbours would show less willingness to enter into an argument with their neighbours over petty issues.

For obvious reasons, the value of properties that lie in green areas is invariably higher than the value of properties lying in areas with a lack of greenery.