A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study on the improvement of sleep quality with Earthing mat

Abstract

Earthing is a therapeutic technique that involves “grounding” activities. The body reconnects electrically to the Earth. Sleep is very important for physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Sleep and stress are known to be interrelated, but limited research has been conducted to investigate the interaction between them over a long period of time. Existing studies presented sleep quality predictions by focusing on single qualitative aspects of sleep, such as sleep efficiency. This study was evaluated in a pilot study conducted to test the hypothesis that grounding the human body to earth during sleep will result in quantifiable changes and sleep quality. Sixty eligible participants were assigned to the control or experimental group by computer randomization. Instructions were provided to take a test mat, a grounding mat (Experimental group), or a non-grounding mat (Control group) for 6 h/day for 31 days. We used the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), Epworth sleep scale (ESS), brief interact psychosocial instrument (BEPSI), and insomnia severity index (ISI) and actigraph for total sleep time to evaluate sleep quality and stress response, respectively, on days 0 (pre-test), 31 (post-test) and 38 (follow-up test). PSQI, IS, ESS, and BEPSI scores were significantly improved in the Experimental group (P < 0.05; pre-test vs. post-test). Also, total sleep time in the Experimental group was significantly increased compared to the Control group (P < 0.05). In the follow-up study (on day 38), the Experimental group showed a significant improvement in ISI scores compared to the Control group (P < 0.05). Taken together, our findings showed that earthing mats reduced stress, insomnia severity, and daytime sleepiness compared to before use. These results contribute to the beneficial effect of earthing mat on increasing sleep quality.