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There are so many people that get excited about this and say it is a good thing.
Forgive me, if I don’t jump on board this ship.Soil can contain parasites that can burrow through your barefeet and create a systemic infection. The most common are hookworms and strongyloides. The latter is a particularly persistent infection, difficult to eliminate. While the latter is typically only found in tropical areas, hookworms are very common in the US. In particular, where the NC retreats are held (Appalachian region) the soil is rife with hookworms.
So things are not so simple as “go barefoot to solve problems”. You solve one problem but create another.
For me, I’m not going barefoot in any soil.
If you get really good skill at grounding and connecting into the earth frequency simply through rooted standing practice, you need not be barefoot. Energy is not blocked by shoes. But biological parasites are.S
“Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.”
– Kahlil Gibran
The great infection of mankind Hookworms still a health issue for 10 percent of worlds population
http://www.jmu.edu/biology/_files/newsletter/2008newsletter.pdf
So many stories about the good creator/destroyer and the bad creator/destroyer… An anime, Mushishi – One-eyed Fish, has a moment where a Mushi master explains to a boy that she knows that the mushi will “eat” her soon, but that she has no wish to destroy them:
“If you knew that, why didn’t you do anything about it? You were a mushi-shi, right? Why do you allow such a terrifying mushi to live?”
“Do not let fear and anger cloud your vision. They are all just being as they are. We are the ones with wisdom, so we should avoid those things that we can.”
“An agricultural adage says the tiny animals that live below the surface of a healthy pasture weigh more than the cows grazing above it. In a catalogue selling composting equipment I read that two handfuls of healthy soil contain more living organisms than there are people on the earth. What these beings are and what they can be doing is difficult to even begin to comprehend, but it helps to realize that even thought they are many, they work as one.”
– Carol Williams, Bringing a Garden to Life, 1998
Good point to bring up. I grew up playing in the mud of a coastal marsh, and now frequently am found with dirty hands from gardens.
“O Goddess Earth, O all-enduring wide expanses!
Salutation to thee.
Now I am going to begin cultivation.
Be pleased, O virtuous One.”– Ancient Sanskrit prayer
(Left) plaster cast of an adult foot that has never worn shoes displaying natural splayed toes (Right) cast of boy showing damage and inward-turned toes after wearing shoes for only a few weeks
Forgive my title, please: I thought it amusing, but that’s just my sense of humor. I do appreciate your drawing attention to the risk/benifit of barefoot journeying.
Do you have sources for the claim that the soil in NC is rife with hookworms? ” Larvae can survive up to 4 weeks outside of the body under the right conditions (moist, sandy or loamy soil in temperature ranges of 24-32°C (75-90°F).” So unless infected persons are defecating all over the Blue Mountains while the temperature is right, how can the soil be rife with hookworms?
The basic point here is that unless the ground you walk upon has been recently contaminated, you cannot acquire hookworms.
Below I have excerpted information from various sources.
Parasites in Humans – Hookworms
Cutaneous larva migrans
Animal hookworms Ancylostoma braziliense and Ancylostoma caninum normally parasitize only dogs and cats. In humans they cause a skin condition called cutaneous larva migrans, creeping eruption or ground itch. In the canine (or feline) intestine a female hookworm releases eggs into the stool. The feces land on soil, and rhabditiform larvae hatch and evolve into filariform. The filariform larvae burrow into human skin and start migrating in the epidermis. They cannot usually breach the subcutaneous layer and live only up to a few months. They can migrate several centimeters per day causing itchy red lesions and vesicles on the skin.
Cutaneous larva migrans is usually diagnosed from the signs and symptoms without laboratory tests. There are no serologic tests for animal hookworm infections for humans. Cutaneous larva migrans is a self-limiting infection and does not always require treatment. Severe cutaneous larva migrans infections can be treated with albendazole and surgical removal.
Sometimes larval Ancylostoma caninum is able to penetrate the lower skin layer and migrate to the small intestine, causing eosinophilic enteritis. It is possible that it can also migrate to the eye and cause diffuse unilateral subacute neuroretinitis (DUSN). At the early stage of DUSN it might cause vitritis, visual loss, mild papilledema, and consecutive crops of multiple, evanescent, deep, gray-white, retinal lesions. After several months there might be widespread, diffuse and focal depigmentation of the pigment epithelium, retinal arterial narrowing, severe visual loss, optic atrophy, and electroretinographic changes.
An estimated 576-740 million people in the world are infected with hookworm. Hookworm was once widespread in the United States, particularly in the southeastern region, but improvements in living conditions have greatly reduced hookworm infections. Hookworm, Ascaris, and whipworm are known as soil-transmitted helminths (parasitic worms). Together, they account for a major burden of disease worldwide.
Hookworms live in the small intestine. Hookworm eggs are passed in the feces of an infected person. If the infected person defecates outside (near bushes, in a garden, or field) of if the feces of an infected person are used as fertilizer, eggs are deposited on soil. They can then mature and hatch, releasing larvae (immature worms). The larvae mature into a form that can penetrate the skin of humans. Hookworm infection is mainly acquired by walking barefoot on contaminated soil. One kind of hookworm can also be transmitted through the ingestion of larvae.CDC – Parasites – Soil-transmitted Helminths (STHs)
Soil-transmitted helminths refer to the intestinal worms infecting humans that are transmitted through contaminated soil (“helminth” means parasitic worm): Ascaris lumbricoides (sometimes called just “Ascaris”), whipworm (Trichuris trichiura), and hookworm (Anclostoma duodenale and Necator americanus). A large part of the world’s population is infected with one or more of these soil-transmitted helminths:
approximately 807-1,121 million with Ascaris
approximately 604-795 million with whipworm
approximately 576-740 million with hookwormSoil-transmitted helminth infection is found mainly in areas with warm and moist climates where sanitation and hygiene are poor, including in temperate zones during warmer months. These STHs are considered Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) because they inflict tremendous disability and suffering yet can be controlled or eliminated.
Soil-transmitted helminths live in the intestine and their eggs are passed in the feces of infected persons. If an infected person defecates outside (near bushes, in a garden, or field) or if the feces of an infected person are used as fertilizer, eggs are deposited on soil. Ascaris and hookworm eggs become infective as they mature in soil. People are infected with Ascaris and whipworm when eggs are ingested. This can happen when hands or fingers that have contaminated dirt on them are put in the mouth or by consuming vegetables and fruits that have not been carefully cooked, washed or peeled. Hookworm eggs are not infective. They hatch in soil, releasing larvae (immature worms) that mature into a form that can penetrate the skin of humans. Hookworm infection is transmitted primarily by walking barefoot on contaminated soil. One kind of hookworm (Anclostoma duodenale) can also be transmitted through the ingestion of larvae.
An estimated 576-740 million people in the world are infected with hookworm. Hookworm was widespread in the southeastern United States until the early 20th century but is now nearly eliminated. Hookworm, Ascaris, and whipworm are known as soil-transmitted helminths (parasitic worms). Together, they account for a major burden of disease worldwide.
Parasites – Is Something Having YOU for Dinner?
A 46-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital because of swelling of her left breast. A x-ray examination revealed that 2 x 2 cm nodule was noticed in subcutaneous tissue. Breast cancer was suspected and the resection was performed. When her breast skin was cut open, a white string like parasite ran out.
This is an entire body that was taken from the patient. Neither head nor mouth was observed. We call this parasite a plerocercoid of Spirometra erinaceieuropaei. Spirometra erinaceieuropaei is a parasite of dogs and cats. Humans become infected with the larval stage (plerocercoid) of this parasite.Prevention/Solution
Hookworm is not a common problem in the United States, due to strict sanitation laws and the elimination of outhouses. It was once a problem in the Southeast. The parasite is common in developing areas in the tropics and subtropics, including Africa, Australia and the Americas. If you are camping in a warm humid climate, especially where human feces may be in the soil, do not walk barefoot and avoid contact with the soil as much as possible.A HREF=”http://vitaklenz.com/hookworm.php”>Hookworm Info.
Larvae can survive up to 4 weeks outside of the body under the right conditions (moist, sandy or loamy soil in temperature ranges of 24-32°C (75-90°F). Adult hookworms can live up to 10 years inside a host.
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Herbal treatments are well suited to this ongoing administration due to their relative safety and long documented history.
For example, The World Health Organization Monographs on Selected Medicinal Plants reports garlic has having been used to treat hookworm infestations, listing allicin (a natural chemical in garlic,) as the active constituent. Also Thymol, a key constituent of Thyme, is traditionally considered to be particularly effective against hookworm.
Additional research resources:
Center for Disease Control, Division of Parasitic Diseases: Hookworm Infection
National Library of Medicine: Medical Encyclopedia – Hookworm
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases – Hookworm Disease
Encyclopedia Britannica Online Edition Hookworm disease http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/271350/hookworm-disease#ref=ref267498
Public Health Agency of Canada Necator americanus Material Safety Data Sheets May 23, 2001
http://www.cdfound.to.it/html/hoo1.htm
http://www.eol.org/pages/397578
http://www.sanger.ac.uk/Projects/N_americanus/
http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/Necator+americanus
Thompson R., Reynoldson J., GarrowS., McCarthyJ., Behnke J. Towards the eradication of hookworm in an isolated Australian community The Lancet, Volume 357, Issue 9258, Pages 770-771
Bergner J.F., Jr. Intestinal Parasites in an Aborigine Village in Southeast Taiwan Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 13(1), 1964, pp. 78-81
World Health Organization (WHO) (1999). Monographs on Selected Medicinal Plants. Volume 1. WHO, Geneva.
Jellin JM, Batz F, Hitchens K. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. Third Edition. Stockton, California: Therapeutic Research Faculty, 2000.
Lueng AY, Foster S. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs and Cosmetics. Second Edition. New York, NY: Wiley & Sons, 1996.
Barnes J, Anderson LA, Phillipson JD, Herbal Medicines: A Guide for Healthcare Professionals. Second Edition. London: Pharmaceutical Press, 2002.
http://prod.hopkins-abxguide.org/antibiotics/antiparasitic/bephenium_hydroxynaphthoate.html?contentInstanceId=468569 Young M.D., Jeffery G.M., Morehouse W.G., Freed J.E., Johnson R.S. The Comparative Efficacy of Bephenium Hydroxynaphthoate and Tetrachloroethylene against Hookworm and other Parasites of Man Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 9(5), 1960, pp. 488-491Yeah, and it is so easy to tell if the ground has been recently contaminated with near microscopic organisms by some other animal, by migration, or by whatever other means. Think about it. If nearly 10% of the world’s population has it, it is not entirely rare. That’s just hookworm, which is only one such type of parasite. But if you are interested in being part of the 10%, great!
Why do you think all dogs need to be dewormed and then continuously take anti-worm medication? Because they don’t wear shoes so they are constantly picking up parasites!
It’s not something I live in fear of, because I simply wear my shoes.
It also prevents foot injury which can lead to infections as russelln points out. A simple precaution–which I hardly have to have any thought of whatsoever–removes all concern. It’s a habit like washing one’s hands after using the toilet. Once its a habit, you don’t think about it.Advocates of barefoot approach say that they don’t care about such risks because they feel they get a benefit from contacting the earth. For me, I consider it a small, negligible benefit since you can get the same effect from simple grounding. If your feet are touching shoes, and your shoes are touching the earth, are you not touching the earth? If you say no, then I would like to know what planet your shoes are made out of. If they are made from the elements of the planet Mars, then maybe you have a need to go barefoot. Then the next argument would be, well “the shoes lost their earth frequency” having been taken out of the earth. My next comment would be: are they special anti-gravity shoes that float around and don’t touch the earth continuously? Wherever they are, what are they sitting on? THE EARTH. So you’ll have to forgive me if I think the whole barefoot argument is BS, even ignoring the parasite issue. Anyone that does Iron Shirt can easily see that earth qi rises into your body, irrespective of whether you are wearing shoes or not. If people are so unconscious of the earth under their feet that they need to go barefoot to establish such a consciousness by tactile sensation, then shoes are not the problem, in my honest opinion.
But if it works for others, great.
I’m just not going to jump on the bandwagon and say I agree, when I don’t . . . and I in fact have very good reasons to think the whole thing is ridiculous.S
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