Many times when we touch someone, even with animals, we feel a spark or a cramp, and we get scared. Don’t worry everyone, it’s not about electric current like the one in our home, nor is it a dangerous voltage. nor do we have superpowers. This is static electricity and we are going to explain what it is, why we sometimes get cramps and what we can do to avoid them.
Those sparks that we sometimes feel are not bad, our body has energy and sometimes we charge ourselves with negative or positive energy and, when we come into contact with an opposite charge, we feel the spark. There is nothing to worry about, it does not affect our health, it is not a sign that something is wrong, or anything like that, it is simply static electricity and we are going to explain everything that this means.
What is static electricity
All objects and bodies are made up of atoms and these same atoms can be protons (positive charge), electrons (negative charge) or neutrons (no charge). Actually the atoms of a body do not have a charge, and this is because we have the same number of protons as electrons, this makes the charge cancel.
The curious thing is that we can charge ourselves with a positive charge if it loses electrons and with a negative charge if it gains them. What do we mean by this? Well, that punctual imbalance between charges is what is known as static electricity. That’s why sometimes we comb our hair and the hair opens slowly or we touch someone and we get a cramp.
Throughout this text we are going to delve into cramps and we are also going to explain how to regulate the load to avoid those cramps. As we say, it is not dangerous for health, but children can get an unnecessary scare, or even if we want to comb our hair better and have beautiful hair, these tips will help us.
why do we get cramps
We have already learned that we are all made up of atoms, and some are positively charged, others are negative, and others are neutral. We also know that by having the same amount of negative charge as positive we become neutral charge and that the mismatch is what creates that spark.
But let’s dig deeper, that cramp arises when a negatively charged person comes into contact with a positively charged object, animal or person. In this case, both sentient beings will notice the cramp. That cramp or spark is the transfer of electrons from one living being to another to balance the charge of the bodies.
The curious thing is that the cramp is noticeable when the difference is high, but we must know that we have invisible sparks several times a day and we do not notice them, hence they are known as invisible or undetectable. Cramps are noticeable from 1 milliamp , but that does not pose a health risk. They are low energies, it is not the same electricity that flows through the sockets at home, for example.
How to avoid cramps
There are several ways to avoid these sparks, and sometimes we can even notice the mismatch by touching our hair or some material that sticks to our hand, as well as touching an electronic device while charging and noticing the vibration, especially when They are usually magnetized chargers.
walk barefoot on land
It is a very fast and simple resource. We just have to take off our shoes and swim on a surface with land or grass , especially if it is fresh grass. This will help us release electrical charge and regulate our number of protons and electrons, returning the body to its neutral position.
We can also choose to walk barefoot at home, but the good thing about dirt and fresh grass is that they are good electrical conductors and will help us better balance the charges than if we swim barefoot on a ceramic, marble or parquet floor, which are also good option, but never above carpets and rugs.
hydrate well
Having healthy and hydrated skin is of vital importance to avoid this imbalance of loads in our body and avoid giving sparks to other people. But not only having a hydrated skin , but the fact of drinking water also balances the energies and returns us to the neutral state.
Also, when we get home from the street, the most appropriate thing is to take a shower, since the water will help us eliminate the excess load that we have been absorbing throughout the day by touching electronic elements and other people and animals.
Avoid some fabrics
There are fabrics that favor electrical charge, that is, they help the body to accumulate static electricity, so we must avoid them. These are usually synthetic materials such as polyester and nylon . That is why, from here, we recommend not using this type of material in our clothes, although we know that almost half or more of each current garment includes it in its manufacturing process.
If we use this type of material, it is best not to rub our hands, for example, not to dry the water on our shirt or pants, not to shake our hair with energetic movements, not to approach electronic devices, etc.
Something similar happens with rubber footwear, and it is that this type of sports shoes, boots, slippers, flip flops and others, accumulate static electricity and by being in contact with our skin they are constantly misaligning our loads.
The same goes for rugs. Walking on carpets made of synthetic materials causes us to accumulate static electricity. There are already prepared carpets to avoid these consequences, and even spray and spray products.
wash hair with cold water
Hot water promotes the charge of static electricity, so experts recommend showering with rather cool water and cold water for hair. In this way we will be able to balance the loads and avoid accumulation and imbalance. Which leads us to suffer from static electricity in the bangs, and in other short strands when we try to comb our hair. This affects men and women, and even animals. In fact, experts recommend combing our hair with brushes or wooden combs.
We can create a homemade experiment of rubbing a balloon on the back of our dog or cat and we will see how the hairs stand on end and move slowly while we bring the balloon closer to the animal’s fur.
Humidify the environment
We have already made it clear that water is our ally, and that is that the fact of humidifying the environment will reduce static electricity and we will avoid giving those sparks to other people and animals. A good solution may be to put plants around the house , but if we cannot or do not want to, we can obtain an electronic humidifier. We have already said before that fresh grass is a good conductor, so being surrounded by fresh plants and touching them helps us regulate the load on our body.
