Proof Engine Verification (PARTIALLY VERIFIED): Grounding or earthing through barefoot contact with the Earth measurably reduces inflammation and improves recovery and sleep.

Automated fact-verification of the claim: "Grounding or earthing through barefoot contact with the Earth measurably reduces inflammation and improves recovery and sleep." Verdict: PARTIALLY VERIFIED Key Findings SC1 (inflammation) — HOLDS: 2 of 2 qualifying sources confirmed earthing's association with reduced inflammation biomarkers (CRP, cytokines, white blood cells). Sources: Chevalier 2015 PMC review (partial, COI) + post-surgical RCT 2025 (verified, non-COI). SC2 (recovery) — HOLDS: 2 of 2 qualifying sources confirmed earthing's association with improved physical recovery markers (creatine kinase, VAS pain score). Sources: post-surgical RCT 2025 (verified, non-COI) + bodyworkers RCT 2018 (partial, COI). SC3 (sleep) — FAILS: The only qualifying source (ScienceDirect 2025 sleep RCT, n=60) returned HTTP 403 and could not be verified. 0 of 1 sources verified; threshold of 2 not met. Additionally, no second qualifying sleep source (n≥30, non-COI) was found in the literature. SC4 (causation) — FAILS: Only 1 of 2 required qualifying RCTs was verified (post-surgical, n=42). The sleep RCT (n=60, ScienceDirect) returned HTTP 403. Additionally, a systematic review found that "the few studies with robust methodologies found no evidence of health benefits," and a 2015 study failed to replicate 2010 positive DOMS findings. Files proof.py — Re-runnable Python verification script proof.md — Structured proof report proof_audit.md — Full verification audit trail proof_narrative.md — Plain-language summary proof.json — Machine-readable structured data Generated by Proof Engine v1.3.1.