IS YOUR BED KILLING YOU? by Dr Cory Ostroot

LEARNING ABOUT THE HEART

In my first year of medical school we received 8 weeks of training on the heart. The analogy offered by the professor was the heart as a mechanical pump that pushes blood through the body; there were 

chambers, valves, and an electrical system all working together to pump oxygen-filled blood to the body’s tissues. We learned that the heart is the most complex muscle in the body because it has the ability to beat

even when the brain and central nervous system have been completely shut down. I was really intrigued but not given any tools with which to change a sick heart into a healthy heart.

In my second year of medical school, we learned about the drugs that can affect the heart, from medications that slow the heartbeat – called beta-blockers – to medications that reduce the amount of fluid the

heart has to pump – called diuretics. Then there were surgeries that could repair blockages caused by cholesterol and other fatty deposits; the arteries could have a stent inserted, or an artery could be removed

and replaced by a vein in the leg. All of these strong therapies, drugs, and surgeries seemed like amazing options and great ways to fix the problem. But why didn’t they help my Grandpa?

Then came my third year, when I finally got to learn how to help people naturally! I was introduced to supplements like coenzyme Q10 – a super-antioxidant – and a supplement containing natural nitric oxide

inducers, thereby helping to decrease inflammation in the vessels and dilate them to increase blood flow. These were all decent options, I thought, but what was the real reason that my grandfather kept having

heart attacks? I needed to go back to my first year of schooling to better understand the physiology of the heart and the importance of blood flow. That’s when I heard about Andrew Fletcher.

MY OWN EXPERIENCE

After being inspired by Mr Fletcher, I inclined my own bed about 1 year ago, and attempted to document the changes that I experienced in my body. Like almost every naturopathic doctor I know, I was a little overzealous and inclined my queen-sized bed to 7.5… well, closer to 8 inches. I recommend starting at less than 4 inches and slowly increasing the incline as you see fit, to achieve the 5-degree tilt. My first night was like being on a “slip and slide” in the middle of the summer, except that there wasn’t a smile on my face the next morning. I ended up with some neck pain, as well as a kink in my lower back, which already has disc herniations. Once I lowered the tilt of my bed to the recommended 6 inches, I experienced headaches and increased muscle soreness for 10 days, which then subsided. My benefits afterwards included decreased muscle soreness and pain (including my back), increased alertness on waking, and a notable decrease in awakenings in the middle of the night. I also experienced a consistent need to urinate a large amount in the morning, which suggested that my kidneys were filtering much more during the night. I have also noticed that sleeping on a flat bed is very uncomfortable now; I wake up feeling almost ill after a few days of this. I am never going back to sleeping on a flat mattress.

I might not have been able to change my grandfather’s heart from a sick heart into a healthy heart, but now I know there are natural ways in which we can benefit the heart and take stress off of it so that it can work longer and better. One of those ways is by inclining one’s bed.

by Dr. Cory Ostroot

Dr. Cory Ostroot  Quote: " Thanks so much for sharing! Let’s incline so we don’t have a decline in our health!"

I Recommend Reading the Full article: http://ndnr.com/cardiopulmonary-medicine/is-your-bed-killing-you/

How is digestion affected by inclined bed therapy (IBT) ?

How does gravity assist the passage of food through the digestive system?

Our entire digestive tract is composed of a single tube running from our mouth to anus. Note that the large intestine resembles a siphon, with the anus being lower in relation to gravity when we are upright and that the small intestine provides positive pressure from the downward flowing stomach contents.

Think about this for a moment. Our intestines consist of a single tube that is compacted and aranged inside our abdomen. When we are sleeping flat, we "almost" cancel out the influence by gravity and how it acts upon our meals and drinks on it's journey through our body, although as we rotate in a flat bed we do make some use of gravity, which undoubtedly helps to move food, albeit more slowly.

When we are inclined in bed, no matter which position we sleep in, gravity is positively acting upon the digestive system by helping to move food more quickly, which helps to prevent constipation and diarrhoea and avoid scybala (Hardened masses of faeces) from causing a blockage in the colon.

IBT has been successful in arresting acute diarrhoea in patients at the end of life with AIDS!

It's not difficult to see how avoiding sleeping for too long in one position and rotating in bed, would accomodate the passage of waste food more effectively in both flat and inclined bed rest.

Keeping food moving is important and more easily accomplished with activity-as we change our posture. This undoubtedly helps our food to navigate the bends in the intestines and bowel. When we are in an inclined bed, bowel movements tend to occur shortly after getting up in the morning and become more regular. This is great news for the lining of the digestive tract, because it is helping to prevent the stagnation and overburden of our intestines with bacteria and decaying, poorly-digested food.

I suspect that bowel cancer may in part, be a complication of a compromised digestive system and it’s reduced movement of foods, when sleeping horizontally and could be helped by avoiding flat bed rest.

"Exploring what happens to the gastrointestinal, endocrine, renal, reproductive and nervous systems, and processes in the body when a person is confined to bed

Gastrointestinal system Bedrest is often associated with a reduced sense of taste, smell and a loss of appetite (Rousseau, 1993; Bortz, 1984).

The resulting drop in food intake leads to progressive disuse of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. This can have a major impact on gut structure and function, including atrophy of the mucosal lining and shrinkage of glandular structures (Bortz, 1984).

Swallowing is more difficult for people confined to bed and it has been shown that non-viscous substances pass through the oesophagus more slowly when the body is supine (Kaplan, 2005). It also takes longer for food to pass through the stomach – 66% more slowly in recumbent patients than in upright ones (Thomas et al, 2002).

Increased transit times slow the movement of faeces through the colon and rectum, increasing water reabsorption. As a result, stools progressively harden causing constipation, a common problem in patients confined to bed. Constipation is often associated with faecal impaction, which, if severe, may need mechanical intervention for removal. In an upright person, gravity causes stools within the rectum to exert pressure on the anal sphincter, but this effect of gravity is negated in supine patients, reducing the urge to defecate.

The problem of constipation is particularly troublesome in patients confined to bed receiving opioid-based pain relief medications. Drugs such as morphine dramatically slow down gut motility (Jordan, 2008), exacerbating the effects of immobility.

If constipation becomes chronic, the build-up of faecal material can exert significant pressure on the wall of the colon, increasing the chance of diverticuli (Bortz, 1984).

The risk of constipation can be reduced by ensuring that patients get enough dietary fibre, which should help to speed up gut transit times. Patients should also be encouraged to take regular drinks of fresh water, which will be soaked up by fibre within the gut, increasing faecal bulk and softening the stools.

During bedrest, gastric bicarbonate secretion may also decrease (Kaplan, 2005), increasing acidity within the stomach. When patients are in the supine position, these gastric secretions can collect and press against the lower oesophageal (cardiac) sphincter, causing irritation. Patients confined to bed can experience symptoms associated with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), such as regurgitation and heartburn. This can be alleviated by using pillows to prop them up after a meal.

This position also encourages the gastric juices to collect in the lower portion of the stomach, reducing the risk of reflux.

Antacid medications can also be given to relieve the sensation of heartburn."

Source: https://www.nursingtimes.net/clinical-archive/gastroenterology/effects-of-bedrest-2-gastrointestinal-endocrine-renal-reproductive-and-nervous-systems/5002434.article

The Sap Circulation Theory: Density Flow and Return Circulation In Trees and Plants

The Gravity Of Life Theory

by Andrew K Fletcher

Introduction

All life on earth developed with one thing in common, the Earth! The constant forces are gravity, and the energy from the sun. The most abundant resources are minerals and water.

The ocean currents are driven by gravity, acting upon density changes that occur where evaporation and cooling by wind around Iceland causes sea surface water to become denser. This creates a powerful downflow as dense sea water plumets to the ocean floor at an estimated rate of five billion gallons a second. In doing so, it generates a return flow, pulling warmer less dense water up from the equator, driving a massive underwater river bigger than all the rivers in the world put together, This is also known as the Gulf Stream. This flow and return system, according to diffusion should dispurse and yet it does not mix with the surrouding ocean. Video After The Warming by James Bourke, explaining The Atlantic Conveyor Ocean Currents Driven By Gravity

At the bottom of the ocean, brine pools and lakes have been discovered, where a dense saline solution accumulates. Again, diffusion plays no role in dispersing these lakes, which also have outlets, showing clearly how density differences drive underwater rivers and streams, where brine lakes and ponds overflow to produce under water streams and rivers. This closely relates to a transparent circulation not unlike the flow of sap in trees and the flow of fluids in our bodies.
Brine ponds on the ocean floor empty, showing clearly how sea water with different densities, behaves independently.

Plants and animals alike, all depend on the properties of water for transporting minerals and nutrients. All life on Earth is based upon water, life must have evolved by finding the easiest and most direct pathway! Liquids are very good at finding the most direct route possible.

Yet, at first glance, everywhere one looks life appears to have chosen the least likely of paths, if trees and plants are trying to overcome the effects of gravity, why would trees, with species like the giant Californian redwoods (sequoia sempervirens), towering over a hundred metres high have chosen a vertical direction?

How have plants and animals harnessed the constant pull of gravity in order to thrive and grow?

On a summer day a large oak tree may take up a hundred gallons of water or more, enriched with minerals and nutrients from the soil. At first glance it is doing so against the pull of gravity, producing flow rates, which cannot be explained or shown by working models based on osmosis, capillary action or root pressure, or indeed by the Cohesion Tension theory. So how are trees ble to do this without any need for a pump?

Explanation

Over 95% of the waters drawn in at the roots of a tree evaporate into the surrounding air through the leaves by transpiration. The evaporated moisture contains no minerals. However, the water remaining inside the tree contains a variety of mineral salts dissolved from the soil, together with sugars produced by the tree by photosynthysis. The transpired water must result in a concentration of salts and sugars within the leaves. Concentrating a liquid, (sap), which contains substances that are heavier than water, must result in the production of a heavier solution than the pre-transpired liquid.

Because of the resulting imbalance in density the heavier solution is drawn towards the base of the tree, due to the effect of gravity (maple syrup, latex and amber are evidence for this). Downward flowing sap occurs predominantly within the phloem vessels. When an excess of concentrated liquid is produced during favourable weather conditions, the downward flowing sap forms new tubes from the cambium, as it is forced down by gravity, in a continual cycle of growth.

In hard woods, sap flows from cell to cell through openings or perforations, in the membrane between abutting vessels.

In soft-woods, the sap flow controls movable valves, or pits - (thin areas), in the walls of conducting tracheids. Concentrated pulses of sap may eventually be found to be present in some xylem vessels, as gravity inevitably finds the most direct route, with the least resistance, to the ground.

But for every action there must always be a reaction, and the reaction in this case is that the downward flowing liquid behaves exactly like a plunger in a syringe. As it flows down it causes the entire contents of connected tubes filled with the less dense liquid to be drawn up.

Here we have a simple power source, which is driven purely by evaporation, posture and gravity.

The forces produced by this phenomenon are easy to demonstrate in simple tubular experiments. The main forces are produced at the head and tail of the falling solutions. The head produces a positive force, or pressure, and the tail produces a negative pressure. I believe that the positive force within the mineral laden sap is responsible for the formation of the tubular structures found in timber. The positive force prevents tubes from closing.

As more sap flows through the same pathways, some of the sap is used to strengthen the tubes which will eventually become strong enough to resist the negative pressures. The tree transports the dilute solution of water and minerals to the leaves using these tubes. Thereafter becoming what we call the xylem vessels.

As the concentrated liquid falls towards the ground, minerals are locked away as timber, while the mineral laden liquid arriving at the roots is inevitably re-diluted by the dilute solution drawn from the soil. The imbalance in the liquid is corrected as it becomes lighter or less dense than the downward flowing sap and begins its journey back to the leaves, where the process continues, providing the tree with a constant supply of water and nutrients.

In the autumn, when the leaves have fallen, the circulation is altered as a greater positive pressure is exerted towards the roots, because transpiration has ceased and therefore fluids flowing towards the top of the tree would be compromised. At this time of the year root growth would be most productive.

As fluid channels begin to offer resistance, the sap must find alternative routes. The new directions may be vertical or horizontal, but always in the path of least resistance. Eventually tubes become redundant and new tubes are formed. Fluids of different specific gravity have been observed to flow in both directions, simultaneously while in the same tube. In fact this ‘transpiring gravitational flow system’ is able to operate without tubes and has been attributed to causing the oceans to circulate (Atlantic conveyor system).

Early attempts at lifting water

The story goes that the reigning Grand Duke of Tuscany had ordered a well to be dug to supply the ducal palace with water. The workmen came upon water at a depth of 40 feet, and the next step was to pump it up. A vacuum lift pump was erected over the well, and a pipe let down to the water, but the water was found to rise to a height of 33 feet and no more, in spite of the most careful overhauling of the pump mechanism. It was at this stage that Galileo was consulted. While the famous philosopher was unable to offer a solution, he at least indicated the problem. Here above the 33 feet of water was seven feet of vacuum. The limit for raising water by suction in a tube appeared to be thirty-three feet.

Why should there be this limit when trees are observed to ignore it?

By introducing a loop of tubing, instead of a single tube, to simulate the internal structure of plants and trees, and suspending it by the centre, the problem of raising water above the 33 feet limit is solved. The reason a loop of tubing succeeds where a single tube fails is because the cohesive bond of water molecules is far stronger than the adhesive qualities of water observed in Galileo’s lift-pump problem. Using a loop of tubing enables water molecules to bond to each other in an unbroken chain. It helps to picture the unbroken loop of water as a cord instead of a liquid, supported by a pulley in the centre with tension applied to both ends.

The columns of water held in both sides of the tube exert a downward force due to the weight of the water contained in the tube. This force causes the water molecules in the tube to be stretched, causing the water to behave like an elastic band. In order to demonstrate this affect on water molecules I repeated the experiment shown in figure 1 without the added saline solution, the two open ends of the tube at ground level were removed from the demijohns, exposing them to the air.

Though the tube contained water, it did not flow from either side of the tube. In fact the opposite effect was observed; the water level in both sides of the tube immediately rose to a new level about half a metre from the ends of the tube. Even more surprising the water columns stayed there suspended by the cohesion between the water molecules.

In order to try to upset the balance I then blew up one side of the tube, causing the water level on that side to rise. I then released the pressure and the water returned to the same equal level. This observation offers an exciting explanation to the problem of explaining why water does not pour from the wound when a tree is felled.

However, the present laws of physics state that water cannot exist in its liquid form below 4.6 torr, yet the water remains in the tube. Only when the tube is lowered, or if a bubble appears at the top of the loop of tubing does the water flow out from the open ends.

THE BRIXHAM CLIFF EXPERIMENT

This experiment successfully demonstrated fluid transport to a height, which exceeds the current accepted limit of 10 metres and how this applies to the way that trees draw water to their leaves.

48 metre single length of clear nylon tubing, 6.35 mm inside diameter x 9.5 mm outside diameter (type used to draw ales in the brewery trade), two clear glass demijohns, a large tray, 50 mils of concentrated salt solution with added red food dye, 50ml syringe minus the needle, sufficient degassed or previously boiled and cooled water to fill the tubing, the demijohns, and for adequate top ups. Adequate nylon cord to hoist the tubing and pulley to the desired height, a small pulley and adhesive cello-tape.

Method

The two demijohns were filled to the brim with the water and placed in a suitable tray to catch any displaced water. The length of tubing was half filled with the water by siphoning. This was achieved by submerging one end of the tube in the water filled demijohn placed on a table. When the water reached the centre of the loop, the open end of the tube was capped with a thumb. The end of the tube in the demijohn was removed and the 50 mils of coloured salt water was introduced via the large syringe. The demijohn was then re-filled to the brim and the tube was re-submerged, making sure that no bubbles were introduced by adjusting the height of the unfilled side of the tube. By removing the thumb, the remaining length of tube was filled and again capped, making sure that no air was trapped inside the tube. At this point the demijohns were, refilled. The capped end of the tube was then inserted into the other water filled demijohn and both ends secured at an equal level, with cello-tape, again making sure that no air was allowed to enter the tube.

A length of the nylon cord equal to that of the length of tubing used was passed through the pulley, provided a safe ground level means to hoist the loop of tubing to the desired height. The pulley and the main nylon cord was hoisted to the desired height and secured at the top of the cliff on a separate length of cord. Adhesive cello-tape was wrapped heavily around the two sides of the loop of tubing 15cm from its centre to secure one knotted end of the main nylon cord, which ran through the pulley for the purpose of lifting the tube, taking care not to reduce the tubes diameter. The cello-tape was used to bind the cord to the tube.

Coloured insulation tape was used to secure both sides of the tube together providing an excellent ascent measurement when placed at one-metre intervals.

The Brixham Cliff Experiment

The centre of the tube was then gently hoisted, taking care to keep the ascent as smooth as possible. As the tube was raised the salt solution began to fall, due to the influence of gravity; this caused one of the demijohns to start overflowing indicating a positive pressure, while the second demijohn began to lose water at the same rate indicating a negative pressure. The emptying demijohn received frequent top ups, until the salt solution arrived at the overflowing demijohn and the flow stopped.

Conclusion

The fifty mils of salt solution caused the water in the tubes to circulate. The amount of water displaced and collected in the tray represents approximately the volume of water held in one side of the tube. Which meant that the fifty mils of salt solution had lifted water from one demijohn to the height of 24 metres and caused water many times its own weight and volume to rise. (I have used as little as 10 mils of coloured salt solution in the same experiment with a slower rate of decent but with similar displacements of water). Initially the experiments were tested at lower levels of elevation. 24 metres vertical lift was achieved when demonstrating the phenomenon before an audience of journalists and Forestry Commission scientists at the Overgang cliff, Brixham, July 1995.

Bench demonstration (pictured above)

For the purpose of demonstrating this phenomenon use a scaled down two metre high version of Fig 1. Substituting the demijohns for small narrow necked bottles. The type of tubing used to oxygenate aquariums is ideal for this purpose. A two-mil syringe minus needle, filled with coloured salt solution, connected to a T piece via a short length of tube, may be added close to the centre of the elevated tube to introduce salt solution intermittently while the tube is elevated, providing multiple demonstrations. Furthermore, the tube used in the salt free side of the experiment, (return side), may be of a larger bore size. Soft wall, silicon tubing shows visible signs of distortion when the saline solution is allowed to flow through it. The side containing the saline solution expands while the other side contracts, again indicating the presence of both positive and negative, pressures.

The experiments shown have been repeated using a variety of substitutes for salt solution, such as strong tea solution, fruit juices and milk etc. in order to relate directly to plants and animals. The flow rates achieved using different solutions, produced different rates of flow.

Umbrella Plant Experiment, (cyperus alternifolium)

Umbrella plant showing roots migrating through the stem by growing from leaves at the top of the plant In order to demonstrate that liquids of higher concentrations flow through plants in relation to the constant pull of gravity.

Take a freshly cut stem about 15cm long, with leaves intact, from an umbrella plant. Place the cutting upside down in a glass container of water. After several weeks the plant starts to grow roots from what was the top of the plant and new stems are produced with shoots growing vertically in the normal way. The liquid processes involved within the plant for both root and leaf production, must have travelled from one end of the cut stem to the other. Gravity therefore must be actively involved in sap flow. 

Back to trees and the Brixham experiment, the negative pressure induced by the falling sal /salts observed in the nylon tubing and in the demijohn with the falling water level, provides us with a clear understanding of the mechanisms involved in drawing water through the roots from the soil and throughout the local soil water. The positive pressures caused by the weight of the column of water held in the tree, plus the additional influence of gravity acting on the concentrated solutions, induced by the loss of moisture at the leaf, provides the roots with sufficient power to penetrate the earth.

Explanation for fluid exuding from a cut stem.

To demonstrate this effect, fill a vertically held open ended u tube with water, Fig 2A, and add a little coloured concentrated salt solution to one side, Fig 2B, the level of the salt solution will drop causing the opposite side to overflow. Imagine the loop of tubing is one of many tubes in the stem of a freshly cut plant or tree with roots in the soil. The overflowing water represents the xylem sap rising under the influence of the positive pressure, generated by gravity acting upon the concentrated sap in the phloem tube.

This is an important observation that gives a clear understanding of why plants and trees continue to grow upwards.

Little or no cross contamination takes place between liquids in the clean-water-side and the coloured saline side of the tube. Fig 2 C, I have left this experiment suspended for five days and it appears to remain stable. Circulation within an enclosed system, Fig 3, eliminates siphon as an explanation, demonstrating that flow occurs inside and would continue to do so if the tube was pressurised.

The thin columns of water in trees are known to brake, making a cracking sound through a stethoscope. Cavitation occurs immediately the bead of water separates. The formation of gas at the uppermost part of the raised loop of tubing, Fig 1, caused both columns of water to fall towards the ground and form a new level of 33 feet. The space above the water columns is a vacuum.

The circulation in trees continues, despite continuous cavitations, which means that they are able to refill or repair the vacuum. The internal part of a tree is a network of veins, or tubes, most of which run vertically. However some tubes run at an angle and some horizontally and provide links to other tubes, which interconnect at random levels. The internal tubular parts of the tree are themselves captivated inside a large tube, which is of course the bark or outer skin.

Water columns within the internal tubes of a tree, are continually stressed under a negative pressure, caused by downward flowing concentrated solutions within the trunk and branches. Cavitation occurs because the long thin columns of water are pulled apart. Immediately the cavitation forms, the internal pressures of that tube switch from a negative pressure to a positive pressure, forcing the more dilute solution in the opposing side of adjoined tubes upwards, Fig 2.B. & Fig 2 C. The downward force causes an increase in the head of water at the top of the tube. It is this increase in the head of water that gives a tree both momentum and direction to follow in its cyclical growth. Furthermore an increase in the positive pressure above the cavitation refills and repairs the vacuum, therefore enabling the tree to continue with water transport, and allowing gas bubbles to percolate upwards and out through the leaves.

This ability of the tree to switch from positive pressure to negative pressure and visa-versa gives us an understanding of the pressures observed in the roots of the tree. The roots being able to drive down through the earth under a positive pressure and expanding forces yet are still able to suck in water under a negative pressure.

Safety

• Students conducting any overhead experiments must observe the same hard hat safety regulations imposed on building workers.

• Experiments involving tube elevations higher than classroom levels should always be supervised. The safest area for this kind of experiment to take place is on a spiral staircase. Cliff top experiments are dangerous.

• A nylon line passed through a small pulley block, which has been secured at the desired height, enables the loop of tube to be elevated safely from ground level.

• Boiling water is dangerous and should not be handled or moved until it has cooled sufficiently enough to prevent scalding.

END

A simple thought experiment

This thought experiment is designed to clarify the direction and momentum of fluids as they are pulled and pushed through the body by the magnetic or attractive force of gravity.

Red represents both high levels of oxygen and concentrated solutions caused by the loss of moisture during the evaporative processes which occur in bodily functions. The alterations in specific gravity which occur in the fluids close to the surface lining of the lungs, respiratory tract and skin, could well be responsible for providing the dissolved oxygen, which we require, with sufficient force to enter the circulatory system.

Blue represents both low oxygen and a reduction in specific gravity, due to the loss of spent salts in the excreted urine, which is shown as yellow in the drawing. The increase in more dilute fluids from the stomach and intestines, is also anaerobic (containing no oxygen) producing methane as a by-product. Therefore the liquids entering the system from our diet would contain no oxygen, which would undoubtedly cause any blood which passes through to show a significant reduction in oxygen.

Now apply the principles of pressures generated by the tiny pulses of concentrated solutions as they travel through the various tubes of the thought diagram. Personally I find that this simple drawing helps to keep my mind focused sharply on the holistic processes involved in all living things, be they plants or people. Strangely enough there is a similar drawing in most physiology books, which shows the direction of the circulatory system. Judge for yourself by looking at both drawings which way the fluid’s flow and how they are driven. As I have said earlier the only way to gain a good understanding of science is to form your own opinions, based on all the evidence you can lay your hands on. If for instance you see an experiment in a paper or a textbook, including this one, providing the experiment is not going to cost you a fortune, set it up. But then you must also try to find an alternative explanation for the processes that you witness.

Urine for instance was used to determine whether fluid transport could be taking place in humans and animals, In a similar process. For example respiration causes water to evaporate from the lungs and respiratory tract. Fluids remaining in the body contain minerals and must therefore be concentrated. Gravity causes the heavy solution to be drawn back through the lining of the lungs and respiratory tract and down through the vessels in the body, carrying dissolved oxygen with it.

Concentrated solutions arrive at the bladder via the kidneys where they are excreted in the urine. However the kidneys are not 100% efficient and some minerals arrive in the lowest anatomical extremities, solidifying as finger and toenails or horses hooves etc. Clippings of which sink when dropped into water.

By Andrew K Fletcher 1994

By Andrew K Fletcher 08/August/1999

What is Inclined Bed Therapy? (IBT)

It's simple! Raise the head end of your bed by 6 Inches (15cm) or more depending on your bed size and reap the rewards of health and improved circulation.

It costs nothing but a couple of books or bricks. That's right. Perhaps a few pieces of wood, or Furniture raisers to take advantage of Gravity and it's role in circulation.

Some observed results:

Improved Circulation and health throughout, Diabetic sensitivity reduced, Return of Sensation to numbed areas, Psoriasis and skin inflammations drastically reduced, Varicose Veins disappearing, Improved recovery and defences to common bugs, virus and germs, Improved recovery from DOMS after a hard workout, huge improvements in people with Multiple Sclerosis Bed wetting stops, bladder and bowel control restored, people with Parkinson's Disease experienced huge improvements, people with spinal cord injuries have gained function and sensation below the injury site. Sleep apnoea greatly improved and vanished in some cases. back ache gone, migraines a thing of the past, lethargy gone, muscular atrophy reversed, osteoporosis reversed, insomnia cured, night time visits to the toilet greatly improved, no more cold hands and feet in bed, tremors gone, but to name a few.... read the Testimonials to learn more and more things it is starting to affect?

Can it help you? It has helped us!  

Nominate Andrew K Fletcher for TED

We have recently started a campaign to help Andrew, who has been researching IBT for more than 23 years, to raise awareness and reach out to more people with health problems and people who would like to avoid getting the health problems!

Andrew has advocated for 23 years that placing babies in an inclined cot would eliminate sudden infant death syndrome. Using a pair of dad's boxer shorts tied to the sides of a cot / crib and placing baby inside them would prevent slipping down during the night.

Click here for information to enter in Ted Talk Nominate Form

Nominate Andrew K Fletcher for Ted Talks about Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT)

We are asking for your support! Nominate us to TED and help me tell my story to many more people in need of help.

Andrew K Fletcher Email:- andrew (A T) inclinedbedtherapy.com

How to nominate Andrew for TED Talks:

http://inclinedbedtherapy.com/andrew/about/20-andrew/80-inclined-bed-therapy-needs-your-help-have-you-nominated-andrew-k-fletcher-for-ted-yet-please-share

Nominate Andrew for TED Talks:

https://www.ted.com/participate/nominate

Think Outside Of The Box

Inclined Bed Therapy Helps You Think Outside Of The Box

• Are you struggling to sleep on your flat bed?
• Experiencing aches and pains in the night?
• Stomach acid burning your insides?
• Waking up feeling like you have been hit by a truck?
• Noticing a decline in your health?
• Fitness and performance could be better?
• Eyes all puffed up when you look in the mirror?
• Can’t get warm in bed?
• Cold hands and feet?
• Constantly waking to go to toilet?
• Snoring loudly?
• Sinuses blocked up?
• Coughing at night?
• Constipated?
• Poor circulation?
• Infertility issues?

Ever thought it might be your flat bed that is causing all of these problems and more?
Inclined Bed Therapy is where a bed is raised at the head end to afford relief from all of the above.

Bet you didn’t know that Ancient Egyptians slept like this?
Read more at: http:/IinclinedBedTherapy.com

The problem with sleeping is that the bed you sleep on is flat!

Heart attack 6th Dec 2019 My Story

Dodging a bullet

For around 2 months, my wife and I lowered our bed and slept at 3.8 degrees, around half the normal incline for us, after reading from others that they found it was suiting them better than five degrees or more. So sounded like a useful experiment. In hindsight, I wish we hadn't, because I was shivering and we both developed  severe  leg cramps, My calf muscles felt like they were twisting and my foot was turning in. We experienced very poor sleep, frequent bathroom trips at night, cold hands and feet that didn't warm quickly, generally colder in bed too.  Though initially we both slept sounder, but woke up feeling very un-rested. It was as if we hadn't had any sleep.

We felt lethargic during the day, but in the interest of science continued with the lower incline until I began to struggle on walks. Breathing felt like the air was acidic and burning my lungs, the air was very cold and damp. I experienced crushing pain in chest with left arm aching, jaw aching and had to sit five times  to rest on way back to car.

When I got home, I took a teaspoon full of cayenne pepper in a glass of fruit juice. I'm pretty sure this stopped the heart attack from progressing further because the relief was almost instantaneous. (I had read about this a few years back) The bed and the sofa are now back to usual incline.

This experience told me I was probably having a heart attack.

Some interesting history
Many years before, we had lost a dog through heart attack on beach in exactly the same oppressive air and weather conditions. He was only 5 and was running around, keeled over and was gone within seconds. So I knew through my work on circulation and my experience working in Buckfastleigh, a river valley where the air was heavy and instantly drained all of our energy leaving us soaked in sweat and extremely lethargic. Which completely vanished immediately we left the valley and we were all back to normal. The locals have given it a name, calling it Buckfastis and on such days there is an exodus from the valley with people unable to endure the heavy laboured breathing.

This link with high humidity fits perfectly with IBT theory. Our lungs need to evaporate water as we exhale in order to alter our blood density and drive our circulation. Breathing in saturated air will adversely affect it! 

Prior to having respiratory distress and severe chest pain, on the 4th I had a blood test at Dr's, which caused a painful visible swelling near injection site. The nurse didn't take enough blood so had to go back for another blood test on the 6th,  where I told the nurse I had severe chest pains and pain down my left arm, particularly at the injection site, which was swollen and I had aching in jaw. The nurse said that's because of your blood pressure. I was sent away, but knew I was in trouble and didn't trust the nurses judgement. So I tried to call our GP but constantly engaged. It was now the weekend so I didn't manage to get through until 9th December. Told my Dr the same as I had told the nurse and was asked if I could get to the hospital A&E as soon as possible.

By now, the aching and pain had subsided a lot and the inclined bed was helping a great deal by calming everything down, but still there was a problem with my breathing, night sweats and aching, albeit somewhat milder and eased by our now correctly inclined bed.

We arrived in A&E and I must say, that despite being very busy, the attention I received was very good. I had a cannula inserted and various tests were done. I was then moved to a Cardiac / chest pain ward for 5 days.

It was fascinating watching people from all walks of life who were experiencing the same problems that I was. The good news is, finally got my blood pressure under control with “special drugs” that according to the cardiologist don't damage kidneys.

I'm pretty sure that lowering the bed as mentioned above, was probably a cause.

Anyway, I remained inclined at 5 degrees for my stay in hospital, and managed to bend the ears of doctors and nurses, and a few patients, as you can imagine.

One Doctor agreed with my theory and thought it fascinating. Most of the nurses could see the logic in it.

I had no pain whatsoever and recovered very fast on IBT in hospital. Though I did experience some aching in chest and arm while having hot showers. There’s that high humidity connection again!

I was allowed to walk around the ward and visit bathroom on my own.

The cardiologist came to talk to me about my options and told me he would need to introduce a colourless odourless liquid into my arteries and that it would negatively affect my renal function.

I replied, would that be gadolinium? He replied yes. I said; No thanks, it will trash my already damaged kidneys and I will end up on dialysis for life. He agreed it would damage my renal function and could completely shut it down.

There where two types of surgery on offer. One was an angioplasty, where a catheter is inserted into an arm artery or groin artery and fed to heart vessels, It can inflate to open up arteries and has a camera giving constant visual feedback. A dye containing gadolinium is then introduced via the catheter, which shows the flow through various vessels to identify a site for inserting a stent.

The problem here for me and many others is that it is highly toxic and destructive to the kidneys, brain and other organs which would have completely shut my kidneys down and led to dialysis for life. So no thanks.

A triple bypass, where veins are cut from legs and used to replace clogged arteries, again the dye would be used, so no thanks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadolinium Furthermore, the transplanted veins which then behave like arteries, are subjected to the same problem with platelets causing narrowing, so it’s a buy some time operation rather than a remedial intervention.

My decision appears to have been a reasonable call: https://www.verywellhealth.com/do-angioplasty-and-stents-prolong-life-4021221
https://www.acc.org/latest-in-cardiology/clinical-trials/2014/09/13/15/11/courage

One of the patients I met was happy to show me his scars on his legs, where is veins were removed and chest where his rib cage was prized apart. He also shared his concerns that he was still having angina pains after his surgery. Yet tried his utmost to convince me to go down the same route?

According to a nurse in the ward, over 90% of the population have some issues with clogged arteries, many are a ticking time bomb. One young lady in there had lost two sisters in their 20's to angina attacks and she was in there getting sorted after she experienced the same symptoms.

I asked the surgeon what had they used to do before catheters and the gadolinium dye? He said we gave statins, blood thinners and advise on fish oil supplements--which apparently do clear out fatty deposits. No more cheese (Doh) as this is the wrong type of fats, though not giving up butter, but will moderate it.

Smokers are the main source of inmates in the cardio ward. So Jude has had lectures from me about it.

I was asked which drugs I had been on, and reeled off a long list. He replied: “I would never have given a patient with kidney problems any of those drugs.” And assured me that the drugs he was giving me were completely safe and in his words, did not enter the kidneys, which I thought was a strange thing to say at the time? I told him that I would be researching all of the drugs when I went home.

At least someone had now confirmed my suspicions that drugs I had been prescribed for high blood pressure had caused further decline in my renal function. I have no doubt that most of the damage done to my kidneys was because of the drugs prescribed by my GP’s and renal consultant.

Apparently my heart is now operating at 38% ejection fraction.

Normal ejection fraction is (EF= 55-60%). Article on this: https://myheart.net/articles/heart-function-including-ejection-fraction-ef/

The drugs prescribed by the cardiologist were implicated in causing renal failure and premature deaths. He had lied to my face and was obviously very good at it!

Betablockers for example have caused over 800,000 deaths in 5 years in Europe alone. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1952818/Betablockers-have-caused-800000-deaths.html

My experience was that my fingers and toes would go blue, then turn white, with oxygen sats down to 72 about 30+ minutes after taking bisoprolol and this would subside over several hours.

Aspirin damages kidneys! https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10643705/

Statins damage kidneys!

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5874483/

I discussed with the cardiologist that the heart attack came while out walking in very cold damp air. Felt like I was breathing in acid, which was burning my lungs, followed by crushing pain in my chest, pain down left arm was excruciating and pain in jaw, with swollen glands in throat. I told the cardiologist and asked if it was common to have an attack in cold damp weather? He said yes it certainly is and is very common.

Confusing anomalies

1. For several months I had reduced the amount of water that I was drinking. \i was drinking a huge amount on the advice of Doctors, consultants and nurses, who advised me to drink plenty of water consistently. How much is too much and what damage was I doing by drinking several litres a day on top of beverages?

2. I had been drinking Kefir, which is a fermented full fat milk. Prior to heart attack, I was consuming Kefir, which is a bacterial and yeast culture made from whole milk. I guess I was probably causing the inflammation by overloading with bacteria, good or bad it get's into the blood by releasing it's waste products through the intestines. Add to this the lactic acid in kefir and it's a possibilty in understanding why I got into trouble. Especially when I'm lactose intolerant. I thought that the bacteria and yeast would have rendered the milk harmless to me, guess I got that wrong.  

Ironically, I wrote to Lucyane on the 5th of Dec telling her I had been sleeping at 3.8 degrees to see what would happen and decided to revert back to 6.5 degrees as was experiencing leg cramps, poor sleep, feeling cold in bed and going bathroom too much


Beta blocker Experience: Letter to Dr

Dear   Dr xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: 27 December 2019 13:27

I have been getting some odd circulation issues that occur after taking my morning medications, which are getting progressively worse each day, with hands changing colour as if all blood has been drained from fingers. Numbness and tingling in toes and fingers. Looks like Raynauds Syndrome.  Also getting odd heart beats intermittently. All of these symptoms ease off later in the day and none return after evening meds. So logically, it is a drug that I take in the morning, so after quick research, it does appear to by bisoprolol fumarate that is causing the problems and I will not be taking this medication again. I do remember having problems with a betablocker in the past and had to stop taking the drug. 

It also appears to negatively affect renal function, which the hospital cardiologist assured me it wouldn't. "

Summary

The acute effects of bisoprolol 10 mg i.v., a new beta1-selective adrenoceptor antagonist, on heart rate, mean blood pressure (mBP), glomerular filtration rate (GFR), para-aminohippuric acid clearance (CPAH), sodium clearance, urine volume and plasma renin activity (PRA), were studied in 6 patients with essential hypertension. Heart rate decreased by 23%, mBP remained unchanged, and GFR decreased by 14% and CPAH by 23%. PRA was depressed on average by 25%. Urine volume and sodium clearance also declined by 9 and 13%, respectively, but the changes were not statistically significant. The fall in heart rate was significantly correlated with that in GFR and CPAH. Changes in GFR were correlated significantly with those in CPAH. The acute changes in renal function induced by bisoprolol are considered to be due to a reduction in cardiac output and increased systemic vascular resistance."

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00870997

Possible Treatments

Viagra

https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-014-0185-3

Giannetta, E., Feola, T., Gianfrilli, D. et al. Is chronic inhibition of phosphodiesterase type 5 cardioprotective and safe? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. BMC Med 12, 185 (2014) doi:10.1186/s12916-014-0185-3

“R E S EARCH  A R TIC L E  Is chronic inhibition of phosphodiesterase type 5 cardioprotective and safe? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials Elisa Giannetta1 , Tiziana Feola1 , Daniele Gianfrilli1 , Riccardo Pofi1 , Valentina Dall’Armi2 , Roberto Badagliacca3 , Federica Barbagallo1 , Andrea Lenzi1 and Andrea M Isidori1* Abstract Background: The myocardial effects of phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5i) have recently received consideration in several preclinical studies. The risk/benefit ratio in humans remains unclear. Methods: We performed a meta-analysis of randomized, placebo-controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the efficacy and safety of PDE5i on cardiac morphology and function. From March 2012 to December 2013 (update: May 2014), we searched English-language studies from MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and SCOPUS-selecting RCTs of continuous PDE5i administration that reported cardiovascular outcomes: cardiac geometry and performance, afterload, endothelial function and safety. The pooled estimate of a weighted mean difference between treatment and placebo was obtained for all outcomes using a random effects model. A test for heterogeneity was performed and the I2 statistic calculated. Results: Overall, 1,622 subjects were treated, with 954 randomized to PDE5i and 772 to placebo in 24 RCTs. According to our analysis, sustained PDE5 inhibition produced: (1) an anti-remodeling effect by reducing cardiac mass (−12.21 g/m2 , 95% confidence interval (CI): −18.85; −5.57) in subjects with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and by increasing end-diastolic volume (5.00 mL/m2 ; 95% CI: 3.29; 6.71) in non-LVH patients; (2) an improvement in cardiac performance by increasing cardiac index (0.30 L/min/m2 , 95% CI: 0.202; 0.406) and ejection fraction (3.56%, 95% CI: 1.79; 5.33). These effects are parallel to a decline of N-terminal-pro brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) in subjects with severe LVH (−486.7 pg/ml, 95% CI: −712; -261). PDE5i administration also produced: (3) no changes in afterload parameters and (4) an improvement in flow-mediated vasodilation (3.31%, 95% CI: 0.53; 6.08). Flushing, headache, epistaxis and gastric symptoms were the commonest side effects. Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggests for the first time that PDE5i have anti-remodeling properties and improve cardiac inotropism, independently of afterload changes, with a good safety profile. Given the reproducibility of the findings and tolerability across different populations, PDE5i could be reasonably offered to men with cardiac hypertrophy and early stage heart failure. Given the limited gender data, a larger trial on the sex-specific response to long-term PDE5i treatment is required. Keywords: Phosphodiesterase-5, Heart failure, Hypertension, Endothelial function, Cardiac remodeling, Cardiac hypertrophy, Erectile dysfunction, Sildenafil, Pulmonary hypertension “

Case history brief: Viagra for Angina  (Author unknown) 

Sep 01, 2018 I was diagnose with clogged arteries over a year ago.  I even had a stent put in because one of my arteries was ecluded.  I still had stable angina every time I did some for of cardio activity or is I ate something with sodium.  I started using Nitroglycerin patches and even have the pills just in case my angina episode occurs.  

I had a date and I read online that you can't take viagra and any nitrates cause it can drop your blood pressure really low.  So I stopped using my nitroglycerin for about 48 hours so I can take the Viagra.  I noticed that I wasn't having chest pains a few hours after I took the viagra.  Then I didn't have angina for over a day.  Once I felt a little chest pain, I took another viagra and no angina.  I've been taken viagra for over 2 weeks and no angina.  I even have been doing cardio with no chest pain whatsoever.  I told my cardiologist this, but she says that it was not good and I should stop immediately and start using the nitrates again.  But she didn't give me a good reason to stop.  I have no angina whatsoever.  I was wondering has anyone else tried this?  If so, have you found any pros or cons?  I can't find anything and I've read that viagra was originally to prevent angina.  I want to keep taking the viagra but I don't want to damage the heart either,  Help please.  Thanks

Source: https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=42&m=4059786

Welcome to Inclined Bed Therapy

We do hope that you enjoy your stay here and that you find this information helpful.

Do check out the testimonials in the top menu, along with watching the video interviews with Andrew explaining, in detail, how his exiting sleep discovery began in 1994.

If you have something to share or a question to ask, Andrew will be happy to help. If you have been using IBT Please write your testimonial and share your experience to help others realise their own health benefits.

Consider helping in this important research by reporting back to us via email or in the forum.   andrewkfletcher AT gmail.com

Help to spread this IBT message by sharing your experience with friends and family.

Kind regards

Andrew

Getting into inclined bed therapy by Mike Zalben Choiropractic Healing Arts

Getting into the nitty gritty of Inclined Bed Therapy by Mike Zalben Zalben Chiropractic Healing Arts 

So today we are going to talk about the nitty gritty of Inclined Bed Therapy, which is not to be confused with an adjustable bed that keeps you pretty level with your lower body, but let’s you raise your upper body. Even those adjustable beds that let you raise your lower and upper body.

What we are talking about is getting you on a complete incline.
So we are making this video because I keep going over all of this with all my patients and so hopefully this will answer every-bodies questions and really drive home the importance of inclining your bed.
Inclining your bed, we are talking about raising the head end of your bed about six inches so that you have a five degree incline.
Why is that important?

That is the degree, the five degree incline. That’s the number, five degrees that allows your body to continue to circulate fluids, blood, plasma, gasses. Anything in your digestive tract, while your sleeping.

And this was proven by an engineer in England, who just looked at a tree one day and realised how fluids and nutrients get from the roots up to the leaves. He figured this out, did an experiment where he proved that it’s the fluid that come up to the lungs that we breath out carbon dioxide and water as moisture and that changes the density of the fluids so that they circulate.

Trees do the same things. The leaves of the tree are the lungs, so that the moisture comes off, just like the moisture comes out of our lungs, so that denser nutrient filled plasma or fluid goes down and then comes back up.

So, the single greatest thing that I have done for my health is inclined my bed six inches, raising it up six inches to get a five degree tilt.

Nothing I have done has made a bigger impact on my health than this.

Now you know, you talk about body hacks, everyone is talking about body hacks, hacking the body these days. This is the greatest hack of all.

You don’t have to do anything except sleep and watch out for the benefits.

Though when I was learning about this, the engineer in England said that he is treating some really serious diseases with this simple hack. And I couldn’t believe it and he was talking about helping people with multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's and end stage aids patients who have horrible problems with diarrhoea, which is what usually kills them. And he was talking about these end stage aids patients actually stopping the diarrhoea by inclining their beds.

So these were fantastic claims and I couldn’t believe it so I Said, I’m going to try it and my Wife and I tried it together and it’s undeniably helping us.

“How much does it cost?” It costs like literally nothing, like and bed raisers are like 10 to fifteen bucks on Amazon.
And I spent something like 25 dollars on some bed raisers because they can hold extra weight and they don’t break down after a couple of months like some of the cheap ones do. But this costs literally nothing, it’s so easy to do and the health benefits are mind boggling.

Your digestion will improve, Your assimilation so your digestion is the break down of food, your assimilation is the body’s uptake of those nutrients and the elimination is your body getting rid of those.
All three of those processes are radically turbocharged by simply elevating the head of your bed.

And of course this was discovered when they entered the Pharaohs sleeping chambers. The pharaoh thousands of years ago slept on an inclined bed and it’s also in the hieroglyphs in the pyramids and when they saw the person on an incline, they knew the person was sleeping and when they were flat, they were dead.

“oh-- look at that well look to see if anyone that raises their bed and hear what they are experiencing”

Yes and if they have any questions, feel free to contact me and I hope that this has answered some of them.
But the most important thing you can do for your health, the simplest thing you can do for your health is to get your bed raised up.
Totally different than an adjustable bed right, we are inclining the whole bed and not just raising the head.

“ And if anyone has any hacks they want us to myth bust or prove, we will be happy to do that”
Absolutely.
“Just let us know in the comments, thanks guys”.

Doctor Richard Massey Talks about his experience using Inclined Bed Therapy on One Radio Network

Patricks Radio Staiton Website  http://oneradionetwork.com

Transcript:

Read more: Doctor Richard Massey Talks about his experience using Inclined Bed Therapy on One Radio Network

Inclined Bed Therapy Discussion Raconteurs News Erectile dysfunction fertility fibromyalgia sciatica

Discussion about the effects of gravity on circulation and how sleeping on an inclined bed raised to a five degree head end up angle positively alters a wide range of medical conditions, including erectile dysfunction, infertility, sciatica, fibromyalgia.
Andrew explains how gravity is not a forse we struggle against, but a force that helps to drive our circulation. This changes everything we thought we knew about human physiology, especially when we are sleeping.
Inclined Bed Therapy is taking off around the World.

Join the IBT revolutuon and test it for yourself

Interview with Andrew K Fletcher, by Raconteurs News Presenters Andy Young and Jason Holmes.

Guess you didn't know that Ancient Egyptians slept this way? Yes inclined beds in museums around the World suggest that flat bed rest was not a thing of the past.

The Surprising Benefits of Inclined Bed Therapy by Dr Mercola

Dr J.P. Torre is asking for people to test Inclined Bed Therapy In a Free Online Trial Please Join This Important Study. IBT Study

Dr J.P. Torre is conducting an Independent Review of Inclined Bed Therapy. He is asking for people to join his online study. Please Help by sharing your IBT experience with him.

This is very exciting and a long awaited breakthrough.

 

"- There are convincing facts about IBT including NASA research and it is certainly intriguing that ancient Egyptians slept inclined.

- There are numerous reports that Inclined sleeping has resulted in health and well being improvements.

- It is important to explore ideas that come from outside the direct medical or pharmaceutical community.

- Raising the head of a bed can be easily done for free.

- If IBT theory is correct the impact on health care spending could be substantial."

Dr Torre wants to include data from people already using IBT.

Here is your chance to help him understand more about how IBT has affected you. He does not need your personal details if you wish to remain anonymous.

 ​

When IBT theory is proven independently by a Doctor, it would undoubtedly provide a simple cost effective way to treat or prevent many serious conditions that today can only be treated with drugs. Health Services Finances, currently directed on drug based treatments, could be redirected towards research, to improve public health.

 

In order to prove IBT theory more studies and data is urgently required and this is an opportunity to do just that!

​

We hope you are interested in assisting in data gathering to support either the validation or invalidation of IBT, 

 

The More people that are participating, the stronger the conclusions of the study will be !"

You don't have to be sick to join either, Dr Torre is researching a wide range of physiological changes and is interesting in seeking solutions to help prevent medical conditions and boosting your health and fitness also.

Instructions on filling in form.

 

Step 1.  Fill in the form.

2. Make a copy of your form entries in a text document as a fail safe.

3. Check the "I Am Not Robot" Submit form when all required fields are completed.

4. If Form fails to display a thank you page after submitting. Wait 30 seconds and resubmit.

5. If form fails and you need to refresh page. Copy and past your details in again using the text document you created and resubmit.

This is the screen you will see when you form submission goes through successfully

 

Link to Dr Torre's Survey Form:     https://www.yourmedicalresearch.com/inclined-bed-therapy

Andrew Fletcher - Benefits of Inclined Bed Therapy. What Did the Ancient Ones Know? Veritas Radio with Mel Fabregas

S y n o p s i s This is probably one of the most important interviews you will hear in a long time dealing with health benefits. You have heard me say that oftentimes the simplest strategies pay great dividends. Getting sensible sun exposure and grounding to the earth are two examples.

But what if I told you that sleeping on an incline is another? Have you ever wondered who told us that laying flat is the correct way to sleep? Who decided this was correct and why are we accepting this unqualified flat bed wisdom?

I've never though about it before. Have you? I sleep flat because my parents slept and their parents before them I guess. While few have heard of it, and sleeping on a horizontal surface is a well-established norm, raising the head of your bed 6 to 8 inches so that you're sleeping on a 5-degree incline may have a number of benefits, including:

Improving blood circulation Boosting metabolism Improving glymphatic drainage from the brain Improving immune system function Improving respiratory function Easing symptoms associated with Alzheimer's, diabetes, glaucoma, migraines, multiple sclerosis, sleep apnea, acid reflux, edema, varicose veins and more.

In reference to the image above: Inclined Bed of Queen Hetepheres I (2575-2528 B.C) : the queen would have slept on her side with her cheek resting on the headrest. A foot-rest, decorated with a gold and faience design of stylized plant motifs, both served as decoration and prevented her from slipping down (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston).

The constant force of gravity has played a central part in the evolution of life on earth and is a major component of our physical environment. Man was designed or has evolved to function in the upright position in the earth gravitational environment. Microgravity induces a vast array of changes in our organism:

Bone Loss : bone mineral density decreases; Muscle Atrophy : skeletal muscles lose both mass and strength; Fluids Shift : bodily fluids shift from the lower to upper extremities causing health problems such as increased intracranial pressure (linked to migraine headaches and strokes), cognitive issues, and sensory problems such as impaired smell, taste, and vision (mimic age-related macular degeneration). Immunological effects : inhibited cell-mediated immunity, reactivation of latent viruses, and altered or decreased production/activation of almost all types of immune cells and proteins.