NASA Study Eyes Impact Of Bed Rest On Health

Houston, TX (AHN) - The value of bed rest on human health will be the subject of a four-month study by NASA scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

Participants will stay in a special research unit for the duration of the study and eat a controlled diet.

During the first phase of the study, which would run between 11 to 15 days, participants would live a somewhat normal life in terms of daily routine and activities. They would be regularly tested to find out the condition of their bones, muscle, heart, circulatory system, brain, nervous system, inner ear balance, nutrition and ability to battle infections.

For the second phase, which would last 90 days, participants would be prone most of the time, but tilted slightly downward with their feet higher than their head. They must be awake for 16 hours and asleep for the remaining eight hours, induced by lights out. Again, during this phase, they would undergo through a battery of medical tests.

The third phase, the last 14 days, would be the recovery period in which the participants would slowly return to a normal daily lifestyle. Medical exams similar to those during the first two phases would also be made.

NASA's criteria for study participants are that they must be non-smokers and healthy with no cardiovascular, neurological, gastrointestinal or muscoloskeletal ailments.

A 2007 NASA study found that intense but short exercise sessions help women who need bed rest to remain strong and recover faster. The test was conducted at Ball State University in Indiana to help NASA come up with modules that make up for the strength and muscle loss experienced by female astronauts on long-term space missions.