Sleep in Space
I read a very interesting article recently about sleep in space. Now you might think, "Well, who really cares what sleep in space is like, I only care about what sleep on earth is like!". By learning how the body can adapt to these situations we can see how it works and hopefully crack the code for the rest of us.
It has been well known that sleep in space is quite complicated. From the article:
At present, shuttle and space station crews are given sleeping pills but little data is available on how this enforced sleep compares to normal sleep on earth. Talk about your jet lag. You can pass over time zones in about 15 minutes!!!
The researchers are using a non-traditional method (not EEG or brainwaves) but ECG (or heart waves) using a device called the Cardiac Adapted Sleep Parameter Electrocardiogram Recorder (NASA PDF file) or CASPER.
What is amazing is that our internal biological clocks can actually deal with this situation for about 100 days and then it really gets out of whack. Although it is not the same, for those of you business travelers (we call you road warriors) this data may have some real value. Check out my article here on WebMD about Sleep and Business Travel.
Related Topics: Get 10 Tips for Better Sleep, Naturally, Fix Your Sleep, Improve Your Health
Technorati Tags: sleep, space shuttle, sleep patterns
It has been well known that sleep in space is quite complicated. From the article:
"There is no gravity to keep you in the bed and even worse, your system has to cope with 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets in a 24-hour day. Disturbed sleep isn't refreshing and leaves flight crews feeling sleep-deprived and less able to concentrate," he added.
At present, shuttle and space station crews are given sleeping pills but little data is available on how this enforced sleep compares to normal sleep on earth. Talk about your jet lag. You can pass over time zones in about 15 minutes!!!
The researchers are using a non-traditional method (not EEG or brainwaves) but ECG (or heart waves) using a device called the Cardiac Adapted Sleep Parameter Electrocardiogram Recorder (NASA PDF file) or CASPER.
What is amazing is that our internal biological clocks can actually deal with this situation for about 100 days and then it really gets out of whack. Although it is not the same, for those of you business travelers (we call you road warriors) this data may have some real value. Check out my article here on WebMD about Sleep and Business Travel.
Related Topics: Get 10 Tips for Better Sleep, Naturally, Fix Your Sleep, Improve Your Health
Technorati Tags: sleep, space shuttle, sleep patterns
