Help to sleep

[Joao Paulo Carvalho <joaocarv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Do you need help to sleep ?  Then see article below :

Toasty Toes May Help You Fall Asleep

  September 22, 1999

  Has anyone ever told you to put on socks when you go to bed? Did they tell you
it would help you fall  asleep? Now there is evidence that there is some truth
to this advice.

 Researchers at the Chronobiology and Sleep Laboratory in Basel, Switzerland,
 reported in the September 2, 1999 issue of the journal Nature (vol. 401, pages
36-37)
 that the degree of blood vessel dilation of the hands and feet are the best
predictors for rapid sleep onset. The dilation of the blood vessels
("vasodilation") in the hands and feet increases the amount of heat loss. This
heat  loss causes a redistribution of heat throughout body and is thought to
cause changes that prepare people for sleep.

In the experiment, the Swiss researchers did NOT ask people to wear socks to
bed. Rather, they examined the relationships between hand/feet temperature, core
body temperature, heart rate, melatonin levels and the time it took men to fall
asleep. The data showed that the greater the vasodilation of the hands and feet,
the shorter the time that was required to fall asleep.

                It is possible that heating the feet (or hands) provides the
brain with a signal
                that it is time to sleep. The researchers suggest that this
mechanism may
  underlie an old sleep aid: a hot water bottle placed near the feet.
Presumably, the hot water bottle
  warms up the feet and causes vasodilation which results in heat loss. The heat
loss then signals the  brain:

                          "Time to sleep!"

              Not only does this research provide an explanation for why warm
feet may help
              people fall asleep faster, but it suggests ways of helping people
with some sleep
              disorders. It is possible that some sleep disorders are related to
problems with
              vasodilation. Perhaps socks, mittens or a hot water bottle would
provide a "jump      start" to the heat loss process and help these people get
to sleep.


 Reference:

 Krauchi, K., Cajochen, C., Werth, E., Wirz-Justice, A., Warm feet promote the
rapid onset of sleep, Nature, 401:36-37, 1999.

--
Cheers ,
   +----| Joao Paulo de Carvalho   |------ +
   |         joaocarv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx     |
   +--------| Salvador-Bahia-Brazil |------+