Inclined Bed Therapy

Thanks to Ken Uzzell from frex yahoo forum I've been doing Inclined Bed Therapy. I originally started because I was looking for a low cost and effective way to help to detox but now that I've been doing it, I can say it helps with posture or back problems as well and I can see that it may help to detox as time goes on.

I'm using old books at 4 1/2 inches.


Here is a quote from Ken who is a trustworthy source of info


"Yes, the benefits of Incline Bed Therapy are beyond awesome.

When we sleep at night, even in a normal horizontal position, we remove the compression aspect of gravity on our spinal discs. They will rehydrate and absorb fluid and become slightly plump again. A bit like putting air into a deflated balloon.

To understand how this is important to us, and why IBT works so well, to the effect of curing wheel-chaired patients with nerve injuries requires us to understand a little about the spine and nerves.



The spinal nerves exit the spine via half circle openings in the top and bottom of each vertebra call Intervertebral foramen. The distance between the top and bottom foramen is regulated by our spinal discs.

As we age the spinal discs that manage this most important task for us loose their ability to rehydrate as well as they did when we were in our youth. When we are in an upright position, gravity is compressing these discs, and by the end of the day they have lost a little of their hydration and plumpness and the space in the foramen narrows, thus risking putting stress and pressure to the exiting spinal nerves.

When we sleep inclined, not only is the pressure reduced so the disc can rehydrate, it is reversed and a slight traction comes into play opening the spine up. IBT will gently pull the vertebra apart which means more fluid will enter the spinal discs and far better cushioning and distance is maintained between the vertebra. Over time, (6 months +) its a bit like getting a new backbone.

The body can heal and rebuild the nerve system much easier in this state of spinal lengthening. It can even help rebuild damaged discs and damaged nerves (no surgery needed). Thus we see some reports of wheel-chaired patients seeing their back and spine heal to the point they can throw out the chair and get a normal life again.

And to think we get all this for free :-)))

Enjoy your new back and spine! So long as you keep yourself inclined 4 inches to 8 inches your entire body and all the functions in it will continue to serve you well past your 100's

And we haven't even gone into the detox and heart value and the many other almost miraculous aspects IBT provides.

Professional health services aren't going to push IBT. I puts many health services out of work for its ability to restore health to the entire body and also helps to optimizes all system of the body.

I can't think of anything more important or valuable for people to know and utilize.

We don't want to go too high an incline with IBT otherwise we loose the myofascial trauma reduction effects IBT provides.

While the spinal traction is low and mild, it posses no threat or stress to the body, and the body can relax and "let-go" very easily. If we incline our beds too much, then the traction increases and a level of stress is introduced to the body and muscles have to slightly tighten to maintain skeletal integrity. We loose much of the benefits of the zero stress traction.

I have found 4 to 7 inches is perfect for my damaged back (nolonger damaged, it repaired itself :-) ... 8 inches and above is getting a bit too much for me and very slight stresses come into play. Currently my bed is set to 4 inches and this is where I have left it for over 12 months now.

Like most "real" healing arts, we are all going to be a little different and will find our own level of best comfort."

Sincerely,
Ken Uzzell
http://frex.com.au

more info = http://www.electroherbalism.com/Naturopathy/Therapies/MiscTherapies/Inclined_bed_therapy.html

After climbing 2132m high moutain today (fresh air is really awesome!) i've just started my regeneration program with remineralizing my body again, violet ray therapy, hot cold therapy and applying massage hammer on my back, but inclining my bed for a few inches is a very welcome- but the last thing i will do today. The info couldnt had better timing, tnx.

you incline the foot of the bed, correct?

i have a pinched nerve in my lower spine. the level of pain there is extremely mild. on some days its just a persistent annoyance.

Ive been doing this but not with any of this in mind. But sounds good...

Thanks JDP! We're going to try setting this up this weekend in our bedroom.

LawOfThelema said:

you incline the foot of the bed, correct?

No, the head. Nenah Sylver recommends this in her Rife Handbook, as well. She also got it from Ken Uzzell. That's the only reason I can answer that question.

I've been mulling over doing this since I bought Nenah's book but am a little worried about strain on the bedframe. Esp. since I have a Tempurpedic mattress and it's pretty heavy. Much heavier than a normal mattress/box springs.

rdk, have you found that there's any concern about breaking the bedframe?

Also, just curious...how do you sleep? Side, back, stomach, etc. Have you done research or heard what's the healthiest sleeping position?

Huh, oh i thought we were talking about inclining the foot so that your head is slightly below your feet.

J987, I thought the same. Amazing! No wonder I like sleeping on my couch, which has very gradually inclined arms.

whodathinkit, I found this website that has full wedges that go between the mattress and box spring. I also have a very heavy bed, and this might be the answer to strain on the bed frame. Compressing the foam with a very heavy mattress may be a consideration.

http://www.mediwedge.com/index.html

Since it cannot be changed once you purchase, I wonder which would be the best thickness, 4 or 6 inches?

This site tells you how to elevate to lessen strain on the frame:

http://www.electroherbalism.com/Naturopathy/Therapies/MiscTherapies/Inclined_bed_therapy.html

Your welcome hadrion.

LawOfThelema,

My second post above has a link for more info. In it it shows how you raise your head and not your feet as whodathunkit mentioned.

In the link and if you follow the other links in it, it shows that inclined bed therapy besides helping the back over many months, will also help with circulation disorders such as varicose veins, MS, Parkinson's, heart disease, memory issues, psoriasis, detox, etc..

While I don't know how well it works for all these other conditions, I felt I should make that statement for those that won't see my link above.

hope this helps


whodathunkit,

I own a cheap alternative to the Tempurpedic bed. No problem with stressing the bed frame here. However, if you are worried, you can do a little building and build wedges or as was posted buy some wedges to add to the boxspring.

By the way, regarding memory foam mattresses what they fail to tell you is that NASA stopped using them because they are toxic to breath the fumes. Very toxic IMO. Been using them for 11 years now but wish I went with latex or wool mattress. You may wish to think of buying a mattress wrap. Some info = http://www.offgassing-mattress-wraps.com/mattress-wraps.htm

Here is some info on SIDS and offgassing from mattresses http://www.ebay.com/itm/SIDS-Serendipity-Toxic-Gas-Barrier-Crib-Mattress-Wrap-/150830273973?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item231e2f55b5

I personally use a painters 2 mm plastic tarp to eliminate the offgasing. Then put two very thick comforters on top to almost eliminate the feeling of sleeping on plastic. While it does get hot and while it may not trap as much offgassing as the thicker more expensive tarps ones you buy, I'm happy with it until in a couple years I buy a latex or wool mattress.


I sleep on my back. I don't know the best positions to sleep.

hope this helps

rdkml,
I just realized I posted the same link without seeing yours in your second post. Thank you for posting about this. In addition to lower back disc issues, I have several other issues that they mention on that link. I'm pretty excited about this--next to my hair loss, my spinal deterioration gives me the most problems. I'm not sure if it is related to the connective tissue disease or not.

referring back to basic physics101... inclining at the head of the bed would produce a mg sin-degrees (gravity) force downward on the vertebrae discs wouldn't it? however raising the bed at the foot would be the opposite force, allowing the discs to expand opposing gravitational force we normally experience standing up. can someone clarify?

mistyisland wrote:I'm not sure if it is related to the connective tissue disease or not.

You know, being a flight attendant, you can also experiment with salt or epsom salt and baking soda baths to lower radiation levels if your radiation levels are high. You can google "Hazel Parcells salt and soda" but here is a quote from Dr. Loyd

"The Hazel Parcells salt and soda radiation soak should also be done. Run a bath tub of water as hot as can be tolerated. Add one pound of baking soda and one pound of salt. Sea salt, Celtic salt, or Real Salt are ideal. Soak in the solution until the water cools off. Do this weekly if there has been significant radiation such as CT scans. Avoid CT scans and PET scans and insist on magnetic or ultrasound types of scans. It is rather easy for cancer patients to accumulate enough radiation damage that it becomes much more difficult to regain health." http://www.royalrife.com/cancer.html

dudebro,

I don't know.

rdkml,
I don't fly anymore, but I guess the damage is already there. I've always wondered about the high level of radiation that we were getting up there. The salt baths seem easy enough to do. Thanks for the suggestion.

My favorite baths are alkaline and comprise of Epsom salt, baking soda, borax and sometimes H2O2. You will feel as though just coming out of the womb and being reborn.

I also believe incline therapy is great for people suffering from sluggish liver and gallbladder issues. Take some bitter herbs or ox bile, magnesium chloride or magnesium malate, lecithin, taurine and sleep on your right side.

I am going to try this. Thanks for the info

dudebro wrote:referring back to basic physics101... inclining at the head of the bed would produce a mg sin-degrees (gravity) force downward on the vertebrae discs wouldn't it? however raising the bed at the foot would be the opposite force, allowing the discs to expand opposing gravitational force we normally experience standing up. can someone clarify?

My thoughts exactly, when i put those books under the head side of the bed. The reason for this force is cause center of mass of the human body is slightly in the upper part. But you dont move down the bed cause there is opposite force from friction k*cos(angle)*mg which makes equiriblium. This force is passive so you cant go upwards because of it. But i also think fricition model is highly unlinear in this simplification that's why the legs might make a little stretching force. In other words i think upper body dont want to move down, but legs do.Wouldnt be surpriced if it's optimal the way inclined bed therapy suggests.

I finally put together the incline bed frame that I bought from here

http://www.bedsup.com/

and I have to say it's very cool! I got the heavy duty option with two supports because I have an uber-heavy Tempupedic bed set.

It went together in a little over an hour, and if it wasn't for the fact of the heavy bed, I probably wouldn't have needed any help. The worst was hassling the mattress around. Otherwise, pretty easy-peasy.

The incline frame set right down into the standard bedframe; the mattress & boxspring goes on top of both. I went straight for the 6" elevation since that's where I think I want to be and I don't want to have to fiddle with taking the mattress off and adjusting it higher in the near future. But if I had a regular bed I probably would have started with 4" and adjusted up.

Right after we put it together the whole bed seemed way too high (not just the incline), so I called the company and asked about putting the incline frame by itself straight onto the floor. You can do this. But I found by the time I went to bed last night I was already getting used to the height.

The thing that drew me to this frame is it doesn't put strain on your regular frame like using books/bricks/etc. to elevate might do, and there's no off-gassing like with a foam wedge (had enough of fumes already with my foam mattress).

So if anyone's looking for a sturdy, reasonably-priced way to try incline bed therapy, I highly recommend this frame.

On another note, I slept pretty good last night. My underware did not bunch , my flat sheet did not wind up around the bottom of the bed, and I didn't slide, either. But I have a pretty vicious headache this morning. It's a hangover/toxin type of headache, not muscle tension. I don't really get headaches, anyway. So maybe it's detox.

I'm pretty pleased with this thing (headache notwithstanding), so thought I'd share.

whodathunkit wrote:...and there's no off-gassing like with a foam wedge (had enough of fumes already with my foam mattress).

Thanks for the update. Maybe I'll buy one as my bed is elevated on books.

By the way, regarding the fumes from foam mattresses, it's said, as the mattress ages, there are "more" fumes that are released then when the mattress is new! This was the exact opposite of what I heard all these years. Well, my mattress is wrapped with a painters plastic drop cloth (although one can buy a thicker mattress wrap online for $50 which is said to perform better). I removed the drop cloth and yup, there is a a very large amount of fumes that were trapped inside. So much that is smelled as if it was a new foam mattress.

As a heads up, I highly recommend a mattress wrap or a painters tarp and then put a couple comforters or similar over them so that you can't hear the plastic much, for any foam mattress like tempurpedic.

hope this helps

rdkml said:

By the way, regarding the fumes from foam mattresses, it's said, as the mattress ages, there are "more" fumes that are released then when the mattress is new!

Oy vey. I did hear that but chose to ignore it because I already have a protective mattress cover on my bed for my animals and dislike the "plastic-y" feeling between me and the bed.

How bad is the rattling and whathaveyou with the plastic encasement?

A $2 painters drop cloth with two thick comforters over it is no big deal IMO. There is a slight sound. The biggest problem is the heat.

The $2 painters drop cloth may not perform as well as the $50 thicker mattress wraps but does perform well IME.


Here is some info on the importance. In short, there have been people come down with autoimmune ailments such as say MS and question if it was partly from their foam mattress.

A 15-yr study in New Zealand found that covering mattresses with a toxic gas barrier was100% effective in preventing SIDS within the study group.
Of the 210,000 covered mattresses with this specially-formulated plastic, not a single SIDS death was reported.
In the same period, 870 SIDS deaths occurred on uncovered mattresses in homes and daycare centers.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SIDS-Serendipity-Toxic-Gas-Barrier-Crib-Mattress-Wrap-/150830273973?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item231e2f55b5

Reports of health problems linked to chemicals in new mattresses.
Unlike mattresses of 40+ years ago, mattresses today are manufactured with increased amounts of petroleum based compounds in the form of foams, plastics, and a variety of volatile chemicals (including controversial flame retardants). Research and personal accounts suggest people can become ill by the repeated and continuous exposure to these low level chemicals during the sleep process. This is especially true for people who have lower levels of liver detoxification enzymes known as cytochrome P-450 (thereby allowing chemicals to build up in their blood to higher than normal levels). Health effects caused by petroleum chemical exposure can weaken or damage the immune and nervous system. Autoimmune disorders have also been linked with exposure to petroleum-based chemicals and have been found to be the underlying etiology of many common health problems today (soft tissue damage, organ damage, arthritis, etc). The reports below are from individuals who emailed us to report health problems that appeared after purchasing a new conventional chemically-processed bed. The large number of reports below, along with the immediate improvements in health problems after removing the beds in many circumstances would suggest that more research is needed in the area of commercial bed toxicology and health improvements after switching to natural and organic based beds, mattresses, sheets, pillows, etc.

http://www.chem-tox.com/beds/frame-beds.htm

&

http://www.offgassing-mattress-wraps.com/articles.htm

Dunno about anyone else, but I find it highly annoying that we're finding our beds of man-made materials are toxic just when bedbugs are making their big comeback. :-/ I don't travel much but I live in a townhouse next to some people who do a lot of world traveling. Not terribly comforting, especially now that I'm thinking of buying an organic bed.

Third night on the incline. I slept five hours solid without getting up to go to the bathroom last night. That hasn't happened in quite a while. And it was really solid. I was only able to get the five hours but still feel pretty rested. We'll see if it keeps up.

Ken created a link to help spread the word of inclined bed therapy.

Good info - http://frex.com.au/ibt.html

And again, from everything my belief about what causes hair loss, I'm sure this provides a benefit for hair loss for many people.

I use 6 inches and noticed better improvements than at 4 inches for non hair loss benefits.

Damn, it says if you have any metal or wires installed to your body to use caution which I do at my teeth. Guess I gotta wait till I remove my amalgam, but at least this will help me expedite the procedure.

...Does anyone know the science why inclining at your feet isn't better? Wouldn't that relax your spine even more?

I'm replacing my bed soon and want to try this. Need to find a good frame for it, not to mention a mattress cover that doesn't off-gas by itself. Hell, I assume the frame will off-gas something anyway.

If I imagine having the choice between sleeping on a cave floor or a similar inclined surface, my gut feeling is I would choose the incline with my head at the top. Though that could just be modern conditioning.

It would be interesting to see how the spinal decompression compares to something like Esther Gokhale's 'stretchlying' (https://youtu.be/NCtF9_DuzMU).

The leg vein photos from the Naked Scientists forum are too inconsistent to be convincing. Perhaps it is also necessary to consider pelvic trigger point therapy and a posture encouraging pelvic anteversion (Gokhale, Egoscue, etc?), amongst the usual suspects for healthy living.