Dr.
Harvey mordoski pointed to two pictures on the wall to greet a visitor to a sleep clinic and said, \"Do you want to know the best surface of sleep?
This is a good one.
\"These pictures are pictures of astronauts sleeping on the Mir space station, where zero gravity floats.
So, how much does this special sleep aid cost?
\"Millions of people,\" said the president and medical director of the Sleep Disorders Clinic with a deep belly smile.
Moldofsky, an honorary professor at the University of Toronto School of Medicine, studied with NASA in his 1990 s.
But a weightless snooze is like forcing yourself to take a nap before going to bed and looks tough.
\"Many astronauts can\'t sleep well at all,\" he said . \" He pointed out that they go around the Earth every 90 minutes-for you and me, a whole day-sunrise and sunset.
The well-known international expert was asked to evaluate sleep aids for our Earthlings and turned out to be a \"show me the data\" person who said there was little scientific research to support most of the research.
Mattress must be the key.
But when asked what he was using, mordoski shrugged his shoulders and said, \"I just bought one.
\"You lie down,\" he explained . \"
\"The Clinic and Research Department, the Center for Sleep and time biology, the bypass specialty brand bed such as Select Comfort (
Adjustable air chamber on each side), Tempur-Pedic (body-
Forming of memory foamand Duxiana (
Small spring in layer)
, In favor of conventional coils-
Spring mattress.
Some patients in the clinic slept too deep and they wanted to buy a bed.
But Moldofsky said they soon realized they slept well because they were not at home, no children were crying and no dogs were jumping in bed.
The bottom line, he added, is to find a comfortable mattress.
On the other hand, professional pillows can be supported by some science.
Moldofsky says our elderly population is suffering from more arthritis, especially in the back and neck.
So there\'s a lot of medical interest in how to keep our spine aligned while we sleep.
One of Moldofsky\'s former research partners, retired rheumatism scientist Dr.
Hugh Smythe helped develop the shape of the sleeping pillow.
It has a weakening edge that gently slides between your head and shoulders to better support your neck.
Medical stores are sold for about $75;
There are many similar products.
But full alignment of the spine doesn\'t mean you won\'t stare at the ceiling for hours, don\'t know where you put your keys, and why the guy who works is such a jerk.
Some people try to use the machines that play the sound of the waves on the beach to distract themselves, heavy rain or \"white noise\"-a combination of the same number of sound frequencies, it sounds like a soothing, stable \"who \".
\"There may be something about this, but it has to be studied,\" Moldofsky said . \" He added that he tried to convince enough research subjects to bring home a sound.
Other products claim to use light to make the body work properly so that sleep arrives on time.
They include light boxes and illuminated alarm clocks that mimic sunrise and sunset.
Moldofsky said: \"Some people are programmed to sleep on time, both genetic and environmental . \" This can cause serious damage to their lives.
Sleep is suppressed by light-
He added that the induction of melatonin in our brains can be used to change our internal clock, but it is not known whether it represents a real insomnia warrior.
At the same time, many people with a Starbucks cup as big as their head and a BlackBerry transplanted to their hands are looking for sleep.
\"Why do people not sleep well?
Time famine-there is not enough time to do all the things you need to do, \"said mordoski with a shrug.
He said that there are many reasons for insomnia other than lifestyle and caffeine use, so people who really have problems should go to the doctor.
Before Science invents a perfect sleeping machine, be careful of the person who sleeps.
\"My favorite ad is the mattress approved by NASA,\" Moldofsky finally laughed.
\"Will NASA put one of the mattresses in space to float with astronauts?