CCSVI Procedure for Multiple Sclerosis Vs Inclined Therapy

What I think is based upon 16 years of research into Inclined Therapy and it's positive effects on people with multiple sclerosis with hundreds of people showing remarkable recoveries. Given sufficient time most of the symptoms you have mentioned as improvements can be achieved without any surgery! To add credence to this statement I urge you and others reading this to read through the Inclined Bed Therapy threads and try to find anyone who is not experiencing benefits from I.T. And should you find them, wait 4 weeks and read their later reports.

As to whether surgery has helped to accelerate these improvements we can only rely on the posts from people who have had the same surgery and not been using Inclined Therapy. These can be found in the CCSVI Tracking project. Study these reports and see if the same improvements have been achieved using angioplasty or stent procedures alone. Then weigh up the differences between those who are and those who are not using I.T combined with surgery. This is why I asked for an inclusion in the CCSVI Tracking thread to indicate whether or not I.T. is being used by the posters.

Given the results of the posture poll so far, it is difficult to understand how Neurological damage which is undoubtedly influenced, if not caused by posture can be restored when the posture that initiated it is not addressed. CCSVI and Surgery alone does not explain these non-surgery improvements seen in people on this forum who have tilted their beds and not received any surgical intervention.

Swollen twisted veins in the legs or varicose veins as we call them can be returned to normal looking veins by controlling posture alone. Surgery at best provides a temporary fix with varicose veins, because the surgery does not address what causes them to become varicose veins. More superficial veins will become varicose veins to take the diverted blood flow and it’s inherent high pressure. The swollen veins inside the neck and close to the spine are not disconnected from the same venous that supplies the legs, so there should be no doubt that these abnormal veins in the neck and next to the spine are undergoing the same reconditioning that the chronic venous insufficiency undergoes in the legs using I.T.

Zamboni has argued in an email to me that these veins cannot be restored using posture alone. If this is the case, then CCSVI cannot be the cause of ms! If this isn’t the case and these veins are becoming unrestricted due to avoiding a flat bed, and sleeping on an inclined bed, just like varicose veins have been shown to respond, then and only then can Zamboni’s theory be shown to play a roll in the onset of ms!

Another possibility is that everyone on this forum who is reporting positive results using Inclined Therapy 1. Is either involved in some major conspiracy to prove a layperson is correct about circulation and gravity 2. Placebo effect can be shown to stretch over 11 years of complete ms symptom relief with Terri Harrison. Zamboni argued that placebo couldn’t be entertained as an explanation for 4 months of symptom relief in a video relating to ccsvi procedure. Or 3. Inclined Therapy is bringing about these obvious improvements without surgery and if this is the case, then posture is identified as a definite causal effect and the big finger points at the way we all sleep and sit! CCSVI could indeed be the reason that some people sleeping flat develop multiple sclerosis and many people never develop neurological symptoms using a flat bed.

It would be simple to prove what is happening with regards to CCSVI by people asking for a repeat Doppler scan while laying at an angle, laying flat, sitting up and standing up. These are the parameters that should be tested immediately to determine what if anything is changing in the venous return.

We will have to be vigilant and wait to see if anyone who is about to have these tests will ask for a scan on an inclined platform or bed.

Experts: Sitting too much could be deadly - Boston.com

Experts: Sitting too much could be deadly - Boston.com

It's about time "the experts caught up" I have been researching this for 16 years and proven that posture is very important for maintaining circulation! Without circulation we are dust.

My research involves density changes in fluids from exhaling and constant water vapour loss from the skin and eyes.

Titlting the bed allows gravity to influence the density changes in the blood and in doing so assists the circulation.

Inclined therapy is where a person raises the head of the bed by 6 inches so the whole bed tilts from head to toe.

Human cerebral venous outflow pathway depends on posture and central venous pressure

J Physiol. 2004 Oct 1;560(Pt 1):317-27. Epub 2004 Jul 29.
Human cerebral venous outflow pathway depends on posture and central venous pressure.

Gisolf J, van Lieshout JJ, van Heusden K, Pott F, Stok WJ, Karemaker JM.

Department of Physiology, Room M01-07, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, PO Box 22700, 1100 DE Amsterdam, the Netherlands. j.gisolf@amc.uva.nl.

Internal jugular veins are the major cerebral venous outflow pathway in supine humans. In upright humans the positioning of these veins above heart level causes them to collapse. An alternative cerebral outflow pathway is the vertebral venous plexus. We set out to determine the effect of posture and central venous pressure (CVP) on the distribution of cerebral outflow over the internal jugular veins and the vertebral plexus, using a mathematical model. Input to the model was a data set of beat-to-beat cerebral blood flow velocity and CVP measurements in 10 healthy subjects, during baseline rest and a Valsalva manoeuvre in the supine and standing position. The model, consisting of 2 jugular veins, each a chain of 10 units containing nonlinear resistances and capacitors, and a vertebral plexus containing a resistance, showed blood flow mainly through the internal jugular veins in the supine position, but mainly through the vertebral plexus in the upright position. A Valsalva manoeuvre while standing completely re-opened the jugular veins. Results of ultrasound imaging of the right internal jugular vein cross-sectional area at the level of the laryngeal prominence in six healthy subjects, before and during a Valsalva manoeuvre in both body positions, correlate highly with model simulation of the jugular cross-sectional area (R(2) = 0.97). The results suggest that the cerebral venous flow distribution depends on posture and CVP: in supine humans the internal jugular veins are the primary pathway. The internal jugular veins are collapsed in the standing position and blood is shunted to an alternative venous pathway, but a marked increase in CVP while standing completely re-opens the jugular veins.

Inclinedtherapy I.T. New Group on Facebook

A new group has been set up to discuss the merits of sleeping Inclined by raising the head of the bed six inches or 15 cm’s. Now called Inclined Therapy or I.T.

16 years of research have provided us with concrete evidence that the human body benefits from avoiding flat bed rest! Come and check us out.
Andrew K Fletcher
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&gid=245324668896

Flat Bed Rest The truth is out there!

Someone else has done a search to compare bedrest publications and found the same damning evidence that I did all those years ago.

I suggest you download the pdf and read the whole paper and if you are still unconvinced about the validity of Inclined Therapy, I suggest you conduct your own search of the published papers.





Bed rest: a potentially harmful treatment needing more careful
evaluation
Chris Allen, Paul Glasziou, Chris Del Mar

Ideas about bed rest seem so entrenched that medical
practice has been slow to change—even when faced with
evidence of ineffectiveness. For example, a study of
protocols used after spinal puncture in 1998 found that
more than 80% of neurological units in the UK still
insist on bed rest" despite evidence from 17 years earlier
that bed rest has no value." There are also reports that
bed rest is still being over-prescribed after myocardial
infarction and cardiac catheterisation, and for acute low
back pain."-"
Bed rest after myocardial infarction was prescribed on
the basis of theoretical evidence of the supposed
workload put on the heart, and circumstantial evidence
on the appearance of old and new infarcts."" The value
of bed rest was questioned in 1938 because during the
2 months of forced bed rest more patients died of
pulmonary infarction, uraemia, and pneumonia than of
cardiac complications." Despite recommendations in
1944 for the period of bed rest to be cut to 2 weeks,'"
6 years later standard clinical practice still prescribed
4 weeks or more of bed rest.'' Since that time; largescale
clinical trials have shown that bed rest is
unnecessary,'"''^'''' and one showed that there is
significant danger associated with hospital bed rest after
myocardial infarction.™ In current clinical practice" only
12 h of bed rest is prescibed, with ambuiation in the
ward by day 3.
Rest is often imposed by symptoms (mainly weakness)
rather than the physician, and in that case there is little
choice. We have to distinguish the use of bed rest in the
management of those symptoms (palliation) from its use
to speed recovery (prescribed treatment). Perhaps the
patient is the best judge of the amount of rest required.
Advice given in 1944 seems curiously apt today, "The
physician must always consider complete bed rest as a
highly unphysiologic and definitely hazardous form of
therapy, to be ordered only for specific indications and
discontinued as early as possible".* The indications for
which bed rest should be prescribed, and for how long,
are yet to be defined.
Contributors
Chris Allen did the searches, assembled and analysed the tables, and
wrote the first draft. Paul Glasziou was responsible for the idea and
extracted and analysed the data for the tables. Chris Del Mar concieved
the idea and wrote subsequent drafts.

Effect of head up tilt on cerebral circulation.

Acta Astronaut. 1994 Jul;33:69-76.
Effect of head up tilt on cerebral circulation.

Yoshimoto S, Ueno T, Mayanagi Y, Sekiguchi C, Yumikura S, Miyamoto A, Yajima K.

Dept. of Neurosurgery, Tokyo Police Hospital, Japan.

This study was performed to study the effect of the head up tilt (HUT) on cerebral circulation across the time course (60 degrees HUT for 15 minutes) and across the different angles of HUT (15, 30, 45, 60 degrees HUT for 15 minutes). Cerebral circulation was continuously monitored during 15 minutes of HUT by the carotid Doppler flow meter, the transcranial Doppler flow meter, and the near infra-red spectrophotometer. The results show that the cerebral blood flow decreased during HUT and that the cerebral blood volume decreased initially and then gradually increased. And the magnitude of the effect may have the relationship with the angles of the HUT.

PMID: 11539540 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Why raise the bed six inches at the head end for Inclined Therapy?

An experiment was performed to determine the optimum angle for circulation.

Using a closed water filled loop of tubing with coloured salt solution added at the pillow end and the loop stretched down the bed, the bed was elevated.

The lower elevations in the range of 4-4.5 inches resulted in the salt flowing down one side and the clean water flowing back up the same side. 2 directional flow in one tube while fascinating to watch was not the desired effect.

After raising the bed to 5 inches the downward flow was in the salt added side representing the arteries and the return flow was in the opposite salt-free side representing the venous return or indeed the return flow of the cerebrospinal fluid system or the return flow of the lymphatic system.

this return flow and return is under tension and was observed using soft walled silicon tubing showing clearly how the solutes affect the pressure of the water molecules.

The downward flowing side clearly bulged outwards under the positive pressure induced by gravity, while the return flow water only side was pulled in, indicating that the molecules were placed under tension by the gravity affect on the salt dissolved in water.

Over time this has been born out by many people sleeping inclined, while a 4 inch incline is better than sleeping flat, a 6 inch / 15 cm raise producing a five degree to the horizontal on a 75 inch long bed.

Fascinating history of the bed reveals that the oldest beds know from the ancient Egyptians some 4 thousand years ago were raised by exactly 6 inches at the head end according to a curator of a museum in Boston. USA.

Question is how did they know? Did they observe animals sleeping on an incline and imitated them and then find the benefits? We will never know but it is intriguing.

A Brief explanation of Inclined Therapy

Thanks for experimenting with your bed and deciding to take this further.
This discovery is about density changes in the body fluids from evaporation at the surface of the lungs, sinuses, mouth, throat, nasal cavities skin, eyes and hair follicles.

Any density change at one pint will cause the denser fluids to migrate through the circulation towards the point of exit. The point of exit is predominantly in the urine. To test this a hydrometer was used to test the density / specific gravity of urine produced by my wife (bless her) and me sleeping head down 5 degrees, horizontal, and head up 5 degrees, testing every time we produced urine.

What we found confirmed the theory spectacularly. Flat bed rest lowered the density of urine compared to inclined or head up bed rest, which markedly increased the urine density over normal daily activity. But sleeping head down was stunning. The results with the hydrometer showed that sleeping at a five degree to the horizontal head down angle our urine density over several nights fell to near water density. In other words the dissolved salts, metals, and sugars that normally were excreted in the urine were remaining in the body.

We both developed diarrhoea sleeping upside down or inverted, indicating that our digestive systems were not functioning properly either, the whole experience of inverting for several days was uncomfortable, resulted in headaches, a sense of pressure and a most uncomfortable night, but in the interest of science it needed to be conducted so we did it.

Dissolved solutes in the arteries not the veins move from source of concentration for example the lungs to a sink in this case the kidneys, which filter the solutes from the blood before it enters the return flow in the veins. The denser filtered fluid is then passed into the bladder and excreted in the urine.

The less dense blood can now be pulled back towards the heart from the dragging of solutes or blood molecules that flow down. (for every action there must be an equal and opposing reaction) We cannot say that blood flows down the body towards the feet. This is not possible without it causing the return flow!

Providing the return flow is always less dense than the downward flow the solutes move in the direction of gravity and assist circulation and in doing so ease the burden on the heart. (The opposite to what will be read in the literature).

The literature also recommends raising the legs to address oedema or fluid retention and / or varicose veins.

Clearly from the photographic evidence provided we can see that varicose veins are returned to normal looking veins sleeping on an inclined bed, which fits precisely with the experiment models shown on Youtube and with this new understanding of circulation, yet it contradicts the advice of the physiology literature leaving it in dire need of revision.

Several people during the early pilot studies reported hard lumps in their legs (thrombosis) vanishing without trace. This was verified when an elderly lady who was known to us showed the lump in her leg and on examination after several months the lump was gone..

Again proving that the circulation had increased and the blockage must have been resolved by the improvements in circulation.

Many people reported an increase in warmth compared to sleeping flat, warmer hands and feet whereas a person would normally expect cold feet for an hour or more they found themselves sleeping with their feet outside of the bedding to keep them cooler.

This was also confirmed when helping people with spinal cord injuries, something that has occupied me for several years having met with opposition to conducting a study for people with ms by people saying ms can go into remission which of course is true but for over 11 years in the case of Terri Harrison?

A lot of years have passed since I began this journey of discovery. No more guesswork here!

For those that would like to see this proven or disproved please set up your controlled studies (for which I have been fighting to have conducted for 16 years) as you will not find your results any different to the results that are unfolding and are about to unfold on this forum.

I still believe the circulation in the nervous system is also operating the same gravity dependent flow and return system and this is why people with neurological conditions have found their condition greatly improves by avoiding a flat bed.

Andrew K Fletcher

Inclined Therapy is again helping people with MS.

Dear Foreverspring

Thank you for your updates and for helping others to understand how tilting your bed has helped you.

Hopefully more people will join us and engage us with their own updates and your reports should stir up some thoughts about there being more to this simple therapy than one might think.

Really looking forward to seeing how many more people come back and report changes over the coming months.

Maybe a news team might eventually pick up on what is happening here and take an interest. This certainly would stir up a hornets nest with the medical profession and the charities.

Perhaps it might also lead on to the illusive controlled study that doctors are hiding behind as an excuse not to inform their patients about this simple common sense postural therapy approach.

On the Youtube video, the then senior director of the MSRC said "if it works let's get everyone trying it".

Well it is obviously working and why not because I.T. worked before he said it, and he knew it worked! and so did the director before him! And so did Peter Cardy at the MS Society!

It has taken us a few months to show how effective this therapy is for people with ms and the pilot study reports are confirmed by what is happening to people on this forum using I.T.

So let's do what the MSRC said they would and show people with MS that there is an alternative to drugs that is free, non-invasive and can be conducted in the comfort of our homes.

I have had tears in my eyes today thinking about the people this therapy has helped. Who cares whether hidden agendas from people paid to provide help matter more than helping people to get more out of life when you get results like yours?

So many people have said to me it's a miracle but miracles are one off's this is fully repeatable and to prove it here we are again after all these years providing anecdotal evidence for all to see and because it truly is repeatable do these results really qualify as being anecdotal? Do we really need approval from highly over paid non-contributing obstacles?

Or should we soldier on regardless and shame them into conducting their own studies if only to try to disprove that, which cannot be disproved?

Andrew K Fletcher

IMPORTANT INFLUENZA INFORMATION

IMPORTANT INFLUENZA INFORMATION

My wife and I tilted our bed at the end of 1994, raising it by 6 inches at the head end, 7 inches on a US bed, arriving at the angle by observing circulation improvements at the given angle. Since that day we have remained sleeping on an angle rather than sleeping flat!

My wife and I contracted influenza last year for the first time since 1994, which was a strain that affected all of our friends and family.

This was the first influenza virus that had completely infected us since 1994, although we have had some very mild symptoms lasting one day prior to this, indicating that our immune system is strong enough to fight viral infections. Coughs and colds also were resolved as fast as they arrived when al of our friends and family exhibited the symptoms for days and even weeks, we didn't!

The ancient Egyptians from 4000 years ago slept with their beds tilted by the same angle of five degrees to the horizontal, confirmed by a curator at a Boston Museum who measured their Egyptian bed.

This simple intervention is now known as "inclined bed therapy" or I.B.T. and more recently "inclined therapy" I.T. and has been shown to improve the help of many people with serious irreversible medical conditions over 16 years.

Inclined therapy is also practiced by the medical profession for respiratory infections and respiratory injury, assisting the lungs to function more effectively. Something worth considering when morbidity from the recent swine flu pandemic is caused by secondary respiratory infection leading to multiple organ failure rather than succumbing to the virus directly.

Your first line of defence against becoming infected appears to me at least to be a logical step.

Get your bed elevated at the head end as a preventative measure and use it in case of infection as a powerful FREE non-invasive boost for the immune system.

You may also be pleasantly surprised to find that I.T. assists sleeping, maintains the body temperature evenly, lowers heart and respiration rate and increases the oxygen levels in the blood and so much more!

While a flat bed causes the body temperature to drop by 2 degrees around 4 am, which incidentally is the time that most people die in their beds!

During the Sweating Sickness which killed millions of healthy people in the Tudor Period, throughout Europe. Two guards were placed at the side of an affected persons bed to prevent them from sleeping or laying down flat. This was their only course of intervention for this deadly pandemic that killed an affected person during the same night they contracted the mysterious disease.
These unfortunate people did not have knowledge of bacterium and secondary infections and antibiotics had not been discovered. Yet common sense prevailed.

Following this beds were made shorter and the majority of people slept on a bed measuring 4 feet six inches and spent each night sleeping with their upper body raised in the sitting position.

The fact that the very young were immune indicated a virus rather than a bacterium infection was present and that the children and the older people had antibodies from prior exposure. This is interesting and poses the question, could these children have been exposed to the virus through their parents or even during pregnancy?

Sweating Sickness Symptoms
The symptoms as described by Caius and others were as follows. The disease began very suddenly with a sense of apprehension, followed by cold shivers (sometimes very violent), giddiness, headache and severe pains in the neck, shoulders and limbs, with great exhaustion. After the cold stage, which might last from half-an-hour to three hours, followed the hot and sweating stage. The characteristic sweat broke out suddenly without any obvious cause. Accompanying the sweat, or after that was poured out, was a sense of heat, delirium, headache, rapid pulse, and intense thirst. Palpitations and pain in the heart were frequent symptoms. No skin eruptions were noted by observers including Caius. In the final stages, there was either general exhaustion and collapse, or an irresistible tendency to sleep, which was thought to be fatal if the patient were permitted to give way to it. One attack did not offer immunity, and some people suffered several bouts before succumbing.


A valuable lesson was learned!

But today this lesson gleaned from the tragic deaths of many millions has been forgotten?

Andrew K Fletcher


For more information: google "inclined bed therapy"

Another testimonial for Inclined Therapy

Rainbowdaby said...
VERY WELL DONE Andrew!

I have been using his Inclined bed therapy for the last NINE years and I would never go back to sleeping on a flat bed. When I left the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen I had major problems in my spine, sciatica varicous viens, circulating problems etc. etc. I was taking a bucket full of pain killers. That was EIGHT years ago.

Now at 72 years young. I have not taken any drugs (of any description) in the last SEVEN years. I genuinly feel I have taken total responsiblity of my health. No need to buy expensive health insurance. You have saved me a lot of money and given me a lot of long term happiness Andrew.

I am extremely grateful to you. Keep up the good work!

8:17 AM

Ancient Healing using Inclined Therapy

We appear to have forgotten many ancient treatments and much ancient logic over time, often replacing it with wholly inadequate but more profitable drugs and surgery. In the Late Tudor Period, people slept sitting up due to so many people laying down and not waking again in the morning following the sweating sickness that ravaged Europe killing many millions of people, including some nobility and even a King.

They had no Tamiflu or vaccine to fight the illness, all they had in fact was the power of observation and quickly learned that those that did not lay down somehow managed to survive this lethal unidentified disease. Two guards were placed at a sick persons bed side, presumably to prevent the person from laying flat and sleeping. The guarded person often survived, while the uninformed person lay down and died.

As mentioned before on this thread, the Ancient Egyptians also practiced avoiding sleeping flat, even designing beds to prevent this. We do not know and perhaps never will why they made the beds this way in the first place, but we do know that sleeping on a five degree head up incline was widely practiced from the very powerful right down to the labourers who built the pyramids.

So it is not surprising that the Ancient Chinese, perhaps the most advanced of all the civilisations realised that many conditions were in fact circulation problems.

Multiple sclerosis is now thought to be a problem with circulation by a few who have gone against the unfounded logic that the immune system suddenly decides to attack the nervous system. The idea that blood reflux from the cerebrospinal vein is now thought to be the primary cause of the damage, first introduced by Doctor Franz Schelling, and now proven to be the case by Professor Zamboni and Colleagues who have identified swollen and twisted veins in 100% of patients with ms tested, where controls without ms had no such varicose veins next to the spinal column.

If you do decide to test drive Inclined Therapy, please take photographs of affected areas of your skin and nails so that comparisons can be made during and after 4 months.

If I can help, please do not hesitate to ask.

Andrew K Fletcher

Collapsed Vein and Inclined Therapy.

This should be on the first post.

Following a report from a lady with a collapsed vein in the foot who joined the pilot study and found that her circulation in the foot deteriorated due to the incline rather than improving as many had done. It was quickly realised that in the case of a collapsed vein rather than a swollen vein that decreasing the venous pressure as is the case with varicose veins and oedema, the restriction would be further closed.

A post from someone on a forum who relates to a collapsed vein present from childhood makes this point and for which I am grateful and would like to learn more if possible. I don't think under these particular circumstances Inclined therapy will be of much use to anyone with a collapsed vein without corrective surgery to open up the veins.

This was written a long time ago and reference can be found on the net.

A collapsed vein is rare and should be carefully monitored and anyone who has this condition should not join this study as this study is aiming to cause the veins to be drawn in by changing the pressure inside the veins and increasing the tension in the blood. In the case of a collapsed vein circulation will already be severely restricted so further reductions in the size of the vessel will restrict circulation rather than improve it in this case. If however a vein has been surgically closed for cosmetic reasons, this is not the same as a collapsed vein and in this case should not complicate your experience using I.T.

One other case was a known heroin addict of many years who had severely damaged veins and ulcerated legs. His veins sustained heavy damage from constant injection in the legs and arms. Hi veins were collapsed and responded well to I.T. with the ulcerated skin becoming fully recovered in several months of avoiding flat bedrest.

With this observation in mind, if you suspect or have a confirmed case of a collapsed vein, I.T. may be of some help but you will need to monitor skin colour and pressure test the skin using a finger pressed firmly into the skin and released. The skin should return to normal colour quickly almost instantly responding to the pressure release as your finger is moved away. If this is not the case during Inclined Therapy you may need to consult your doctor to find a remedial solution before returning to I.T. or indeed returning to sleeping flat.

It is also very important to increase the amount of water you drink using I.T. as it has a diuretic effect on the body as waste products are more effectively removed from the blood more water will also be removed along with it into the bladder and will need to be replenished.

Andrew K Fletcher

Comments from Youtube RE: Inclined Therapy

PhatCat6t6 (1 year ago)
I am paraplegic and am always looking? for any and all techniques to reverse my condition.
I will be trying this theory of Mr. Fletcher's and will report on my progress in the months to come.
itsdanny83 (1 year ago)
I got to try this I am a C-6 quad (SCI) going on? 3 years I will let you know how it goes
itsdanny83 (1 year ago)
I have heard this before and this is the kinda of the same thing the doc wont to do to me but with surgery on my neck and skull (to help the blood flow) and he said? that would help out so so much thats crazy
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) Hi Danny Hi Phatcat
There are two threads containing a lot more information about spinal cord injuries including some fascinating case histories at Carecure do a web search to find it.

Please post a diary in The Europe forum at Carecure. This is where? I am conducting a study on spinal cord injuries and your input would be greatly appreciated.

Kind regards Andrew
420sirsmokealot (1 year ago)
Hey, I have been doing this for about a month now and so far? my feet/legs is burning and some times it feels like they are on fire. Is anyone else feeling this?
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) This is good news with spinal cord injury, you are going to feel more pain prior to a gain, this is the way it works. Significant improvements around the 4 months period. Try? to perform any exercise possible while on the incline, repetion rather than anything strenuous. But the increased buring in the legs has been reported many times by people with spinal cord injuries trying the inclined bed. They describe it as having fire ants running over their skin.
daveshorts (1 year ago)
A lot of the reason Andrew is not taken seriously is he has a? theory to go with his bed that is plain wrong.

However an inclined bed may well help people. It is a pity that he is not looking for a more plausible explanation of his results.

For example the effect may well be due to a different forces being applied to the spinal cord when sleeping or various others
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | I have seen far too many results David Not just spinal injury but Parkinson's? disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Psoriasis, Cerebral Palsy, varicose veins oedema, renal failure bing reversed within a few hours of inclining the bed. How does this fit with your interpretation of IBT?
daveshorts (1 year ago)
I do not have an explanation for IBT, all I know is that your theory you are hawking with? IBT doen't fit with millions of observations in physics, chemisty and biology.

This is not to say that IBT does not work, just that your explanation of it is getting in the way of finding this out rigorously.
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | On the contrary it fits perfectly because the theory came before the inclined bed therapy. I wanted to test the theory on the body to see if there was any evidence that the incline had an effect on us. 4 weeks of IBT resulted in a varicose vein on my wife's leg going flat. It had been there for 16 years, used to bulge and ache. When this happened it related perfectly to my experiments. The vein being pulled in flies in the face of? accepted literature.
daveshorts (1 year ago)
That may be the case, however it contradicts billions of other observations made by other people who have properly documented the effect. Large amounts of science has been discovered by people using dubious models, not least electromagnetism.

For a start what have you done in your experiments to rule out the idea that this could just be a placebo effect? If people think something will work, for many conditions, it will? to some extent work.
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove Also had amazing result with a child who has cerebral palsy and unable to? walk up until the age of 12, when after 8 moths of IBT she walked at school for the first time. Possibly placebo?
daveshorts (1 year ago)
It may be placebo, it may have been luck, or it is possible that IBT works, however your theory that? you are basing it on contradicts so many millions of other observations (not just theories) throughout science that no-one is going to take you seriously enough to do a scientific trial so we can find out if it works, if you go on about the theory.
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) Millions of observations? Can you list them?

My theory fits with all observations in physics, biology, chenistry, plant physiology, ocean currents (See atlantic conveyor system) Animal physiology and human physiology! Why does it? fit? Because it is correct!
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove How does your interpretation relate to a decrease in heart rate by 10-12 beats per minute and a decrease in respiration rate by 4-5 breaths per minute in people sleeping at a five degree head? up angle? Everything fits perfectly with my theory which led me to coming up with the question "Why do we sleep flat"?
CeeStyleDj (1 year ago)
What about a craftmatic adjustable bed? been around for maybe 20 years??
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) Totally the wrong posture with a Craftmatic? Bed, having the upper half elevated with feet either level or raised compresses the spine and comprimises circulation.
CeeStyleDj (1 year ago)
I see. Thanks for the? reply.
wildypker19 (1 year ago)
wierd?
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) Placebo effect on spinal cord injury, that's a new one Dave. During many years of research, particularly into multiple scelrosis, we adopted a revert back to sleeping flat cross over? to see if the symptoms would come back, which they did. Oddly enough didn't get many vollunteers willing to give up IBT.
LuisLomeliMD (1 year ago)
Andrew: I'll be making a video in response to your great idea & I'll incorporate other facts. In medicine,? we know that gravity can help us prevent gastric acid from reaching the esophagus and lungs. Patients with heart failure often sleep sitting up. Your idea makes sense because the muscle tone, if body inclined, would be enhanced. The medical orthodoxy, as you know, is full of rubbish.
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove Doctor Lomeli Thank you for taking a look at the video and posting a comment. And thank you also for your kind offer to help by making a video. Please feel free to use any of my work, and photographs in the psoriasis forum of Helen, who incidentally is still improving and set to confirm pilot study results. If you could test my? theory on your patients, those who you feel will benefit most, please come back and let me know your results.

Kind regards

Andrew
oldsharkie (1 year ago)
My wife and I have been sleeping on an inclined bed (8 inches)about 22 months. During this time my blood pressure has dropped from 160/90 to 130/65 (Ave) with the same dose of 50 mg Atenolol. I no longer snore nor have sleep apnea attacks. After many years of taking Flonase for sinusitis I discontinued the medication 6 months ago with little or no sinus problems now. Night time urination has decreased from half dozen times to once a night. I? am 82.
shortstraw88 (1 year ago)
Wow, i never realised that. Thats a cool idea. I might stick some books under the top end of my bed. I? dont have any back problems yet as im only 22 but it could help in the future. Nice vid.
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) Glad you liked the video.

While as you say you are fit and young. You may, like my wife and I find that you do not get the usual bugs that are circulating in the winter, while everyone around? you appears to play host to every conceivable pathogen :)
PeteMoss36 (1 year ago)
This works for hiatal hernia, acid reflux and? bloating as well! I say give the man a Nobel Prize; Bravo!
xfarmxgirlx (1 year ago)
I dont belive this. (I mean actually can't belive this could happen, I? think it is 100% coincidence)
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove I have been working on this important discovery since 1994. This video while important is only the tip of the iceburg

Multiple sclerosis, cot deaths, parkinson's Disease, cerebral palsy, varicose veins, leg ulcer, oedema, blood pressure, all respond? to avoiding flat bedrest.
Google "andrew k fletcher" or "inclined bed therapy"
dangerousdaly (1 year ago)
I have? had severe neck pain for the last 6 years! I have just gone and put two house bricks under my bed and I will post how I get on....
gforgetsmost2007 (1 year ago)
This makes me? want a sloping bed!!
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove Remember, the whole bed slopes from head to toe and is raised 6 inches or fifteen cm's on? a 6 feet 3inch long bed (UK Standard Size) If your bed is a lot longer then you will have to raise the bed up to an extra inch at the head end.

Good luck and thanks for the comment
Alamdar405 (1 year ago)
well Andrew that sure is an amazing discovery, i am writting in from Pakistan where people suffering from MS are very low. But the unfortunate part is that my mother is a patient of MS and this idea would do wonders ... i have my fingers crossed and this is what i will be doing to Make my Mother walk properly again :)

thanks loads and? i wish you success for times to come

Regards,
Alamdar khan
Pakistan
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove Hi Alamdar, Thank you for your comment.
Your mother should respond well to IBT People with MS in general respond within 4 weeks, maybe some moderate improvements at? first which will be followed by more improvements over the following months.

Search terms Multiple sclerosis + "inclined bed therapy" or "andrew k fletcher"
Also google "inclined to sleep inclined" for pilot study results on MS, you will find this group in google groups
AndrewKFletcher (1 year ago) | Remove Hi Alamdar, Thank you for your comment.
Your mother should respond well to IBT People with? MS in general respond within 4 weeks, maybe some moderate improvements at first which will be followed by more improvements over the following months.

Search terms Multiple sclerosis + "inclined bed therapy" or "andrew k fletcher"
Also google "inclined to sleep inclined" for pilot study results on MS, you will find this group in google groups
illmitchjax (1 year ago)
My GF sleeps like this to help her? ME... :)
wheelieblind (1 year ago)
looks like a good? idea
johnbresnik (10 months ago)
I accidentally ran across this concept a couple months ago - was painting my bed base and didn't want to set it back on the rug, so I put a couple 3" blocks under the head. Went to bed and forgot about the blocks - slept through until 5:00 AM -- couldn't believe it - I always get up 2-3 times a night. Then I did research on the Internet and was glad to find your material. Needless to say, my bed is still 3" higher at the head -- many benefits are? showing up, including my wife no longer snoring.
johnbresnik (10 months ago)
Andrew: I left a comment this morning, but it didn't show up. Basically I said that this works for me. I think the main problem will be the "Semmelweis reflex" -- it'll take some time to get past that, but I am now? an "IBT Evangelist" -- I'll do whatever I can to get the word out and promote this revolutionary health improvement concept.
AndrewKFletcher (10 months ago) | Remove Incline your bed to 6 inches at the head end when you are ready. If you could come to the Nakedscientists forum and update us on your progress from time to time and advise anyone you know who has varicose veins to join our? study it would be great. We need 50 people to test this with oedema and / or varicose veins.
Kind Regards

Andrew
johnbresnik (10 months ago)
I will visit that forum to add my input - I've been promoting this concept to my family and friends - some are trying it (don't try it... do it..!). I know of some people with varicose veins and will pass the word along to them. Was surprised to learn that the Egyptians practiced this IBT therapy, but they probably didn't have a name? for it.

Take care and thank you for your dedication to promoting this concept,

John
...............
AndrewKFletcher (10 months ago) Thank you for your help with this John,

There are two giant beds in a fort in Canada I have been informed about. Both are sloping down from head to toe and both can sleep? 12 people. Why did they find this useful and what were they used to help treat or prevent?

Also in the Late Tudor Period The Sweating Sickness killed millions. Why did they place two guards at the bedside to prevent sleep, presumably also to prevent the afflicted from laying down. Those that slept were dead by morning!
xgxexmxmxa (9 months ago)
If this is good for spine injury can it also help? with prolapsed discs in the neck? I am in constant pain with mine.
AndrewKFletcher (8 months ago) There is a strong possibility that this will help with prolapsed disc in the neck. A good way of testing this is to note down when? your worst time is over a 24 hour period. If it is during the night and first thing in the morning after wake up then the answer is this will definately help this condition. How far it will go for each case is anyones guess, but nothing ventured nothing gained and you can always abandon Inclined Bed Therapy if you feel it is not helping but gove it 4 months minimum
Roccia24 (7 months ago)
Andrew,

I have horrible varicose veins and I want to take part in your study if you are still looking for volunteers. I tried to find the info on the naked scientist website and could not find where to contact you. Please respond with a better way to contact you, the website you listed on Earth Clinic did not help me either! Thank you? and I am looking forward to getting started! Candice
AndrewKFletcher (6 months ago) If you go to the nakedscientists forum, then search for varicose veins you will find? our study. look forward to hearing from you Candice

Andrew
midniight (6 months ago) 0
Fuck yea... Thankx brother... I have a best friend whos paralized from the waist down, im going to elevate his bed,? and give this a shot... hopefully he too, will be walking soon i know he can do it. :)
If you want i can document it, and video tape the documentary.... thankx alot tho, i also will try this for myself.
LoveAsh7 (6 months ago) 0
my mom has very bad swollen feet due to diabetes I have? raised her incline with 3 bricks and hopefully this will sort out her problems...great work love shana
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) Hi Shana
Just found your note. Have you noticed improvements? in her oedema? It should be completely gone by now

Andrew
LoveAsh7 (2 months ago) 0
Hi Andrew,
yes we were abroad on holiday and her feet? were badly swollen sleeping normally. So the IBT works.. also I noticed that when she sleeps with the incline she does not snore,..neither does she wake up suddenly
her heart is not struggling. I see it as essential and permanent that she sleeps with an incline bed otherwise her bad health comes back.
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Hi Shana
Thank you for coming back to let us know how your mum is finding sleeping inclined. Her improved oedema report is very useful and if ok, I will add it to the varicose veins and oedema study on Nakedscientists forum?

Would? be great if her doctor could provide us with his / her own observations regarding her improvements. I bet she has stopped getting out of bed so much to empty her bladder, this is another useful bonus. However, she should drink a little more water to compensate. Andrew
aether222 (6 months ago)
Truly the most amazing therapy I have come across, other ones include: Vitazym (digestive and metabolic enzymes, removes scars), Emotion Code and EFT,? HIIT exercises & EWOT, Chlorella, Honey Cinnamon and ACV in low dose, Hypnosis, MMS (Jim Humble) and H2O2, sunlight/sungazing, organic food and avoiding microwaves drugs etc, vitamins antioxidants minerals, QT ME and Qi Gong, Ubiquinol, fish oil.

Any reports of this fixing sleeping problems? (trouble getting or staying asleep, sleep apnea?)
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) Hi Aether222

Sleep related problems? are some of the most responsive to Inclined Bed Therapy, snoring, insomnia, sleep apnea, sleep paralysis are greatly improved. Thank you for the comment

Andrew
Only1moomin (5 months ago) 0
An unsightly varicose vein on my calf vanished after only 4 weeks of Inclined Bed therapy. That was in 1994. It has never returned since, yet had become a problem for 16 years following the birth of our son. My leg used to ache walking up hill. Today I have no pain or aches and leg is normal? with no bulging vericosed vein to be seen.

Eventually you will get the recognition you deserve for all of your research. Long may you continue to help those people who have a mind open enough to test IBT.
sjarvis84 (5 months ago)
can this new therapy help the paralysis due to having Spina Bifida? I've been experiencing new sensations in my back,legs and? sides....would this new therapy help that new sensation go further??
AndrewKFletcher (5 months ago) I see no? reason why it should not help you to regain control over muscles and nerves. Although, I have not had any feedback from anyone trying IBT for this condition and would appreciate very much if you could provide us with some should you decide to try it.
Andrew
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) | Remove Did? you Incline your bed and if so are you keeping a note of your observations? Would love to hear from you.

Andrew
sjarvis84 (3 months ago) 0
I tried it for a month or so and only noticed that my circulation in my lower half was improved...not noticed? any other changes in my condition as a result of inclining my bed.

-Sara
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) Hi Sarah. It was a given that you would notice improvements in circulation. How were you able to determine this were your hands and feet warmer?
4 weeks of inclined bed therapy was never going to be sufficient to effect a recovery. Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis for instance can take 4 months of IBT before it begins to stimulate the nerves. Spinal cord? injury takes longer in most cases, although there have also been some more rapid recovery signs.
Please give it longer & keep a diary.
godofthemiddleearth (3 months ago) 0
In 1997 My husband and I decided to try this method for respiratory? and arthritic condtions that had become much worse with age. Following a few months, we began to notice huge improvements in mobility and pain management and cannot thank you enough for this common sense holistic approach to healing. We will never revert back to sleeping flat and we advise everyone who has a medical condition that could be helped by this method.
Thank you Andrew
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) Thanks for posting about your experiences using IBT. Great to hear? your still sleeping inclined.

I doubt there are many that would revert back to falt bed rest after sleeping inclined.

Thanks
johnbresnik (3 months ago)
This therapy really works -- I've been at 6" now for over six months and the benefits are surprising - too bad the MDs won't tell? people about this -- they need "scientific evidence" that it works first -- so while we wait another twenty years for the "science," millions of people will continue to suffer from various ailments that could be alleviated by simply raising the head of their bed six inches. In the meantime, at least a few people get the benefit and they tell others.
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) Hi John, thanks for sending me the pictures of your modified bed.
Great to hear your thoughts and experience using IBT.

There have been some recent? developments with published papers on Head up sleeping, that have confirmed in a study what I already confirmed 15 years ago with people who have MS and people who have spinal cord injuries.

You and I know that IBT works, problem is that most people will watch this video and think it's a hoax and walk away unconvinced. People have been conditioned
hurmuzs (3 months ago) 0
how is this therapy workin spider? veins andrew?
tank,s
AndrewKFletcher (3 months ago) I have had some reports of improvements. Although, I have been focused on varicose vein improvements and have not requested feedback on spider veins or encouraged the use of IBT for them. Would be interesting if you do? try IBT for this condition. Please take some photographs of the spider veins before you alter your bed for comparison later.

Thanks for considering IBT
dunrommin (2 months ago) 0
When things happen for the first time
it is either a miracle or bull$
Theire cany be no evidence for a
first only opinion,people seem to have
stoped thinking and relying on
pre conceived ideas.
In 91 my wife was so ill in Hati the doc
had nothing.
3 days with my drivers grandmother
she? was O K
no explanation-voodoo
or medicinal plants
who knows
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Good to see your open minded and great to know your wife's back to good health. That must have been really scary.

One time remarkable events can appear miraculous when lacking an understanding of what has taken place.
With IBT the results can often be predictable and results repeatable. So miraculous they are not. The ancient Egyptians slept on a five degree? head up angle. There are beds in museums that show this angle, yet no one has asked why these beds were designed to be tilted?
trudythomas777 (2 months ago)
What? about the feet? Should they be flat or raised too?

Thanks,
thematrix777
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) | Remove Hi Trudy

The whole bed slopes head? higher than feet, so feet must be lower than the rest of your body for this to work. I have great expectations for you with using IBT, but please be patient and if you experience unusual shooting / lectrical pains in the legs, moving around, wait to see what changes in the weeks that follow as this is usually a precurser for improvements on IBT.
zyby (2 months ago)
Andrew - two questions:

1/ Why not 5 or 7 degrees?
2/ If the principle? works with your head in the high position why should it work any differently the other way around?
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Have used 5 and 7 degrees to help people with spinal cord injury. Trade off for going higher is comfort, slipping down the bed, and little if any extra benefits.

Using a lesser angle reduces the effects on circulation. I used a closed loop of water filled tube stretched along the bed with salt solution added at pillow end. Lower angles produced a dual direction flow in same side of tube. Higher angle produced flow and return or complete ciculation in the loop of tubing as in? the experiments
zyby (2 months ago) +1
1of2 Andrew, thank you. After your reply I am now interested in your experiment re human circulation ;-) How is the mineralisation/salination/dens ity differential? (or whatever it is) regulated? And how would having your head higher than your feet matter?
zyby (2 months ago)
2of2 Why it is necessary or beneficial to be angled vertically rather than horizontally? I see the top to bottom height? difference but (other than possible momentum) I can't see how the gravity driven system would gain much advantage?
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) When a body is vertical, all the joints are compressed, the muscles are tense, there is pressure on the bottom of the feet, which restricts the circulation, this is why guards on duty shift their weight from one foot to another to avoid feinting. The same feinting happens at weddings when the bride and groom stand motionless for too long. An inclined body has a completely different action on? the spine and joints, it decompresses them and the spine is elongated more by this action.
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago)When a body is vertical, all the joints are compressed, the muscles are tense, there is pressure on the bottom of the feet, which restricts the circulation, this is why guards on duty shift their weight from one foot to another to avoid feinting. The same feinting happens at weddings when? the bride and groom stand motionless for too long.
An inclined body has a completely different action on the spine and joints, it decompresses them and the spine is elongated more by this action
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) We have all seen an elderly person stooped over and unable to straighten up. This was probably brought about by their horizontal sleeping posture. IBT? has a remarkable side effect on our height and appears to be reducing the height loss as we get older.
zyby (2 months ago)
p.s. of 2of2: Lying on our sides creates a height difference that should also gain an advantage from? gravity if the density of fluid in our blood vessels alters from above to below. I am wondering what process/organ might create the density difference? The skin seems an obvious organ and there might be a parallel mechanism comparable with leaves? Any of your thoughts / knowledge on this would be appreciated.
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Indeed you are correct about sleeping on ones side, this is probably why some people are less affected by horizontal bed rest than others. The main density changes will take place in the lungs, sinuses and bronchial tubes, as these organs are very efficient at evaporative water loss. The lungs look very much like an upside down tree.
Evaporative loss from the skin, eyes and hair must also alter the density of the fluids. Any density change instantly migrates through? the circulation.
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) So we are not looking for a huge concentration of salts, prior to gravity moving them down the vessels more a steady trickle down effect.

In Gravity of life part1 if you look closely at? the glass vase, you can see that 1 grain of salt or sugar can trigger a flow and return. Added to the arterial blood from the lungs and respiratory tract, pulses of dilute salts and sugars are pulled down the main artery and into the kidneys where they are filtered out and introduced into the urine for disposal
zyby (2 months ago)
Andrew - I have now looked at the naked scientist site and already found some explanations written by you! Many thanks? - the world needs more people like you ;-)
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Thank you? for the comment. There is much more to do before this theory can become mainstream, I do what I can with the little resources that are at hand, but progress is very slow due partly because of this coming from someone outside of the medical profession. However, recent developments with multiple sclerosis, and Professor Zambonis paper on chronic venous insufficiency may open some doors. Doctor Franz Schelling has been saying there is a problem with circulation in ms for many years.
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Having the head higher than the feet means that gravity can pull on solutes and assist the circulation. The location of the kidneys and bladder being lower than the lungs enables more efficient removal? of spent salts. Experiments with head down bedrest on urine density revealed that the solutes were not migrating to the bladder, yet IBT produced a higher density than flat bedrest and normal daily activity.
upallnite77 (2 months ago) 0
What about sleeping the other way with the head lower then the feet? Like inversion therepy. I have a pinched nerve in my spine and I feel this might work better b/c it would decompress my spine. What are your thoughts? on this?
AndrewKFletcher (2 months ago) Not a good idea to sleep upside down. Diarrhoea, muscular atrophy, palpitations, heart atrophy, osteoporosis, neurological impairment and possibility of permanent damage. If I were you I would research on google using Head Down Tilt or Trendlenburg together with containdications. NASA are currently conducting a study on head down tilt offering youngsters huge payouts for taking part. Question is why?
IBT provides? the traction you are seeking without the adverse side effects of inversion.
themanyone (1 month ago) My bed broke a while? back due to an unfortunate parkour accident and I've been sleeping at this angle since then. I have to admit I am feeling better though. Reminds me of sleeping on a beach. If it ain't fixed, don't broke it, err... Hmmm.
AndrewKFletcher (1 month ago) Reminded me of sleeping on a beach when I first tried this many years ago. The first changes my wife and I noticed were an increased energy and endurance, particularly walking up hills carrying shopping that wou;d make our legs ache, except it no longer did. Ww would have to rest half way up the hill and found we no longer needed to.. We also found an improved resistance to flu and colds. But the most obvious changes were in? a varicose vein on Wifes leg that reverted to looking normal in 4 wks
naam123lol (1 month ago) whats so special about the bed????????

you have to sleap with your legs higher then the rest of your? body?
naam123lol (1 month ago) whats incline????

so you need? to sleep with your head higher then your legs?
AndrewKFletcher (1 month ago) Yes, that's the general idea, a five degree to the horizontal with the head raised about 15 cm's higher than the feet.?
naam123lol (1 month ago) is it healthy if you sleep like that and don't have problems with your legs or do you? sleep like that?
AndrewKFletcher (1 month ago) Yes we sleep this way, so do many of our friends.

It appears to be much healthier than sleeping flat with many other additional benefits, like boosing the immune system to combat viral and baterial infections. And if you do happen to get the flu, this will certainly speed up the recovery process by helping the body to combat? the bugs. So you don't have to be ill to find this useful. In fact the ancient Egyptians slept on beds elevated at the head end by 15 cms. Coincidence?
johnbresnik (5 hours ago)
This concept is new and therefore not accepted by most people because most people don't want to change anything. But, it works and it's a valid concept with proven results. It's going to take another 10-20 years for the general public to "get the message" -- true truth will win ... and so will Fletcher's therapy. It will take a testimonial from a very influential person to break through the resistance. But,? it will happen -- because it works..!

Inclined Therapy: Worse before better?
There may be some pain before gains. Not all the time with ms but usually shooting pains down legs and arms moving around rather than a persistant pain in one area, as nerve pathways open up. This is often the pattern, although some fortunately bypass the pain.

Many people reported sudden pain from cavities below the gum line from teeth that had been decayed and should have ben reporting decay back to the brain, but not just in ms, age also numbs the gums and a number of elderly people also reported a trip to the dentist to sort out nerve pains.

This was also the case with spinal cord injury, pain before recover in sci was viewed positively, as it meant that there was communication developing with the brain from below the injury site.

Good News! I'm Finally Getting Good Results.Monday, 14-Jun-1999 13:46:10Message:205.188.195.53 writes:I've been doing the inclined bed since January. I've had M.S. for over 20 years -diagnosed in 1986 as relapsing-remitting M.S. Two years ago, I had a serious attack and ended up in the hospital for 2 weeks paralyzed from the waist down-no feeling and no motion. After a couple of months of steroids and other drugs, I became able to walk first with a walker and then with a cane very short distances.I was still left with lots of fatique, weak legs, balance problems, painful pins and needles in the legs and feet, abdominal muscle spasms, incontinance, and sleepless nights. My diagnosis became secondary progressive M.S.I decided to get off all drugs(much to my neurolist's dismay).I then found Betty Iams on the computer and began her regimen of strict diet, exercise, supplements, meditation, and I've added acupuncture. It feels great to be in control. This is a lifetime regimen for me. I'd been coasting along not getting better, but not getting worse when I read about the inclined bed. I decided to try it-what could I lose? Right away, the painful abdominal muscle spasms started to subside and sleep became somewhat better. Then nothing happened. Then I started getting worse. I decided to give up the inclined bed -this after 3 months. One problem, however-I can't sleep on a flat bed anymore! Andrew wrote for me to hang in there that it was expected that I get worse before I get better. Everyday I waited. Then like Andrew said, I started getting better and better. This past month has been amazing! I even walked up and down a flight of stairs with my cane unaided. Fatigue has gone, the abdominal muscle spasms have gone, t he painful pins and needles are subsiding, leg strength is getting better so that I can walk greater distances, and balance is much better. I still have incontinance and sleep problems, but given time, I know those problems will be gone, too. One very interesting thing happened with my eyes recently. I'm very nearsighted and had my prescription for my contacts checked 3 months ago. Last week, I went back to the eye doctor's complaining that I just couldn't see. He checked my eyes again and much to his amazement, he found that they had improved greatly since my check-up 3 months ago!I wrote Andrew about this happening and he feels that sleeping on an inclined bed can help the optic nerve to regenerate and repair the damage of long term M.S.Let me encourage anyone who is trying the inclined bed to stick with it and don't think it won't work. I'm proof it can. My whole family and I are so grateful to Andrew Fletcher. Liz SteinbrueckLiz Steinbrueck


====================================
The genetic factor in MS
====================================

Those of you who know my family MS history know that my mother had her first MS episode when I was seventeen years old and was diagnosed with relapsing/remitting MS a few years later. She has spent the last 35 years in a wheelchair. Mother is now 80 years old and has resided in a nursing home for the past 12+ years. I was diagnosed at the age of 58 with primary progressive MS, and my youngest brother was diagnosed in his early 40's.

I have a daughter who by her choice has not been part of my life for a number of years. I had not heard from her in 12 years and had no idea where she was or how to contact her until a few weeks ago. She contacted me because she was being evaluated for MS and wanted to know the details about her grandmother's MS. She was shocked to learn that I now have it also.

She has now been diagnosed with relapsing/remitting MS. It was a tremendous blow to me as well as, of course, it was to her. She was very fortunate in finding a very well-informed neurologist. He is the first neurologist I have heard of who recommended the exact same approach as the program I follow and recommend.

In addition, several important things he pointed out to her I would like to share with you.

No. 1 ATTITUDE and SELF-TALK: He told her that her attitude and her self-talk formed the foundation of her wellness program. He stressed that her biggest enemy is the fear factor. He pointed out that many, many people live long, healthy, active lives with MS, and that her best chance of doing that was to not let a fear of what might happen enter into her thoughts or the words she says.

No. 2 MS IS NOT A DISEASE BUT RATHER A WAY OF LIFE: He encouraged her to never think of MS as a disease or illness, but to always look at it as a way of life.

I am making an effort to get this young neurologist to write something for my newsletter. The diet suggestions he gave my daughter are identical to those I recommend, together with stress reduction, avoiding fatigue, avoiding activities in the summer when it is hot, etc.

I frequently hear people with MS down-play the genetic factor because no one else in their family has MS. They totally miss the point. It doesn't matter nearly so much what went before in your family as it does the children of the person with MS. No one in my mother's family prior to her had ever had MS, but now there are four of us.

The approximate numbers are these: In the general population approximately 1 in 1000 in the US get MS. If a parent has it the numbers are approximately 1 in 50. If a sibling has it the numbers are approximately 1 in 25.

Had my daughter been in touch with me in the years since my diagnosis I would have recognized her early signs years ago. Actually she has had it longer than I have. It has taken 10 years for her exacerbations to become severe enough for a diagnosis. My son is much aware of the familial predisposition in our family, and takes the exact same nutritional supplements I do. It seems to me that if such a program helps me stay ahead of MS, it should help to minimize his chances of developing it.

What does all this mean for you. If you are a parent and you have MS, your children of any age are at a higher than average risk to develop it also. You don't tell this to young children of course, but when they are at an age to handle it, they should be made aware of their risk. It is also important that they not live in fear of developing MS, or any other physical challenge which has a genetic factor. We all came into this life with genetic predispositions. Most of the time we do not develop whatever that predisposition might lead to. That is the important message to tell sons, daughters and siblings of the person who has multiple sclerosis.

To date we do not know what the genetic factor is that predisposes one to MS. It is generally called a familial predisposition, much like those of heart disease, some cancers (like breast cancer in women), arthritis and Alzheimer's.

It is my hope that in my and my daughter's lifetime the genetic factor will be discovered so that we may have a chance of defeating it in coming generations. At the present time it is not only proliferating and becoming more prevalent, but more and more men are getting MS. 25 years ago 2 out of every 3 people with MS were women. Today it is just about 50% each men and women.



====================================
MS study by Andrew Fletcher
====================================

If you are not participating in the Andrew Fletcher study, why not? It is free, involves no drugs, diet or nutritional supplements, does not cost anything, and you have absolutely nothing to lose. We are far enough into the study now to be seeing many positive results. If you are not participating, here is how you get started.

You simply raise the head of your bed six inches higher than the foot, and send simple e-mail reports to Andrew from time to time reporting what changes you experience. Some have minor discomforts the first few days, but most do not report any discomfort at all. An immediate positive result is not having to get up several times each night. Most sleep all through the night, or just get up one time.

There is also a message board where you may read the results and comments of others. All of us need to use the message board to report our results from time to time so others can benefit from our experience. You may post anonymously if you prefer.

Old Link: http://www.insidetheweb.com/mbs.cgi/mb405491 Message board closed: Data from Posts from the MB Pilot Study can be found here:board:http://groups.google.co.uk/group/inclined_to_sleep_inclined?hl=en


I had my daughter immediately raise the head of her bed when she learned she has MS last week, and she had an immediate reduction in the severity of the numbness and tingling in her legs and feet. She reported that to her neurologist and he said there is much scientific evidence to indicate that the human body is designed to function vertically and not horizontally. He said he is recommending inclined sleep for all his patients.

I know that hundreds of subscribers to this newsletter are not participating in this study. I must repeat, if you are not sleeping inclined, why not? If you are participating and not sending in regular reports to Andrew, please do so. We can only get the attention of the allopathic medical world by having well-documented data. Please send Andrew your reports at the suggested intervals, even if you just write him two or three sentences. Every little bit helps.

Inclined Therapy (I.T) MS News Article

HERALD EXPRESS, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1999 11
Sweet dreams of cure for MS
Can sufferers heal themselves in their sieepV
AN OUT-of-work boiler-maker from South Devon claims he is on the verge of a breakthrough in the treatment of multiple sclerosis -using six inch blocks of wood.
Andrew Fletcher believes sufferers from the crippling neurological disease can ease their symptoms simply by tilting their beds.
Two woman who were each blind in one eye apparently regained their sight after sleeping at an angle.
And now the 43-year-old Paign-ton man has embarked on a worldwide research project in a bid to prove his theory — and force a cynical medical establishment to sit up and take notice.
Mr Fletcher, who has no scientific or medical qualifications, is trying to recruit 300 MS sufferers via the internet to test his ideas.
by JON ROSAMOND
He wants volunteers to sleep with their heads and shoulders raised by six inches and to record their observations in a diary.
The cause of MS, which affects 85,000 people in the UK alone, has baffled scientists for years.
Mainstream studies are concentrating on immunology and virology, cell biology, epidemiology and genetics.
One high-tech theory is that a virus or bacterial infection prompts the body's immune system to attack itself.
But Mr Fletcher, of Berry Drive, insists that fluids are driven through the body by gravity — and that chemical impulses cannot travel through the nervous system so effectively when the spinal cord is lying horizontally.
He insists that some of the 100 participants who have signed up for his trial so far are already reporting improvements in their symptoms.
"People have stopped sweating so much at night, they've stopped getting up to go to the loo, their balance is better in the morning and they don't feel so stiff," he said.
"I've got an oil tanker skipper from Bolivia taking part, a cardiologist from South Africa and even a neurologist from Canada.
"He is sceptical but he's going to give it a try. It all suggests that I'm on the right track."
Betty lams, an MS sufferer and author from California, has also reported positive results after sleeping with her head raised.
"I'm very excited about this study. Together we will make a difference," she said.
Although the powers that be in Britain have branded Mr Fletcher's earlier research efforts "unscientific," they seem unwilling to repeat

ANDREW Fletcher, who is looking for volunteers to put his theory to the test.
the work on a larger scale.
"Most medical studies are funded by charities and huge drug companies — and there are no profits in my idea because it's so simple," he said.
"The Multiple Sclerosis Society are not being helpful. There seems to be a reluctance to accept new ideas.
"Adrian Sanders (Torbay's MP) tried to get the Prime Minister and Department of Health to listen, without success.
"I intend to use my data to beat the MS Society with a big stick and force them to take action — even if it bankrupts me."
Determined
Adrian Ellis, the charity's spokesman, told the Herald Express: "He's a determined man — you can't knock him for that.
"But neurologists can't see how sleeping at a slightly different angle would affect MS, which is a complex disorder.
"Let's see the proof. Then we'll prick up our ears and pay attention."
Mr Ellis conceded that alternative therapies had a "hard time" from the medical establishment because their claims are harder to prove.
"The list of these therapies is as long as your arm. If people find benefit from one of them, we would not try to stop them using it.
"But we would urge people to approach it with caution and get advice from a doctor."
What is multiple sclerosis?
MULTIPLE sclerosis is a> disease of the brain and spinal cord and occurs when the fatty sheath that protects the nerve fibres becomes scarred.
When the myelin sheath is working properly, electrical impulses to the muscles and sensory organs are passed quickly and efficiently.
If it is damaged the messages become slower, distorted or non-existent.
The symptoms depend on which nerves are affected but include blurred vision, pain behind the eyes, ringing in the ears, tingling or numbness in the arms or legs.
Some people experience giddiness, loss of balance, difficulty with walking, speech problems and incontinence.
Countries with temperate climates, such as the UK, have a higher incidence of MS and the condition is more common in northern latitudes such as Scotland.

Miracle Of Medicine
Inclined Therapy in the Sunday Independent


DELIGHTED
John Cann is standing on his own two feet again after eight years of paralysis in his legs - and he is convinced it's
all down to a simple bed treatment.
John had no feeling in his legs for eight years after an operation went wrong, but following two years of treatment using a raised bed method pioneered in the West Country, he has got the feelings back in his legs -and now is determined to walk.
The 69-year-old is amazed at the effect the simple treatment has had over the past two years and has urged other people to try it for themselves.
'I raised the bed and that night I had no pain at all,' he said. 'I had been going until about three in the morning and then had to have an injection to get back to sleep.
'Now I make a point of standing up with my standing frame every day while I watch the news in the evenings to build up my strength.
'I never give up and now I have set myself the next aim to go for. I am going to walk unaided. I may need crutches and then sticks, but I am going to walk again.'
Former engineer Andrew Fletcher, who invented the Naturesway Sleep System six years ago, said that he was astonished when he visited John at his home in Gunnislake to see him standing.
He says that many people have benefitted from the simple treatment of raising the head of their beds a few inches, but in the case of John it had been very dramatic.
'It was just incredible,' said Andrew. 'I was nearly in tears. Here was a man who was told there was nothing that could be done for him; had felt nothing for eight years and then in the last two years has got feeling back in his legs.'
John, a former commercial diver who served in the Army, was keen on rugby and canoeing until the operation left him paralysed.
He was told that however much movement he had after two years, there would be no further improvement -that was until he tried the bed-raising technique.
But as the months went on, he noticed pains travelling through his legs and realised that it was the nerves regen-
erating.
'After all this pain, I noticed I was getting more and more feeling back and found I could flex muscles I had not been able to flex before,' said John.
'The only things that do not hurt are my ankles, and my right knee is not very strong. I can stand, but only using my standing frame at the moment.'
Andrew has now arranged for John to use a parachute harness that will fully support his legs, and a rail is being fitted to a wall at his home so that he can move around on his feet more often. Andrew said that many people were sceptical about the effects of the raised bed method and it had not worked for everyone.
But he added: 'If it can do that for John, what can't it do for the rest of us? I say go out in the garden, grab a couple of house bricks and give it a go.'


Just by raising their beds with a few blocks of wood, or some house bricks, scores of spinal injury sufferers say that they have noticed a dramatic improvement in their conditions. But how can such a simple method seem to succeed where conventional medicine has failed? Chief reporter ANTHONY ABBOTT looks at the apparent phenomenon of the Nataresway Sleep System


ON THE MEND: John Cann is standing again Pictures: sieve Porter

Fighting to be taken seriously

Sunday Independent April 9,2000

PASSIONATE:
ANDREW Fletcher is a passionate believer in the benefits of his simple bed treatment -but he says that he has struggled to make the medical world take serious notice.
Since he first carried out experiments back in 1994, it has been an-uphill battle to be taken seriously despite his website carrying scores of testimonies from sufferers who say that it has given them a new lease of life. He has
manufactured a purpose-built bed, yet he has been unable to market it properly because both the Department of Trade and Industry and his bank have refused to give him financial backing.
Now he hopes to set up a controlled study of ten MS sufferers at Bristol Royal Infirmary in a bid to give doctors more concrete proof of the apparent success of his bed treatment.
He said: 'This is such a simple ,it is just amazing it hasn't been discovered before and it it makes you wonder how much longer the medical world can ignore it.'

Andrew said he was aware some neuro-sur-geons were recommending the raised sleeping methods for MS sufferers, but he is also certain that it can bring benefits to people who are perfectly fit.
But Dr Rosie Jones of the MS Research Unit at Bristol General Hospital, who has promised to look into Andrew's theories, sounded a note of caution. She said: 'We are not dismissing Andrew's thesis out of hand.
'If there is genuine change, and a genuine improvement we will say so.
'We would not want people to miss out on something that may help them, but we must see that
genuine change and we must see it in the right context.'

Sunday Independent
Tilting Beds To Save Lives

EXCLUSIVE by MATT BAMSEY

A FORMER West Country engineer claims that his gravity invention will save thou­sands of lives and even alter our perception of evolution.
Andrew Fletcher, of Paignton, has been bat­tling for nine years to have his theory of grav­ity powered circulation recognised by the med­ical profession.
His studies, which have cost around £13,000, protest that rais­ing a person’s bed a few inches with blocks of wood or ordinary house bricks can guard against life-threatening ill­nesses.
The findings fly in the face of a widely-held consensus in the med­ical world which says patients’ legs should be raised in order to assist circulation and varicose veins.
But Mr Fletcher has been handed a major boost after Cambridge University included his findings on their science and plants for schools (SAPS) website which colleges use as part of their national curricu­lum.
Now the man, who has waged a relentless cam­paign to have his voice heard, says that he is on the brink of blowing the general understanding of science and medicine out of the water. ‘I am overjoyed and extremely grateful that my find­ings have been used on this site and it is an­other huge leap towards gaining full medical recognition for my dis­covery,’ he said. Theory ‘I am now hoping that schools will help to test my theory and its sim­ple tubular
experiments with water flowing up instead of down. ‘I can see light at the end of the tunnel.
MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGH: Andrew Fletcher, of Paignton, says that his novel bed design could save the NHS ‘a fortune’ as well as giving people a far better quality of life
This discovery will undoubtedly save countless thou­sands of lives and will even change our under­standing of the evolu­tionary process as it will show that Darwin’s nat­ural selection is not the primary driving force but, instead, gravity dic­tates and drives evolu­tion.’
Director of SAPS Paul Beaumont said: ‘He has some novel ways on how plants use gravity and we have alerted people to this resource.’
Mr Fletcher’s latest success is with a man from Brixham suffering from diabetes. Three years ago, the man was preparing to undergo laser eye surgery in an attempt to curb a long­standing sight problem. But having tilted the bed, the man’s sight im­proved to such an extent that he decided to scrap plans of going under the surgeon’s knife. ‘The results have been phenomenal,’ said Mr Fletcher. ‘I have helped thousands of people suf­fering from many condi­tions and when the med­ical profession recognises the full implications of this theory, it will literally save the NHS a fortune.’
His therapy system was developed after he discovered how gravity-driven circulation oc­curs within trees and subsequently applied the theory to the human body.
According to Mr Fletcher, even the an­cient Egyptians had in­clined beds, mirroring his now tried and tested five-degree angle.
matt.bamsey® sundayindependent.co.uk