Bedrest study

A volunteer in a bedrest study in bed angled 6° below the horizontal. He may not stand up unless an experiment demands it and must perform all daily activities in bed, including eating, showering and exercising.

What might seem like a paid holiday in bed requires many sacrifices from the volunteers. Not only are they expected to give up small pieces of their thigh muscles in regular biopsies, they also have to remove themselves from their normal lives for a long time. During their time in bed, they cannot receive visitors and are expected to complete the session no matter what emergency at home.

Bedrest studies can answer questions on how our bodies adapt to living in space and adapt to growing old.