Would You Hibernate if You Could?

[Adam's Apple]

Not me. 7-8 hrs. of sleep does the trick. However, there could be some health benefits to humans, as this article indicates.

Deep Sleep Secrets
By Tina Hesman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
February 13, 2006

Scientists Seek to Harness the Power of Hibernation

Hummingbirds do it. Bears do it. Even whistle pigs do it. So why don't we do it? That's the question scientists who study hibernation are asking. If humans could hibernate, or at least harness the power of torpor (as scientists call the dormant drowse), conditions such as SIDS, obesity and diabetes might be a thing of the past.

Researchers hope that studies of hibernators also may aid trauma victims, help preserve transplant organs, lead to safer weight-loss treatments and blood-thinning agents and shed light on some of the most basic, but still mysterious, processes in the body.

for full article:
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/living/13851769.htm?source=rss&channel=

 

[no1tovote4]

I like the winter too much to miss it in torpor state....

If they harness this 'power' I think I'll give it a miss anyway.

 

[Adam's Apple]

You know, I was thinking about this, and I thought if they could find the secret to hibernation, perhaps that would be a way for people with terminal illness to live out their last days without so much pain and suffering.

 

[Semper Fi]

Hibernate? No. But if I could sleep through a weekend and be set for 6 hours a night for a while, I would do that.