24 Hours Floating Underwater:"Hypodynamics" ~ 1960 US Air Force; from "Bioastronautics Research"

more at http://quickfound.net/

'Coverage of research at the Aerospace Medical Division Hq 657Oth Aerospace Medical Research Laboratories..."

Originally a public domain film from the US National Archives, slightly cropped to remove uneven edges, with the aspect ratio corrected, and one-pass brightness-contrast-color correction & mild video noise reduction applied.

The soundtrack was also processed with volume normalization, noise reduction, clipping reduction, and/or equalization (the resulting sound, though not perfect, is far less noisy than the original).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_medicine

Wikipedia license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Space medicine is the practice of medicine on astronauts in outer space whereas astronautical hygiene is the application of science and technology to the prevention or control of exposure to the hazards that may cause astronaut ill health. Both these sciences work together to ensure that astronauts work in a safe environment. The main thing is to discover how well and for how long people can survive the extreme conditions in space, and how fast they can adapt to the Earth's environment after coming back from space.

History

Hubertus Strughold (1898--1987), a former Nazi physician and physiologist, was brought to the United States after World War II as part of Operation Paperclip. He first coined the term "space medicine" in 1948 and was the first and only Professor of Space Medicine at the School of Aviation Medicine (SAM) at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. In 1949 Strughold was made director of the Department of Space Medicine at the SAM (which is now the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine [USAFSAM] at Brooks Air Force Base, Texas). He played an important role in developing the pressure suit worn by early American astronauts... The aeromedical library at Brooks AFB was named after him in 1977, but later renamed because documents from the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal linked Strughold to medical experiments in which inmates of the Dachau concentration camp were tortured and killed...

Loss of balance

Leaving and returning to Earth's gravity causes "space sickness," dizziness, and loss of balance in astronauts. By studying how changes can affect balance in the human body—involving the senses, the brain, the inner ear, and blood pressure—NASA hopes to develop treatments that can be used on Earth and in space to correct balance disorders. Until then, NASA's astronauts must rely on a medication called Midodrine (an "anti-dizzy" pill that temporarily increases blood pressure) to help carry out the tasks they need to do to return home safely.

Loss of bone density

Unlike people with osteoporosis, astronauts eventually regain their bone density. After a 3-4 month trip into space, it takes about 2--3 years to regain lost bone density. New techniques are being developed to help astronauts recover faster. Research in the following areas holds the potential to aid the process of growing new bone:

- Diet and Exercise changes may reduce osteoporosis.

- Vibration Therapy may stimulate bone growth.

- Medication could trigger the body to produce more of the protein responsible for bone growth and formation.

Loss of muscle mass

In space, muscles in the legs, back, spine, and heart weaken and waste away because they no longer are needed to overcome gravity, just as people lose muscle when they age due to reduced physical activity...

-  Exercise may build muscle if at least two hours a day is spent doing resistance training routines.

- Hormone supplements (hGH) may be a way to tap into the body's natural growth signals.

- Medication may trigger the body into producing muscle growth proteins.

Orthostatic intolerance

In space, astronauts lose fluid volume—including up to 22% of their blood volume. Because it has less blood to pump, the heart will atrophy. A weakened heart results in low blood pressure and can produce a problem with "orthostatic tolerance," or the body's ability to send enough oxygen to the brain without fainting or becoming dizzy...

Radiation effects

Soviet cosmonaut Valentin Lebedev, who spent 221 days in the orbit in 1982 (an absolute record for stay in Earth's orbit), lost his eyesight to progressive cataract. Lebedev stated: "I suffered from a lot of radiation in space. It was all concealed back then, during the Soviet years, but now I can say that I caused damage to my health because of that flight."