The effects of far-infrared emitting textiles on sleep quality, blood vessel function, and exercise performance

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The following grant application is to support a collaboration between Prof. Philip Ainslie from the University of British Columbia and Mark's Work Wearhouse (MWW), a Canadian clothing and footwear retailer. Our aim is to evaluate the physiological effects of far-infrared (FIR) emitting textile material on the human body. Recent human studies suggest that FIR textiles may improve sleep quality, blood vessel function, and exercise performance. Our research objective is to conduct a series of sophisticated physiology experiments to verify the design of their new product, and to determine the physiological benefits of MWW's new FIR clothing line. The research for the proposed project will be conducted in Prof. Ainslie's laboratory in Kelowna, BC, Canada. There, his highly qualified research team (one post-doctoral fellow; two PhD students; one MSc student, and; one research assistant) will use gold-standard equipment and experimental techniques to measure sleep quality, blood vessel function, and exercise performance in a group of sleep and non-sleep deprived individuals (n=20 each group). In order to gain insight on some of the cellular mechanism(s) that may be responsible for FIR-related physiological benefits, we will also obtain venous blood samples to assess markers of inflammation and nitric oxide availability. Each group of participants will be required to wear three sets of clothing in a randomized fashion (sham; 1% FIR technology; and 2% FIR technology) for several nights. After wearing each set of clothing for one-week, participants will undergo a series of experiments in Prof. Ainslie's laboratory. The results from the proposed series of experiments will improve our fundamental understanding of the mechanism(s) associated with sleep quality, blood vessel function, and exercise performance. This research collaboration will directly benefit MWW by: 1) evaluating the performance of two concentrations of FIR technology (1% vs 2%), 2) comprehensively evaluating the physiological benefits of their product in humans, and 3) verifying the design of their product through several questionnaires related to product comfort and fit, The proposed series of studies has both high potential for scientific and economic benefits for Canada.