What's in a Namely? Bad Trip: My Journey to Discover Why Everyone is (Still) on a Journey When the "Something Old" at Your Wedding is... One of the most disturbing Sleeveless in Seattle (and New York, and Atlanta, and Detroit...) When the Question is the Answer: The Dumbing Down of TV Interviews The Good Ship Lollipop Has SailedWhy does, like, EVERYONE talk this way now??) I also write ads.Here is a link to my portfolio. « History, Interrupted |Bad Trip: My Journey to Discover Why Everyone is on a Journey » Your email address:Powered by FeedBlitz Subscribe to this blog's feedThe Best Mattress for a Better Night's Sleep Buying a new mattress? Here are tips for finding the right mattress for you. You spend about a third of every day in bed. Whether that time is spent blissfully slumbering -- or tossing and turning -- depends a lot on your mattress. "A mattress can impact a person's sleep," says Michael Decker, PhD, RN, associate professor at Georgia State University and spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
One way that your mattress affects your sleep has to do with the network of fine blood vessels, called capillaries, that runs underneath your skin. "When you lie on any part of your body for an extended period of time, the weight of it reduces the flow of blood through those blood vessels, which deprives the skin of oxygen and nutrients," Decker says. This causes nerve cells and pain sensors in your skin to send a message to your brain for you to roll over. Rolling over restores blood flow to the area, but it also briefly interrupts your sleep. Ideally, a mattress that reduces the pressure points on your body should give you a better night's sleep, Decker says. Yet the ideal mattress is different for each person. Which Mattress Is Right for You? Finding the right mattress isn't about searching out the highest-tech brand or spending the most money. "A much more expensive mattress doesn't necessarily mean it's better," Decker says. A high price tag is a product of both the materials that go into the mattress, and the marketing that helps sell it.
Instead of focusing on price and brand name, think about what you want in a mattress. "Selecting a mattress is very personal," Decker says. Some people prefer a firmer mattress; others favor a softer style. Although there isn't a lot of scientific evidence to prove that one type of mattress will help you sleep better than another, people with certain medical conditions do seem to rest easier on a particular mattress style. Anyone with back or neck pain should take a Goldilocks approach to mattress buying: not too hard, and not too soft. "If you're on too soft [of] a mattress, you'll start to sink down to the bottom. But on too hard of a mattress you have too much pressure on the sacrum, and on the shoulders, and on the back of the head," says Howard Levy, MD, an Emory University assistant professor of orthopaedics, physical medicine, and rehabilitation. A medium-firm mattress, or a firm mattress with a softer pillow top, will give your spine that "just-right" balance of support and cushioning.
An adjustable bed can be a good buy if you need to sleep with your head raised. Doctors sometimes recommend elevating the head to help people with COPD breathe easier, or to prevent nighttime heartburn from GERD. These beds can also allow you to adjust your knees and hips to a 90-degree angle, relieving some of the pressure on sore joints, Levy says. If you have allergies or asthma, you might have considered buying a bed labeled "hypoallergenic." "There are a lot of claims made by mattress manufacturers that their mattresses are hypoallergenic or don't support the growth of dust mites, but I don't know of scientific evidence to support these claims," says Paul V. Williams, MD, a pediatrics professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine and an allergist at Northwest Allergy and Asthma Center in Washington state. Williams says dust mites will live anywhere there's food -- and that food is your dead skin cells. Instead of investing in an allergy-free mattress, slip on a washable mattress encasing.
It will form a barrier that prevents dust mites from getting to you. A mattress encasing cuts allergen growth by robbing dust mites of their food supply, Williams says. And what about those space-age memory foam mattresses, which can cost thousands of dollars? There is some evidence they can help with back problems and improve sleep, but their advantage over a regular coil mattress is only slight. Where memory foam mattresses can really help you sleep is if you have an active bed partner who is keeping you awake, Decker says. Foam mattresses reduce motion transfer, letting you lie still while your partner tosses and turns. Test Drive a Mattress Before You Buy "You wouldn't buy a car without test driving it," Decker says. So why would you invest hundreds -- or even thousands of dollars in a mattress without trying it out first? Take any new mattress you're considering for a test nap. "People should not be embarrassed to go into a store and lay on a mattress for 20 minutes," Decker says.
For a more realistic test, sleep in the beds at different hotel chains when you travel. If you get an especially good night's sleep on one of them, ask the desk clerk what brand it is. When you test out a mattress, make sure it feels comfortable in every position, especially the side you favor for sleeping. The mattress should be supportive where you need it, without putting too much pressure on your body, Levy says. Time for a New Mattress If you've been having trouble sleeping, the problem might not be your mattress type, but its age. "It's really important for people to realize that mattresses have a certain lifespan," Decker says. Keep your mattress too long, and the foam and other materials inside it will start to break down, compromising its ability to support your body. Decker recommends keeping your mattress for no more than 10 years. After that, it's time to go mattress shopping again.Enjoy a Night in the CloudsI have never been an adherent to the school of the firm mattress.
A bed should be about comfort; it should be a refuge from the harshness of the world, and a place to relish sweet dreams. There are many things you can do to make a firm mattress softer, let's start with the cheapest and work our way up. Also, if you are looking to go green in the bedroom pop by my hub on Natural Mattress Toppers. Egg CratesThis is what my mother always called those foam pads that you can put on your mattress. In college my roommate had never seen one of these, until I threw one on her spartan bed to cushion her bony body. They are the cheapest way of softening up a bed' I recently bought one for aroung $20 at Wal-mart. Of course, they vary in thickness, so the more you pay, the thicker of a foam pad you'll get. Throw it down on the bed, top with sheets, and you're done! Feather BedsThe classic choice, a featherbed is made up of bird down mixed with larger feathers to make a fluffy, soft nest for your bed. There is a very wide price range when it comes to featherbeds.
You can go down to your local Bed Bath and Beyond and pick one up for $70, or you can go to Macy's and buy a $400 Charter Club featherbed. There are a couple of things to keep in mind when shopping for a featherbed however. The first is the percentage of down the featherbed has. You want a high percentage of down in a featherbed because more down means less larger feathers. These larger feathers can prove crunchy, and will poke out of the fabric, pricking you when you are just dozing off. Another thing to consider is the thickness, or fluffiness of a featherbed. Your weight will compact the bed a bit, though it can be fluffed back up. A cheaper bed will not wear well over time and will be flat as a pancake in a few months. A good featherbed will resume its shape after a good fluffing however, and will last many years. Memory FoamThe new kid on the block, memory foam is what the astronauts sit on during takeoff. Memory foam is made of polyurethane that's chemically altered to be very dense.
It's also responsive to heat, making softer in warm spots, and harder in cool areas. Because memory foam is so dense it can be very heavy, but it is also very supportive. Memory foam, unlike feather beds, does not have as large a range of quality. Yes, some memory foams may be softer than others (marginally), but there aren't factors like down percentage to encounter. The key quality to consider while searching for a memory foam topper is thickness. The thicker the memory foam the more support, and the further you are away from your hard mattress. Memory foam runs from about $110 for a 1/2" topper to $800 for a full on mattress. Many in between sizes exist, usually made in half-inch increments. Memory foam can also be considered a good investment because it retains its shape and lasts a very long time. (I'm talking about it may come with you to your next mattress long time). HybridsI personally enjoy the best of both worlds. On my bed I have a hybrid feather and memory foam topper.