Related to Back Pain Best Mattress for Lower Back Pain Study Disputes Long-Held Belief by Some Doctors That Firmer Bedding Is Better Nov. 13, 2003 -- For years, many people with back pain have been advised to sleep on a firm mattress. But a new study shows that might just add to the nightmare of their morning-after misery. Researchers in Spain say that people who sleep on a medium-firm mattress were twice as likely to report improvements in lower back pain compared to those sleep on more firm bedding. They reach this conclusion after replacing bedding of 313 patients with a history of back pain with new "firm" or "medium-firm" mattresses. The patients didn't know which mattress type they received. This study, published in the upcoming issue of the Lancet, is among the first to test the popular belief -- at least among some orthopaedic doctors -- that the firmer a mattress is, the better it is at preventing or relieving lower back pain. While there's little hard scientific data to support that firm mattresses are better -- only a handful of studies have been conducted -- the Spanish researchers say that about three in four orthopaedic doctors recommend firm mattresses to their patients.
In fact, a survey of Atlanta-area orthopaedic surgeons indicates that two in three said they recommend a firm mattress to their patients, and most believed that a mattress' firmness had a definite role in managing back pain. This finding, by Emory University orthopaedist Howard I. Levy, MD, was presented at the 1996 annual meeting of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons. But chiropractors have long argued that firm mattresses are not the best choice, says George McClelland, DC, spokesman for the American Chiropractic Association. "Traditionally, what we have recommended is that a moderately-firm works best, or when using a firm mattress, you should add a 1½- to 2-inch thick padding on top of it," he tells WebMD. "It's wonderful to be validated by some form of research." McClelland says that this extra padding -- or using a medium-firm mattress without the extra padding -- better adapts to the natural curvatures in the spine. This padding is available at most stores that sell mattresses or bedding supplies.
"The spine is not a straight line, and padding or a moderately firm mattress 'gives' better to the concavities and convexities of the spine," he says. "A younger spine may tolerate a firm mattress perfectly well. But as we get middle years any beyond, when back pain is more prevalent, we find that more equalized support seems to be better." The researchers, led by Francisco Kovacs, PhD, who operates an independent medical research company in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, say that a medium-firm mattress leads to better "pressure distribution" when lying in bed, resulting in less pain while lying or after getting up. But McClelland and others say you also shouldn't use a soft mattress, because it doesn't provide enough support. "From my own perspective, if a mattress is soft or too hard, it's not comfortable," says orthopaedic surgeon Dana C. Mears, MD, PhD, of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "Something in the middle works best for me -- a medium-firm mattress.
If a mattress is too firm, you might as well be sleeping on the floor." When buying a mattress, McClelland advises against relying on store ratings as an accurate guideline. "These numbers are all over the place," he says. "Individual companies use different rating systems, so you don't really know what you're getting." In fact, in the U.S., firm mattresses typically have a higher rating number; in Europe, a lower number goes to firmer mattresses. His advice: "When testing for a mattress, don't push on it or bounce up and down, as many people do. What's better is to lie on it for 10 minutes or so -- on your back, on your side, every way. It shouldn't be too hard. If it is, get some padding to place on top of the mattress."Recently a friend of mine asked me, “Do you know what is the best mattress for back pain?” She was having a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep because of sciatica and some back problems. I figured the firmest mattress (hard mattress) was probably the best but I really didn't know for sure.
To answer her question, I decided to dig into the medical literature to see what was in there about the best mattress for backI went back about 10 years. There aren't a lot of studies on mattresses and back pain. But there's enough information there to make a And not only was I wrong about what I thought was the best mattress for back pain, but so are a heck of a lot of doctors who deal with back pain. mean better for back pain. In 2003, a study from Spain of 313 adults with chronic low back pain examined the effect of mattresses on their levels of pain while lying in bed...and when getting out of bed. Some of these people got new firm mattresses to sleep on for 90 days and some got new medium-firm mattresses. participants knew which type of mattress they had received. After 90 days, a higher percentage of patients sleeping on the medium-firm mattresses reported: The study states: A mattress of medium firmness improves pain and disability among patients with chronic non-specific low-back
A medium-firm mattress provides good support while distributing pressure points on the body when lying in bed. mattress that is too soft is just as bad for low back pain as a mattress that is too firm. In a 2005 study, The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association pointed out that in a survey, 76% of orthopedic surgeonsAnd most health professionals recommend hard or extra firm mattresses. The problem again is that these types of mattresses decrease the ability of the body to have more contact with the mattress. more pressure on the parts of the body that do touch the mattress. in turn means more pain in bed and getting out of bed. It's a known fact that low back pain significantly affects sleepA study in 2006 (Journal of Chiropractic Medicine) also looked at sleep quality in relation to medium-firm mattresses. The study of 30 women and 29 men showed this: For 28 days, subjects slept in their owns beds. Then they slept in beds with new
medium-firm mattresses for 28 days. With this new bedding, there was significant improvement for back pain and stiffness, comfort, and sleep quality. Is it starting to become clear here what the best mattress for back pain is? A 2008 study in Applied Ergonomics showed that age of and quality of bedding had a major effect on back pain. People sleeping in new beds had significantly less pain and more comfort than when they were sleeping on their older mattresses. The average age of the beds people were sleeping on before getting the new mattresses was 9.5 years. In addition, the study states: It was found that for the cheapest category of beds, lower back pain was significantly more prominent than for the medium and higher priced beds. So let's wrap up this article on the best mattress for back pain with two final studies I uncovered. Below, we'll also take a look at three top choices for where to get the mattress of your dreams.
The first study was in Spine. One hundred and sixty people were divided into three groups for a one month test of new mattresses. in group one were given water beds...group two memory foam mattresses...and group three hard mattresses. People who slept on the water beds and memory foam mattresses had improved back pain symptoms, back function, and sleep quality. mattress types were deemed superior to a hard mattress. were no differences observed between the water bed and the memory foam. Now I don't know about you, but I've slept in a few water beds over the years but never really liked them. I always felt like I was sleeping in a row boat. A 2010 study showed that replacing patients' beds with new medium-firm mattresses, layered with memory foam and latex, provided significant improvement in both back and shoulder pain. Check out this chart below and you'll see what the best mattress for back pain is. As you can see, there is over a 60% drop in back pain and stiffness, resulting in improvement in sleep quality after just one week!
And these results continue through week 12. Researchers also mentioned there was a significant drop in the number of days per week that people were experiencing poor sleep and Obviously, then, if your back gives you fits, the best mattress for back pain is one that has memory foam in it. (Or if you love your water bed, by all means stick with it.) The question then is... Searching around to find a quality mattress is like getting your teeth drilled at the dentist without novocaine. Yes, it's that painful! So I'm going to save you all that trouble. I've searched for hours all over the Internet to bring you three excellent choices of mattress companies. sells America's luxury mattresses for a steep discount. Their prices are unbeatable. And if you don't live in the United States, no problem. Saatva ships their discounted luxury mattresses where you live. After you pick out the items you want on Saatva's website, select International Checkout as your shipping option.
They are experts at shipping anywhere in the world. You can read two Saatva customer reviews from Saatva customers in the right column of this page up above. This may be the best mattress company on the Internet. Click here to go to the Saatva home page. is recommended and was featured on Dr. Oz's TV show and AndersonThey claim to have the world's only truly natural memory foamI must say, these are incredibly pure memory foam mattresses. However, they are expensive. So unless you have a lot of money, I think you can get a much better deal with the third choice below.There’s a new memory foam mattress Loom & Leaf has flipped the world of buying memory foam Now you can get a luxury queen from Loom & Leaf for onlyA similar mattress at Tempur-Pedic would cost you $3,699. Which price would you rather pay? Loom & Leaf mattresses are built in America with American high-grade, non-toxic memory foam. Certified pure by Certi-PUR. They also use a unique medical grade cooling gel.