Your mattress could cause you pain

    
Have you been having persistent neck pain or nagging back aches for some time now? For some, it may even be that they have had it for years. Body pains, either mild or severe, have grave consequences on the quality of life.

If you have tried several therapy and drugs, yet no relief, have you thought that your mattress might be the source of your discomfort? Indeed, experts have linked neck, shoulder, back pains and spine problems to the state of our mattress.

How old is it — 15, 30, 40 years old? Or have you been using it forever? Many people only change their mattress after the beddings and covers from the manufacturers have completely come undone. Yet scientists say changing your mattress at regular intervals, rather than having constant massage, may just be the right therapy for your neck and waist pains.

Though we spend about a third of every day in bed, not many are aware that the quality of sleep they get — either good or poor — depends a lot on the state of our mattress.

Orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Olamide  Akindele, describes mattresses as cushions and shock absorbers that help the muscles and nerves relax and also allow the body structure to maintain proper sleep positions for better rest whenever we desire, and not necessarily in the night alone.

Akindele notes that mattresses are built to protect the back while one is in bed, keeping it strong. However, when the matress is not in good shape, it could aggravate minor aches and pains.

The physician adds that when such aches are not tackled, as time goes on, they could progress to chronic back problems.

He says, “Chronic spine problems have been linked to bad mattresses. Sleeping on the wrong mattress can cause or worsen lower back pain. Lack of support from a mattress reinforces poor sleeping posture, strains muscles and does not help keep the spine in alignment, all of which contribute to low back pain.”

Beyond spine and waist pains, your sleep also suffers when you do not sleep on the right mattress. Akindele explains further that sleep comfort is sacrificed if a mattress does not  provide both comfort and back support, which helps reduce low back pain, allowing the structures in the spine to really rest and rejuvenate during the night.

Associate professor at Georgia State University and spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Dr. Michael Decker, says mattress has been directly linked to sleep patterns and position.

 “One way that your mattress affects your sleep has to do with the network of fine blood vessels, called capillaries, that run 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.

“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,”

Experts say finding the right mattress isn’t about searching for the most expensive or the highest-tech brand. Decker notes that it is the individual that would determine the best mattress for him/her.

Decker says, “A much more expensive mattress doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better. Instead of focusing on price and brand name, think about what you want in a mattress. Selecting a mattress is very personal. Some people prefer a firmer mattress; others favour a softer style. Choose the one that when you lie on it, you feel comfortable and at the same time you feel that support.”

Although there isn’t a lot of scientific evidence to prove that one type of mattress will help you sleep better than another, experts say people with certain medical conditions do seem to rest easier on a particular mattress style.

Assistant Professor of Orthopaedics and Physical Medicine at the Emory University, Atlanta, United States, Dr. Howard Levy, notes that anyone with back, shoulder or neck pain should make use of reasonable approach to mattress buying: not too hard, and not too soft.

“If you’re on too soft a mattress, you will start to sink down to the bottom. But on too hard of a mattress, you have too much pressure on the sacrum (base of the spine), and on the shoulders, and on the back of the head.

“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,” Levy says.

Does your mattress look like something the cat or dog dragged in? You may need to start saving money now to be able to change it. Or better still, do the needful immediately. It may just be what that persistent back pain needs.

Copyright PUNCH.