ORTHOPAEDIC MATTRESS

As more and more people suffer from back problems, orthopaedic mattress products are becoming increasingly popular. Sleeping on an orthopaedic mattress can act as a lifeline when it comes to the health of your spine and back.

In fact, an orthopaedic mattress will benefit your body as a whole by providing supportive and restful sleep, thereby allowing you to recover from the activities of a busy day.

Sleeping on an orthopaedic mattress is one of the most effective means of ensuring a good night's sleep and avoiding stiffness, aches, muscular discomfort and back pain. Sleeping on an orthopaedic mattress will also protect your back by allowing it to retain its natural profile without the build up of unnecessary tensions or pressures.

A simple test to establish how good or bad your mattress is, is to ask yourself how relaxed, rested and rejuvenated you feel immediately after you get up first thing in the morning?

If the answer is "not very", then now may be the right time to buy a new orthopaedic mattress or bed.

Why consider an orthopaedic mattress

Today millions of people suffer, many needlessly, from back and back induced pain and discomfort. In most cases these problems can be traced back to poor sleeping habits and even poorer quality beds and mattresses. In many instances an orthopaedic mattress would ease, or even alleviate these problems.

The human body requires good restful sleep to recover from the day’s activities and to regenerate itself, so when sleep is disrupted by aches and discomforts, not only does the back suffer, but the body as a whole. To make matters worse, this cycle compounds itself as one bad night leads to another and the initial problems becomes increasingly serious and problematic.

So why do so many people suffer from back pain

The cycle of poor sleep, exacerbated by a bad back, aching joints and stiff muscles is common, but those who suffer from it often ignore the problem or down play its significance.

This is a mistake and one that leaves the underlying problem untreated. Worse still, doing nothing can result in a temporary inconvenience becoming a permanent and debilitating condition.

Back pain is also suffering that, in most cases, is needless and unnecessary. An orthopaedic mattress will generally go a long way towards remedying any troubles originating from the back in terms of poor night time posture and any resulting lack of sleep.

So why do so many people suffer from back related problems?

There are of course many different answers to this question, but the quality of bed and mattress is a primary factor in a large number of cases.

In a nutshell, most people buy cheap low quality beds and keep them for far too long. These beds offer poor support from the start and, as they quickly wear and lose their supportive characteristics, they fail to provide the support and padding that the back and body require. This is the very support that an orthopaedic bed is designed to provide.

The spine, along with the muscles and ligaments that enable it to work, can be easily aggravated, but the good news is that the back is also very robust and flexible and has great powers of recovery. This means that most back related problems can be rectified and that includes those caused by poor mattress support.

How a mattress provides back and spine support

The natural shape of a healthy human spine is that of an elongated double "S" shape where the spine turns in and out twice. Maintaining this profile is paramount to the health of the back and ultimately the body as a whole.

When this profile is not supported and encouraged by a good mattress, and ideally an orthopaedic one, problems with the back can develop.

In many ways this "S" shape is a poorly designed profile for a body that stands on two feet and undertakes many activities that involve bending and twisting. But the spine takes the opportunity to rest and recover during sleep – that is of course providing that the mattress can adequately support this natural double "S" shape. This is where an orthopaedic mattress, and its ability to support and profile, pays dividends.

An orthopaedic mattress is designed with the spine, skeletal structure and muscular support as its primary objective and this is why orthopaedic beds and mattresses are so effective at maintaining a healthy back.

When should you replace your mattress?

Nearly every mattress that is more than 10 to 15 years old will have had a life expectancy of no more than 10 years. Even so, many people continue to sleep on the same mattress long after it has started to show visible signs of wear in the form of lumps and failing springs.

All mattresses that are 15 or 20 years old will be unable to offer adequate support and most will actually be detrimental to your sleep and health.

Furthermore, even if your mattress is not of a great age, but still feels uncomfortable, or leaves you feeling achy or tense when you wake in the morning, it is time for a change.

What can happen if you sleep on a failing mattress?

A failing or unsuitable mattress can cause a number of health problems, but these problems may initially manifest themselves as aches and minor discomforts. Over time however, these irritations can become more severe to the point where they can start to impact on everyday life. If the source of these back problems is not remedied, they will persist and may even become permanent.

It is always advisable to take preventative action when the first noticeable signs of mattress induced back problems are recognised. This is the time to invest in a new orthopaedic mattress.

What can you expect from an orthopaedic mattress

An orthopaedic mattress promotes a healthy back and it does so by supporting the spine in its correct alignment and by avoiding the development of pressure points. This in turn means that an orthopaedic mattress is comfortable, restful and supportive and this leads to a good night’s sleep.

Orthopaedic mattresses come in a variety of constructions and the current thinking is that a good mattress should have the ability to contour and mould rather than be hard or very firm. The reason for this is simple, a mattress that contours around its sleeper can mould to fill the gap under the lower back. This enables the mattress to support the double “S” shape of the spine at the point where it needs I the most.

Today, orthopaedic mattresses come in a range of constructions from traditional springs and coils to memory foam, latex foam and composites of all three compositions. Prices too come in a wide range of options and, when you add water mattresses and air mattresses into the available products, you get a massive choice. To find out more about the different kinds of orthopaedic mattress and the advantages of these products, use the main menu index to the left of all pages.

Something to ponder

As a final thought, if you have a typical life expectancy, the chances are that you will spend almost 24 years of your entire life in a bed. That is almost one third of your lifespan.

This is more time than you will spend watching TV, or driving in your car, so think carefully about buying the right mattress and ensuring that you do not continue to use it beyond its natural lifespan.