Back Pain Mattress

by Elizabeth Jones
(Chingford)

Is it proven that memory foam mattresses do help to relieve pressure from your back, or is a firm mattress preferable? What type of mattress would you suggest I get?

Hello Elizabeth, Funnily enough the answer to both parts of this question is no. Some recent research (see below) has found that if you have lower back pain then you may prefer a medium firm mattress rather than a firm one. As far as I know there is no research proving that memory foam mattresses work any better than regular ones.

The most important thing for you is to get the right mattress for you, your body shape and your back pain problem. This will vary with everyone and might well be a memory foam bed.

This page on best mattress choice gives you some pointers on what you should be looking for.

And whilst I don’t want you to leave my website I must tell you about this great web site from the Sleep Council that helps you choose the right mattress type. Come back soon though!

Regards

Paula

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References

1. Kovacs, F. M.,et al 2003, "Effect of firmness of mattress on chronic non-specific low-back pain: Randomised, double-blind, controlled, multicentre trial", Lancet, vol. 362, no. 9396, pp. 1599-1604.