What's The Best Mattress To Buy For A Bad Back
Factors such as your preferred sleeping position, weight, and feel preference all contribute to the type of mattress you need. For example, depending on your weight and sleeping position, a firmer mattress might do a great job of distributing your weight evenly across the mattress OR it might create discomfort for the neck, shoulders, and pelvic, which can lead to lower back pain.
what's the best mattress to buy for a bad back
With that being said, not all firm-feeling mattresses are going to be supportive for every sleeper. If your mattress is too soft (as in unsupportive) or too firm (as in overly supportive) then you may not be getting the correct support you need for your back pain. In fact, an overly supportive mattress may keep your bed from forming natural mattress body impressions which help create the perfect support for your spine. Meanwhile, sleeping on a low-quality mattress with less support can increase the risk of back pain.
The following recommendations may help you find the perfect mattress, but if you have any questions, we highly recommend visiting our showrooms and speaking to a mattress specialist. There are simply so many factors to consider when choosing a mattress and our staff has years of experience helping customers find the right mattress for their precise needs.
A soft-feeling mattress is recommended as the best mattress for side sleepers because it provides an extra cushion for your hips and shoulders and keeps your spine in a neutral position. A medium-firm mattress is the best mattress for stomach sleepers since it will help keep your hips elevated, preventing aches and pains in your back.
Again the exact type of mattress will depend on your body type, but our general recommendation for a soft-feeling mattress would be the Bel Air Graphite Deluxe Mattress which features a pocketed coil system and Plush top layer for cloud-like comfort and healthy support. Our general recommendation for medium mattresses is the Noah Allen Plush which combines gel-infused memory foam and a pocketed coil support system to keep your body neutral as you sleep.
Texas Mattress Makers offers quality mattresses handmade right here in the state of Texas. Unlike other manufacturers, our passion lies in helping you find the perfect mattress that will last you a lifetime, not just a few years.
According to the Health Policy Institute, 8% of adult Americans suffer from chronic back pain, and four times as many have experienced a recent back pain episode. If you suffer from back pain, it's essential to keep your spine properly aligned and supported.
While our guide to the best mattresses offers suggestions for all types of sleepers, back-pain sufferers are such a significant proportion of the population that we wanted to dedicate a buying guide to their needs.
Typically, a bed that feels medium-firm is best for back pain. A mattress will feel different depending on what you're used to, so we offer a range of firmness options among the picks in our guide. I tested over 25 mattresses for this guide and consulted with two experts.
The Leesa Sapira Hybrid Mattress is our top pick for several reasons. During the year I slept on it, I had the least back pain since my initial injury, despite exercising heavily. The sub-$2,000 mattress is also great because it has an average firmness that will appeal to most sleeping styles and body types. When sleeping on the Leesa, I preferred sleeping on my side. That's why it's the best mattress for side sleepers with back pain in our side sleeper mattress guide. It shaped to my contours, which kept my spine aligned.
The pocket coils offered outstanding edge support. The motion isolation is also excellent; the mattress passed my bowling ball test with flying colors. These results and my subjective experience suggest the mattress is an excellent solution for couples.
For our budget mattress criteria, $1,100 was our maximum price and the Helix Midnight Mattress is the best for back pain at that price point. It has the medium-firm feel that our experts recommend for back-pain sufferers. The mattress did a great job helping me recover from a back-pain episode. I preferred sleeping on my stomach while testing it and recommend it for stomach and back sleepers or heavier individuals.
This is also an outstanding bed for couples. The Helix Midnight passed my bowling ball test, and I could barely feel it as my second-grader bounded onto the bed. The edge support may be the best of any mattress I've tested. I didn't sink much when sitting on the side, and I was on the very edge before I rolled off while lying down.
The Nectar mattress will appeal most to side sleepers thanks to its medium firmness, though it may still be firm enough for back and stomach sleepers. I preferred sleeping on my side, and my back remained pain-free during testing.
The Nectar features a cooling mattress cover made of a Tencel-poly blend. The mattress is composed of three layers of CertiPUR-US certified foams: a top layer of gel memory foam, an adaptive-response transition layer to help relieve pressure points, and a base layer of supportive foam. Even in a hot room, the mattress stayed cool and I didn't overheat. When I got up, the heat dissipated quickly.
Couples will appreciate the excellent motion isolation. However, the mattress fell short in the edge support department. The foam sank noticeably on the side whether I was sitting or lying down. At under $800, the Nectar Memory Foam Mattress is cheaper than our budget pick, but we don't feel it's as supportive as the Helix Midnight. Still, if you want to save a few hundred dollars and prefer foam mattresses to hybrids, the Nectar is a great buy.
Adjustable air beds offer custom firmness on each side, making them ideal for couples with different sleep preferences. The best air bed we've tested for back pain is the Sleep Number 360 i8 Smart Bed, though at over $3,200, it isn't for all budgets.
The i8 has 20 firmness options. You can adjust each side of the bed to get the ideal medium-firm feel that experts recommend to reduce back pain. There's also an "automatic air" function that adjusts the firmness as you shift positions to provide consistent support and pressure relief around your hips and shoulders. I found this feature alleviated my back pain and facilitated undisturbed sleep.
While the i8 has good edge support, its motion isolation is subpar. My wife said the mattress felt almost like a waterbed because it jostled her so much when I flopped down. I was initially unimpressed with the sleep tracker, which Sleep Number hypes as the main selling point of this expensive mattress. However, the accuracy and quality of the SleepIQ app (available for iOS and Android) have improved dramatically since I tested this mattress.
Bear mattresses feature Celliant covers. Celliant is supposed to help with heat dissipation, but there aren't any scientific studies on mattresses that support this. However, in my objective tests, I found the Bear Hybrid stayed cool and quickly dissipated heat when I got up from it.
The Bear Hybrid has an average firmness, which catered to my side-sleeping preference. It was just what I needed as I recovered from back pain, and my back felt strong again after the testing period. The mattress features a combination of coils and CertiPUR-US and Greenguard Gold-certified foams. The cool top layer is gel memory foam. Below that is a comfort foam followed by a transition foam for pressure relief followed by durable coils and a supportive foam base.
The Bear Hybrid was average in our motion isolation and edge support tests. It failed the bowling ball test, and I could feel movement on the bed while I lay on it, but it wasn't extreme. Lying on the edge, I had to roll quite far before I fell off. However, the edge sank substantially when I sat on it. This is a good but not fantastic mattress for couples by those assessments.
Back sleepers who suffer from back pain should look for a medium-firm mattress that provides added cushioning around the shoulders and hips. The best bet for back sleepers according to our testing is the Tempur-Pedic PRObreeze Mattress.
I love the way Tempur-Pedic's proprietary foam contours to my body to supply optimal pressure-point relief and support where I most need it, especially around the shoulders and hips. It does an outstanding job of keeping my spine aligned while I sleep, reducing the chance of back pain.
The slightly firm mattress worked well for my wife and me. Between the two of us, we exhibit every sleeping style. The motion-dampening properties made sharing the bed with my wife and dog easier since I wasn't jostled as they moved during the night. However, the edge support left a lot to be desired. The PRObreeze comes with free white-glove delivery, which will save you some back pain since the bed is quite heavy. It's also heavy on the pocketbook at over $4,000. If that's out of your price range, consider the Birch Mattress by Helix at a third of the price.
You need to keep your spine in a neutral alignment if you want a fighting chance of healing and avoiding back pain. For stomach sleepers, that means sleeping on a firmer mattress. The sub-$1,500 Awara Organic Luxury Hybrid Mattress offers the firm, comfortable support ideal for stomach sleepers.
While testing the Awara mattress, I preferred stomach sleeping, though I tend to gravitate to my side on other beds. During the two-week testing period, I didn't experience any back soreness or pain. I liked the comfortable feel of the soft organic wool Euro-top. Under that is Rainforest Alliance-certified Dunlop latex. The base support core is made up of individually wrapped pocket springs.
The Awara mattress barely failed our motion transfer test, suggesting average motion isolation. The bed also has average edge support. However, it has significant bounce. The heft of the mattress makes it hard to move, but the sewn-in handles help with maneuverability.
At $2,000, the Cloud is the most affordable Tempur-Pedic mattress, featuring the brand's comfortable proprietary foam. The three layers of foam adjust to your body's contours no matter your position. Couples with different sleeping styles will benefit from this and the impressive motion-dampening properties that keep you from getting jostled when your partner shifts in the night. 041b061a72