What is the best posture for sleeping?
There are several factors that influence, such as the mattress, the number of hours we sleep, stress, diet or posture. Next we will help you choose the best one sleeping posture.
What is the best posture for sleeping?
A healthy person will take the sleeping posture in a natural way, the one that the body itself finds most comfortable, on its side, face up, face down, etc. But, what happens when we suffer from some basic ailment and it conditions our sleep?
The concept of sleeping posture refers to the position of our body in space and its relationship with the environment. Our body adapts to the support surface and for this, neurophysiological and biomechanical mechanisms intervene. Thanks to these mechanisms, the body has the ability to regulate the balance and position of the body through postural muscles (the vast majority make up the muscles of the neck, back and abdomen).
The sleeping posture can be physiological, that is, the one that is considered normal and adapts to the surface, or on the contrary, pathological or abnormal, which is what causes us physical problems. During sleep, our posture changes and depends entirely on our morphology. If you suffer from a physical problem that affects your posture during our daily life, such as neck pain or inflammation of the joints such as shoulder or hip (the most common in the population), they can severely condition our rest. However, there are recommended sleeping postures and ways to avoid making this pain worse in the meantime.
Is there a relationship between back pain and sleeping posture?
Studies have not been able to show that the sleeping posture we adopt is a direct consequence of. However, it is true that the surface on which we rest can influence or suffer a specific pathology or ailment that limits certain postures during rest and these same can worsen the pain.
In general, our body always looks for the most comfortable way to fall asleep, during one night we can move between five and 10 times every hour. If one is healthy and the surface where we rest is adequate, there should be no conflict. Some specialists recommend sleeping on your side or back since they are the sleeping postures in which the curvatures of the spine are at rest.
What should the surfaces on which we rest be?
The influence of the mattress or surface where you rest can affect our health. muscle contractions or nerve entrapments may appear, which is why it is very important to use a ergonomic mattress that adapts to our rest needs. It must be firm so that the pelvis does not sink into it with our weight and that it allows the correct alignment of the lumbar curvature avoiding tension.
The pillow is also an element that must be taken into account, in addition to the mattress. This must have a greater thickness and density to support the head and allow us to keep it aligned with the axis of the cervical vertebrae. If the pillow is not consistent, the head can sink and cause it to tilt backwards if we sleep on our back creating an extension of the head. If you sleep on the side, the head leans towards the shoulder on which we are supported, causing tensions in the muscles of the cervical region in both positions and problems such as tension headaches.
What sleeping postures are recommended?
- Face up: It is one of the recommended postures, but lumbar curvature must be taken into account. In this position, the straight legs cause the psoas muscle to be in a stretched position. This muscle originates in the iliac area of the pelvis and attaches to the lumbar vertebrae. And the supine position (lying on your back) predisposes the muscle to stretching by causing a traction on the lumbar vertebrae pronouncing the lumbar curvature and creating a tension in the area during the resting position. So how can you relax your lower back during sleep? Placing a pillow under the knees that causes a slight flexion of the knee and hip and allows the muscle to relax and reduces tension in the lower back.
- Sideways: It is one of the postures most recommended by specialists, since it allows the lumbar and cervical curvature to remain at rest, also respecting their physiology. What's more, promotes breathing, reduces snoring and gastric reflux. We can stand on the side, on one of the hips and flexing both legs allowing the psoas muscle and the lumbar curvature to decrease their tension. A cushion can be placed between the knees so that the collision between them is not annoying. In addition, this posture allows you to make variations from one side to the other easily. It is also due to the morphological changes that they undergo during pregnancy. On the other hand, the posture in which we place our arms should also be observed, if we use them as support we can cause nerve entrapments of the brachial plexus. It is common for many people to get up with a tingling sensation in the arms, and this occurs when the head is supported by the arm and the radial nerve is compressed against the humerus bone, known as '' sleep paralysis ''.
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- Studies have not been able to show that the posture we adopt when sleeping is a direct consequence of back pain.
- However, the surface on which we rest can influence or suffer from a specific pathology or ailment that limits certain postures during rest and can worsen pain.
- The surface must be firm so that the pelvis does not sink into it with our weight and that it allows the correct alignment of the lumbar curvature avoiding tension.
yasmina Santiago Physiotherapy Specialist
(Updated at Apr 14 / 2024)