The Best Editor-Tested Mattresses That’ll Help You Prevent Back Pain, According to Healthcare Professionals
Whether you just sleep in your bed or use it for work and leisure, you’ll want a quality mattress. This is especially true if you’ve experienced back pain in the past or currently suffer from it. But finding the right mattress is much easier said than done because mattresses are a big investment. It’s tough to know whether a mattress will bring comfort or pain until you’ve tried it out for a while. Thankfully, we’ve done the work for you and tested them. We also spoke to experts on what to look for: physiatrist Dr. Nnaemeka Echebiri from the Hospital for Special Surgery and physical therapist Dr. Danielle Weis, who owns Wise Orthopedic Physical Therapy in Brooklyn Heights. Both frequently work with patients who experience back, joint, and neck pain, so they were able to talk to us about qualities to look for when mattress shopping.
Both Echebiri and Weis noted that the wrong sleep surface doesn’t so much cause bodily pain as it does exacerbate existing conditions. “People may have back pain due to poor posture, muscle weakness — those are typically the causes of back pain and muscular imbalance or atrophy over time, and that can typically be exacerbated by your sleep mechanics and body positioning,” Echebiri said. Weis tells her patients that pain does not exist in a vacuum. “Everything is connected,” she said. “So sleep is going to directly affect how they’re feeling — whether they’ve slept really well and they’re feeling better, or whether they haven’t slept great and it’s contributing to stress.”
Factors to Consider When Finding the Right Mattress for Preventing Back Pain
Mattress Firmness
Research has shown that where mattress firmness is concerned, medium-firm is the way to go. Sleeping on a surface that’s neither too hard nor too soft promotes optimal comfort and helps prevent stiffness in the back and other parts of the body, such as the hips. Weis noted, however, that the research has limitations, and buying a mattress just because it’s classified as medium-firm is not a one-size-fits-all solution.
“Medium-firm is what’s most recommended these days, but with the caveat that you have to try it, and you have to make sure you’re comfortable because if you’re going to have a terrible night’s sleep because you’re uncomfortable, that’s going to affect your overall wellness for the next day as well,” Weis said.
Sleep Position
Of course, the position in which you sleep is also important. You want to achieve neutral spine alignment, which is key for preventing back pain. “Unfortunately, the position that’s the worst for your back is going to be sleeping on your stomach,” Echebiri said. “When you do that, your belly and your hips tend to sink into the mattress a bit more, and you’re putting a lot of stress on the facets.”
As a result, you might also want to supplement your mattress with the right pillows. Research suggests, for example, that a soft mattress calls for a softer, thinner pillow. “With a hard mattress, you don’t get enough sinking,” Echebiri said. “It’s hard to get your shoulders to sink into the mattress, so you can have pretty bad neck pain, and you need to augment that with maybe thicker pillows. If you’re sleeping on your back, maybe your hips don’t sink into the mattress enough, and you might have to put pillows beneath your knees to help promote proper alignment.”
Test Before You Buy
What our experts emphasized above all else is the importance of testing mattresses before you decide on one. In any case, most mattresses are expensive, so you’ll want to do your research even if you don’t have a history of back problems. Unfortunately, the matter is not as simple as finding a mattress labeled “medium-firm” and ordering it to your address.
“Everybody’s body is different, and there is no ‘best’ for every person,” Weis said. “You have to invest some time into looking for the correct items for you. You know, going to the store, lying down on the mattresses, testing out a few pillows. Have a friend go with you and take pictures so you can see, like, ‘Oh my god, my head is totally lifted. That probably won’t feel good.’ It’s easy to go with these recommendations that we see everywhere, but we really have to cater to our own bodies.”
If you can visit a mattress store and test different options, that would be ideal. To give you a starting point, though, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite mattresses below from a range of brands and featuring a variety of materials. Our editors have tested and come to love each one of these mattresses, so you can at least keep in mind which ones have earned our stamp of approval while you search for your own perfect fit.
The Best Editor-Tested Mattress for Preventing Back Pain
Other Options to Consider
Below are some mattresses we have not tested, but they come from brands we trust and promise to promote comfort and relieve pressure.
