IS A HARD MATTRESS OR A SOFT MATTRESS BETTER?
Have you decided to buy a new mattress for your bed? In this case you will be interested in several important criteria. For example, its hardness. How soft or firm should a mattress be?
Usually people are guided by their own desires and habits. Some people prefer to sleep on stiffer surfaces, while others prefer firm mattresses. Are firm mattresses better for you if you pefer to sleep on the floor?
But it is not just a personal desire for comfort that moves us when we are shopping for sleep products. Many of us are concerned about our health!
Unfortunately, the discomfort with the spine is also a significant factor. And if you regularly have back pain, then to choose a firm or soft mattress is a very important question. In this case, this question must be approached more carefully.
After all, correctly selected orthopedic mattress will relieve the load from the spine. This, in turn, will help the muscles to relax more deeply during sleep and, as a consequence, lead to optimal rest, comfort, and the opportunity to get a good night's sleep.
STIFFNESS
Soft mattresses can be very pliable, such that will sag very noticeably under the weight of your body. There are also very hard models. The latter sag significantly less. What mattress do i need - firm mattress or soft? Let us discuss this issue in detail.
Note that the excessive rigidity of the surface where people sleep is not good for their back. Sleep becomes less comfortable and not so relaxing. Increased hardness does not allow you to take a comfortable position and does not relieve the load in the shoulder spine, as well as in other places. This has a negative effect on comfort during a night's rest.
Overly soft mattresses are also not beneficial. While sleeping on such products spine does not find the necessary support. And there is no supportive effect on our body. Due to the fact that the back is unnaturally curved, some muscle groups during sleep are not relaxed. Therefore too soft bed cannot lead to a comfortable and recovery sleep. Therefore, mattress soft should not be chosen by everyone. Each product - hard and soft mattress has its pros and cons.
So, let's discuss the pros and cons of soft vs firm mattresses in general.
A firm mattress: pros and cons
Pros:
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A hard mattress provides good pressure support if you don't have back problems. If you sleep on your side, mattress hard will help you maintain a neutral position relative to your spine.
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A firmer mattress helps to keep your lower back straight and not curl lower than your upper body and hips. In this way, this collapse will not make it difficult to breathe while you sleep.
Cons.
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Hard mattresses are not a good option for those who have some lower back problems such as arthritis, scoliosis and rheumatism.
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Your body weight can create depressions in the mattress that cannot be smoothed out.
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A hard mattress can put painful pressure on certain pressure points, such as your shoulders and hips, while not supporting your lower back.
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If you are considering hard mattresses but with a foam or latex block top layer, or a mattress topper for a basic mattress, think twice before purchasing such a mattress. It has some positive results in comfort. You don't feel like you're sinking into it, but you do feel that your movement is restricted. However, you lack support in your lower back, which can slip at night and cause back pain.
HOW TO DECIDE WHAT TO CHOOSE? FIRM MATTRESS VS SOFT.
Is a hard or soft mattress better to choose? In order to answer this question and to choose a better mattress, we must take into account several important parameters of a person:
- First, it is his weight.
- Secondly, how old he is.
- Third, the presence or absence of diseases of his spine.
- Fourth, his favorite sleeping positions.
- Fifth, how much physical exertion he experiences while awake.
- Sixth, one should not forget that the person may not sleep on the mattress alone. In this case, it is necessary to consider these parameters for all people using this product for sleep when choosing mattress softness.
AGE
Age is an important factor when choosing a hard mattress or soft mattress. Newborn babies need special sleeping conditions. In addition, they spend most of their time lying down. For the correct formation of the spine babies need a hard mattress. Also, do not forget that all things that come into contact with a newborn should be hypoallergenic.
For two and three year old children should choose soft bed mattresses for sleeping. This is due to the peculiarities of this age. A soft to medium mattresses, which have no springs, are suitable for them.
The human spine continues to form until about 25 years of age. That's why until that age, only hard orthopedic mattresses with increased and medium hardness should be used. Thus, firm mattress benefits are obvious in this case.
After those years and up to the age of forty-five will be appropriate variety of options for sleep products, taking into account the features that we spoke about earlier. Also, do not forget about the correct position of the spine during sleep. To maintain it you will need orthopedic mattress models.
Those who have already crossed the forty-five-year mark, should use only soft firmness mattress and products of medium hardness. A soft orthopedic mattress is the best option. This is the advice given by the experts.
WEIGHT
What role does weight play when choosing mattresses? Very important! After all, it also affects the position of our body on surfaces of different rigidity. Let's start with the thin women.
How to choose mattress firmness for thin women? Those whose weight does not exceed 55 kilograms, it is recommended to sleep exclusively on soft products for sleep. In this case a variety of models will be appropriate. Both non-spring and springs mattresses will be suitable. Latex or another popular option can be used as a filler.
Those who weigh up to 90 kilograms are recommended to use a medium stiffness product. These people may well sleep on mattresses having independent spring blocks. As a filler, individual types of popular options or their combinations will be suitable.
Those whose weight exceeds 90 kg need firmer surfaces for sleep. Therefore, the answer to a question “hard vs soft mattress” should be “a hard mattress”. For example, they can choose non-spring models of products for sleeping with fillers of suitable density. Models with springs will also do. However, they should not be standard, but with increased rigidity.
HEALTH
Another equally important factor in choosing a mattress is the presence or absence of diseases. If you often have pain in the lumbar spine, then you should forget about a hard mattress! The optimal variant for you will be soft beds.
Should discomfort in the upper part of the spine be common to you, then on the contrary, use a stiffer model.
If you have any special diseases or injuries of the spine, be sure to consult your doctor before buying a mattress!
People with an active lifestyle and high physical stress are recommended to use firmer products for sleep as for them firm mattress is better. Best soft bed will be appropriate for the opposite type of people. That is, for those who are not particularly strenuous during the day.
POSTURE, NUMBER OF PEOPLE AND OTHER NUANCES
Your favorite sleeping position is just as important when choosing a mattress. For those who prefer to rest on their side, a soft product should be used. For people who like to "sleep with their stomachs facing upwards" the medium hardness of the mattress is recommended. Those who find the posture on the stomach more comfortable will prefer a rigid model.
What bed firmness is good for backs of two people at once? It is not uncommon for two persons to sleep on the same mattress at the same time. Therefore, their peculiarities should be taken into account. And of course, most people have different weights. For example, if in one bed sleeps a man and a woman with a weight of 86 and 56 kg, respectively, there is a clear problem. How to choose a product for sleeping so that it is suitable for both partners? Is a firm or soft mattress better in this case?
Yes, we can take a mattress model that is suitable for the weight of the man, but then it will be uncomfortable for the woman. And vice versa, we can opt for a product that will be designed for the weight of the female body, but in this case the representative of the stronger sex will experience discomfort. What to do?
As a way out of this situation we can use a special mattress: one half has one stiffness and the other half has another. In this case it is possible to use the best option for everyone. And if suddenly one side is not to your liking, it is always possible to "swap" and try the other. So it is quite robable that you will soon find an answer to a question: “Do I need a firm or soft mattress?” in this case.
And now we'll give you recommendations for buying mattresses with different stiffness, which you can easily choose in our online store for every taste and wallet!