How to Find the Right Mattress Firmness for Your Body’s Needs
Researchers discovered long ago that not getting enough sleep or not sleeping soundly enough can impair cognitive functioning and cause or worsen physical and mental health issues ranging from diabetes to depression. Feeling sluggish or fatigued during daylight also increases the risk of accident injuries. If you want to avoid health problems and feel energized when you get up in the morning, you will need a sleeping surface that keeps you comfortable and supports your body. That means finding a mattress that is not too soft and not too firm, which can be harder than it sounds.
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The Mattress Firmness Scale
Manufacturers let consumers know how firm or soft their mattresses are by giving them a firmness rating of between 1 and 10. Softer mattresses are given lower firmness ratings, and mattresses are usually classified as being extra soft, soft, medium, medium-firm, firm or extra firm. Mattresses with firmness ratings at the upper or lower limit are rare as they would be either too soft or too firm for most people.
A mattress with a firmness rating of 1 or 2 would be extraordinarily plush but provide very little support, and a mattress with a firmness rating of 9 or 10 would provide exceptional support but be uncomfortable to sleep on. If you are weighing the pros and cons of a plush vs. firm mattress, understanding firmness ratings will be very useful.
Support and Pressure Relief
You will sleep more soundly at night if your mattress provides support and relieves pressure. When you fall asleep, most of your body weight is transferred to your mattress through pressure points like the shoulders, ribs and hips. Quality mattresses use coils, foam or a combination of coils and foam to relieve this pressure and distribute a sleeper’s body weight more evenly.
Support refers to how well a mattress keeps the spine properly aligned. Firmer mattresses provide more support but do not relieve pressure as effectively as softer mattresses. To find a mattress that offers the best combination of support and pressure relief, consider your body weight and your preferred sleeping position.
The Best Mattress Firmness for Stomach Sleepers
You will probably be happier with a firmer mattress if you like to sleep on your stomach. Your stomach will sink into the mattress if you sleep in this position on a soft mattress, which could place your spine in an unnatural position and cause lower back pain. To keep your spine correctly aligned when you sleep on your stomach, you will need a firm mattress with a numerical rating of at least 7. That should be firm enough to keep your hips and shoulders level while you sleep.
The Best Mattress Firmness for Back Sleepers
People who sleep on their backs sometimes have difficulty finding mattresses that provide the right combination of comfort and support. A back sleeper’s hips will sink into a mattress that is too soft, which could pull their spine out of alignment. If a back sleeper’s mattress is too firm, it could create an uncomfortable pressure point at the base of their back. A medium or medium-firm mattress with a firmness rating of 6.5 or 7 would probably give you the most comfortable and supportive sleeping surface if you like to sleep on your back.
The Best Mattress Firmness for Side Sleepers
You will probably sleep much more comfortably on a plush or ultra plush mattress if you usually sleep on your side. This sleeping position creates pressure points at the shoulders, hips and lower back, so you will need a softer mattress that absorbs this pressure and distributes your body weight. A mattress with a firmness rating of between 4 and 6 would be a good choice, and you may also want to consider a mattress with zoned support that is softer at the shoulders and firmer at the hips.
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The Best Mattress Firmness for Combination Sleepers
If you do not have a preferred sleeping position or your partner sleeps in a different position to you, finding a supportive and comfortable mattress will be more difficult. If you toss and turn during the night, you should look for a mattress with a firmness rating of between 5 and 7 that provides comfort when lying on your stomach, back or side. If you and your partner sleep in different positions, you could both be comfortable if you placed two twin XL mattresses on a king-sized bed. A twin XL mattress is the same length as a king mattress but is half as wide.
How Body Weight Affects Mattress Firmness
The mattress firmness scale provides consumers useful information but does not tell them everything they need. This is because a heavy person and a light person who sleep on the same mattress will have different experiences. A heavy person will sink deeply into a mattress, but a lighter person will only compress the outermost comfort layers. This means the same mattress will feel softer to a heavier person and firmer to a lighter person.
The Importance of Edge Support
Many people prefer firmer mattresses because they provide better edge support. A mattress that sinks down when you sit on the edge will be harder to get out of, which can be a serious problem for older individuals or people with mobility issues. Better edge support also improves mattress durability and increases the available sleeping area.
Improved Sleep and Better Health
The mattress you sleep on can profoundly impact your quality of life. Researchers have discovered that sleeping on a mattress that provides adequate support can improve sleep quality by 55% and reduce lower back pain by 48%, which is why consumer tools like mattress firmness ratings are so important. If you want to enjoy restful sleep every night, you should look for a mattress with a firmness rating that matches your preferred sleeping position.
