How to Choose a Mattress
Health professionals advise that getting quality sleep daily contributes to our general health. A comfortable mattress plays an important role in how much sleep we get and how relaxing our body feels afterward. Yet, many disregard the importance of a good mattress while the majority continue to sleep on mattresses that offer less to zero support and comfort.
Now that you care enough to get insights on how to choose a mattress for your bedroom space, we’d enlighten you on how to achieve your aim. Let’s get started!
Material Types
Getting acquainted with the several material types of mattresses out there would help with your selection process. To help surge your way through the confusing moments when shopping online for a mattress, let's discuss these four material types:
Popular in most parts of the world, foam mattresses come in all foams and no coils. Foam mattresses work in the most unique ways as they provide such relaxing contouring to the body. Depending on the brand, they offer motion isolation and pressure relief feeling for couples and individuals that sleep on their sides. There are a few types of foams used by various manufacturers, however, memory foams are the most common of all.
If you’re out on the look for a mattress with a coil-based support system for the perfect spring balance, then go for an innerspring mattress. Innerspring mattresses come with a few other layers aside from the coil-based system. Though the coil system offers enough support, many often sway away from innerspring mattresses because of their zero pressure relief features and limited motion isolation.
Hybrid mattresses come with dual-central elements that offer users the perfect contouring and bounce combo. They are often designed with innerspring as the support core and foam layering for the best comforting upper-layer texture. In the place of foam layering, some manufacturers design their hybrids using latex and sometimes infuse short layers of coils (micro-coils). With hybrids, you also get low heat retention suitable for all sleeping positions.
Ever heard your neighbor mention how super comfy their all-latex or true-latex mattress gets? YES! Latex mattresses are as their name imply made of latex rubber and are responsible for the super-bouncy feel you get from your neighbor’s mattress. If you’ve never been a fan of over-the-top contouring, latex mattresses offer moderately-bouncy contouring to help you relax better.
When shopping for the right mattress, you should consider the firmness (comfort) factor. Simply put, the level of firmness of a mattress is how soft or hard it feels when sleeping. Side sleepers that weigh below 130 pounds can consider going for soft or extra soft mattresses. If you weigh below 230pounds and also love to sleep on your side, you should go for medium-soft mattresses.
Alternatively, back and side sleepers that weigh between 150 and 230 pounds would fall in the love with the comfort that comes with medium mattresses. Persons that sleep on their backs or face-down and weigh between 150 and 230 pounds - as well as side sleepers that weigh over 230 pounds should consider going for medium-firm mattresses. If you'd rather sleep on your side and also weigh above 230 pounds, go for a firm mattress instead.
If you prefer to lay face down or on your back and happen to weigh above 230 pounds by the way, then go for extra firm mattresses. While the weights listed above helps to narrow down your preferred choice when it comes to firmness, comfort when selecting a mattress is subjective. It helps to, however, know your preferred sleeping position as well as weight to get rid of the possibility of wild-guessing when buying a new mattress.
Aside from these, ponder a little longer on whether you mostly prefer to have a softer or harder mattress. A very good way to also make your selection based on the firmness of the mattress is by comparing yours with a recently used one. Perhaps you noticed a more comforting feeling while resting on a friend’s bed or lodging at a hotel for that business summit. It’s okay to ask the firmness level of the mattress to help you get something similar.
How to Choose a Mattress for Back Pain
We'd rather not go into the several causes of back pain to keep the sanity of this guide, however, sleeping on the wrong mattress is a major factor that cannot be excluded. People that do not have back problems may suddenly develop discomfort as they sleep on mattresses without good support. On the other hand, people with back issues could easily regain proper back support with comfortable and great cushioning mattresses.
Getting the right mattress for your back pain problems begins with identifying the pain in your back. After that, you could then consider style, preferences, among other things. Some back pain lasts for a short period with severe, blunt, or sharp pain known as acute back pain. Another common one lasts longer and it's called chronic back pain. Backaches start gradually from the aftermath of an injury before they become chronic.
People suffering from acute back pain often only require temporary comfort from their mattresses. For many, this may involve changing their sleeping positions or consider adding extra pillows for support. For persons dealing with chronic back pain on the other hand, taking more deliberate actions like picking out a softer or firmer mattress may be needed. Also, watching out for the most comforting posture would help the spine relax properly.
Lower Back Pain
The sharp pain felt within the bottom five vertebrae (medically referred to as (L1-L5)of the lumbar area is known as lower back pain. It's the major reason why many young adults and adults visit their doctors complaining of back pain. This section of the back and the lumbar area is considered the most vulnerable to aches and pain from twisting and bending. Continuous or regular activities in that region could lead to harming the muscles or spine.
Laying on the bed for long hours in the wrong sleeping position could lead to severe lower backaches. For individuals that sleep on their sides, the build-up begins when the hips or shoulders lacking adequate support. This posture often results in having the spine thrown in an off-kilter position. For back or stomach sleepers, backache comes from sleeping on a super-soft or extra-firm mattress which exacts more pressure on the curvature of the spine.
To resolve this, side sleepers are better off sleeping on medium-soft or medium-hard mattresses to help them get better cushion support. Persons that prefer to sleep on their backs or stomach have better chances of avoiding backaches when they sleep on medium-firm to firm mattresses.
Middle & Upper Back Pain
We don't get lots of folks complaining about middle and upper backaches. The body structure in this region is rather stable than the other parts which make the area seem a bit stiff. This stability is the reason we're less likely to experience sprains or strains from movement in this region. Feeling discomfort in these areas could be traced to more significant problems that may require the attention of a doctor.
In some instances, bad posture can result in undue tension in the middle or upper back areas. Getting a pressure-relieving mattress that supports spinal alignment could help you reduce your chances of feeling pain in the middle or upper back region. Also, investing in quality pillows with enough lofts helps to provide your neck and upper spine the support needed for proper blood flow.
Sleeping Positions
You’re just a few steps from becoming a pro at picking the most suitable mattress for comfy nights! Now, what position do you switch to when you can literally feel the sleep kicking in any moment? Also, what sleeping position do you open your eyes to while angrily staring at the alarm clock before snoozing?
The answers to these questions would earn you extra points in your quest to finding the most comforting mattress for you. Several parts of the human body need adequate support while we sleep to help us maintain spinal alignment all night. The majority of this support is embedded in our sleeping postures. For this reason, picking the most suitable mattress for your sleeping position would prevent you from having pain and body aches.
Back Sleepers
Back sleepers exact the highest amount of force on their lower back when sleeping. When back sleepers lay on extra-soft mattresses, their torso sinks far into the bed causing a U-shape posture all night long. The U-shape leads to a strain as the upper and lower body remains in an irregular posture for a long time.
Alternatively, going for an extremely firm mattress causes stiffness on the slight curve in the lower back. This makes it very uncomfortable to relax the hollow on the lower back while sleeping because of the amount of opposite pressure from the mattress. Having said this, back sleepers sleep best in medium-firm to firm mattresses that offer moderate cushioning.
Side Sleepers
Persons that sleep on their sides have a few pressure points mostly felt on the shoulder and hip areas. On a super-soft mattress, these points sprout out deep into the mattress making them look out of line from the spine. Alternatively, side sleepers are likely to experience misalignment in these points when they sleep on extra-firm mattresses. For the best relaxing results, side sleepers should sleep on medium-soft to medium-firm mattresses.
Stomach Sleepers
Like back sleepers, stomach sleepers also exact a quite similar amount of pressure on their lumbar spines. As a stomach sleeper, you'd feel most comfortable sleeping on a firm mattress. Firm mattresses help you to prevent your body from making the U-shape that could lead to strain and possible suffocation when sleeping face-down on the bed.
Combination Sleepers
If you find yourself losing track of your sleeping positions at night, then you must be a combination sleeper. No worries; it’s not a sleeping disability! While it might be difficult to determine, you’d have to figure out what position you sleep on the most and pick a mattress based on that.
If you can’t come up with any position on the top of your head, you might have to go with a medium-firm mattress to test. Generally, medium-firm mattresses offer everyone considerate comfort that cuts across all sleeping positions. Combination sleepers particularly may have to shop for responsive mattresses to aid easy movement as they sleep.
Body Types
Like the material types, firmness, and sleeping positions, our body shapes and weights also influence the selection process of shopping for a new mattress. The best mattress you should always remember is one that provides comfort and spinal support among other relaxation features.
As lightweights individuals, persons that weigh below 130 pounds often never sink so far into a mattress. If you fall into this category, your best contouring option would be from an extra-soft mattress especially when you’re a side sleeper with pronounced pressure points. You definitely do not want to get an innerspring mattress, however, foam or hybrid beds can get you the comfort needed for a sound sleep.
If you weigh between 130 and 230 pounds, you should go with the firm mattress suggestion we made earlier from the firmness section. You could consider selecting between hybrid, latex, and foam mattresses for perfect cushioning if you fall under this category. These three material types offer a wide range of designs and features to help make your selection easier.
Persons that weigh above 230 pounds often have issues dealing with sinking into the mattress so deep that it becomes really uncomfortable. It becomes extremely annoying when this happens close to the heavier parts of their body. This often leads to risking throwing off the spinal alignment while they sleep. Getting more firm mattresses increases your chances of avoiding this risk.
Movement on responsive mattresses comes super easy which makes them extremely valuable to persons that weigh above 230 pounds. Primarily because responsive mattresses help to reduce your chances of feeling trapped in one section of the bed while sleeping. Hybrid and latex mattress types come with this feature for all position sleepers.
When picking a mattress, durability is another factor you must consider. Mostly, persons that weigh above 230 pounds often exact so much weight on their mattresses that it starts to show off on the top layer of the bed. Therefore, heavyweight sleepers would have the best comfort system when they go through thick mattresses made from high-density materials.
While the body type and weight of a person play important roles in selecting a mattress, other factors count also. Persons with broader hips or shoulders would most likely need extra-soft mattresses for better contouring. If you’re also above six feet tall, you should inspect the dimensions of the mattress properly to ensure you make a pick that enables you to stretch comfortably.
Pricing
Like every piece of furniture in your home, investing in the right mattress equals long-term investment in your comfort. This may sometimes mean spending a considerably high amount of money to get a mattress that suits you perfectly well. So, pricing you'd agree is a major factor when discussing the subject of how to choose a mattress.
The common exercise to take when considering pricing is to think hard about your overall bedroom budget. This would, of course, include the mattress you're about to get among other bedroom furniture and accessories like a bedspread and new comfy pillows.
You should know at this point that the pricing for mattresses goes from low-cost low-quality brands to premium-quality six-figure designer mattresses. Looking at a few mattress brands and models recently, the cost of a mattress could range between $600 and $2000.
Also, mattresses with additional features and quite exquisite designs frequently attract a high price tag. However, this does not mean that the costlier the mattress, the better the comfort it offers you. Clearly, this sounds like comforting news to persons looking to shop for a mattress with a tight budget. Here are a few factors to consider when choosing your mattress based on pricing:
- Materials: When considering pricing, you may want to know that materials like latex cost more. Also, going for a mattress that comes in hand-crafted stitching, organic fabric layering, and additional features would spike up the price of the mattress.
- Type of Construction: Clearly, the design and overall construction of a mattress would tell on its price. Regardless, please note that mattresses with longer lengths come in extra layers that cause an increase in the price.
- Brand: Like every consumer product in all sectors, front-row brands that offer luxury products branded in exquisite taste charge more than the rest.
- Where It’s Made: Mattresses made or compiled in the USA often cost more than the ones made overseas perhaps for the quality or shipping. Who knows?!
- Where It’s Sold: Online mattress stores often offer the best and most affordable prices, however, you might get a better deal by walking into one of those offline stores.
Are you worried about getting a new mattress for more than it's worth? Keep these few points in mind. One; you'd get value for mattresses in all price ranges. Be it material quality, longevity, cushioning, contouring, and other features.
Secondly, most mattresses in stores have sticker prices already attached to them which sometimes makes it almost impossible to negotiate for a fair price. However, you could get better mattress deals when these stores or brands run promotions, sales, and discount off weekends. Interestingly, these promotions come in as often as they get because mattress purchasing isn't an everyday consumable good.
Watch out for mattress brands on Cyber Mondays, Labor Days, Memorial Days, and Black Fridays to get shocking mattress deals. Thirdly, though spending on a quality mattress could cost you more than planned, it's an investment worth your money. Investing in a high-quality mattress would not only contribute to you getting sound sleep on most nights, but it'd also strip you from spending on another mattress in years.