Another old wives' tale goes kaput

GregM · November-13th-2003, 08:55 PM

Firm Mattress May Not Be Best for Back

By EMMA ROSS
The Associated Press
Thursday, November 13, 2003; 7:19 PM

LONDON - Contrary to popular belief, a firm mattress may not necessarily be best for the back, new research suggests.

Doctors have traditionally recommended hard beds for people with lower-back pain, but that advice has been based on scarce evidence.

Now the first substantial study has found that people who slept on medium mattresses were twice as likely to report an improvement as people using firm ones.

Experts said the study, published this week in The Lancet medical journal, doesn't mean everyone would benefit from a medium mattress, and that trial and error is still the best way to choose. Anyway, there are no standardized gauges for the firmness of a mattress.

"This has been very poorly studied in the past," said Dr. Scott D. Boden, professor of orthopedics and director of the Emory Spine Center at Emory University in Atlanta. "Clearly mattresses can make a difference for individuals, but the question remains whether or not there's one formula that's going to work for everyone."

Boden, who was not involved in the study, said "everyone has to figure out what works best for them, but mattresses could be something, if you have chronic back ache, that you should pay attention to."

The study, conducted by scientists from clinics in three areas of Spain, involved 313 people who had unexplained chronic lower-back pain while lying in bed or on getting up in the morning.

Half were given a firm mattress and half a medium one. Firmness was rated on a scale of one (firmest) to 10 (softest). The firm mattress used in the test scored 2.5 on the scale, while the medium mattress was a 5.6.

Patients were asked to rate their low back pain on a scale of one to 10 when they woke up and 30 minutes after getting out of bed, before the new mattress came and three months after sleeping on the new bed. Changes in pain-related disability were also measured.

The average improvement in the medium mattress group was better than in the firm mattress group, the study found.

Although patients in both groups improved and some in both groups worsened, more patients in the medium mattress group reported feeling better than in the firm mattress group.

About 82 percent of patients on medium mattresses said they had improved, compared with 68 percent of those on firm mattresses.

The Spanish scientists believed those results were distorted because people could tell whether they had a firm or medium mattress, and may have been influenced by believing that firm was better.

Discounting for that bias, the report suggested that people on medium mattresses were twice as likely to report improvement as the firm mattress group.

The results mean doctors can now be confident "in recommending a mattress of medium firmness rather than the previously recommended hard bed for patients with chronic low-back pain," said Jenny McConnell, a sports medicine researcher at the University of Melbourne in Australia.

Gerard Varlotta, director of sports rehabilitation at the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine at New York University Medical Center, said the findings make sense.

"There needs to be an equal distribution of pressure," he said. "Too firm of a mattress is not good. It doesn't provide enough contour to our bodies. Too soft is going to bend and cause problems as well."

© 2003 The Associated Press

Tom Storer · November-14th-2003, 03:17 AM

I have a history of throwing out my lower back, ever since I was in my early 20's. I found that the harder the mattress, the better. As a result, we got one of those really thin futons and I found that wonderfully comfortable. My wife complained that it was a tad too hard. So when the thin futon got old, we got a thicker futon - still firm enough for me but with a little more give, and the wife was happier. But in recent years she has developed lower back problems herself, and finds that when she is in a hotel or staying with friends and sleeps on a softer mattress, it's much better for her back. But when I sleep on a softer mattress, I wake up with a stiff and sore back. The problem seems insoluble, since we are not willing to have separate beds. So far I'm winning just because we already have the futon and it would be a significant extra expense to replace it.

I'm not going to show her this article. Best to keep a low profile.

jesus marion joseph · November-14th-2003, 07:32 AM

Tom, you sound like the copy from one of those cheesy adjustable mattress commercials on TV here in the states!

Uli · November-14th-2003, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by jesus marion joseph
Tom, you sound like the copy from one of those cheesy adjustable mattress commercials on TV here in the states!

Let's get civilized again and stop those personal insults!

Tom Storer · November-14th-2003, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by jesus marion joseph
Tom, you sound like the copy from one of those cheesy adjustable mattress commercials on TV here in the states!

If there were a mattress you could adjust so it was softer or firmer on one side than on the other, I'd buy it.

tippy · November-14th-2003, 10:03 AM

I bought a very firm mattress on my first day in New York--it's also got a pillow top which I hate because it is difficult to find sheets that fit--and I always thought I liked firm but this one is a little too firm. Last year, I bought a futon couch so that I would have a place for guests to sleep when visiting me in the city. I bought an extra nice, super comfortable futon for it--forget the manufacturer but the model is Gemini something or other. Anyway, this futon is SO deliciously comfortable that I slept on it for the next 6 months! I did move back into my bedroom for the summer and have stayed there but I'm half tempted to dump the bed and buy another one of these wonderful futons. It is firm but gives. It's sort of bouncy.

tippy · November-14th-2003, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tom Storer
If there were a mattress you could adjust so it was softer or firmer on one side than on the other, I'd buy it.

I saw one on the telly just this week, Tom. Fancy, schmanzy. I wonder how much something like that costs. Also was intrigued by those "astronaut" beds. hmmm...

Brian Olewnick · November-14th-2003, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tom Storer
If there were a mattress you could adjust so it was softer or firmer on one side than on the other, I'd buy it.

as jmj said, there are plenty of radio ads for mattresses that, apparently, are programmable for hardness from side to side. Don't know anyone who owns one however.

Monte Smith · November-14th-2003, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tom Storer
If there were a mattress you could adjust so it was softer or firmer on one side than on the other, I'd buy it.

You really need to listen to more American radio, Tom.

The Sleep Number Bed from Select Comfort

Chris D · November-14th-2003, 11:51 AM

For me, sleeping on a fouton = The Rack.

Dr Dave · November-14th-2003, 11:59 AM

"There needs to be an equal distribution of pressure," he said. "Too firm of a mattress is not good. It doesn't provide enough contour to our bodies. Too soft is going to bend and cause problems as well."

Well, I'm glad we got that straightened out.

jesus marion joseph · November-14th-2003, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tom Storer
If there were a mattress you could adjust so it was softer or firmer on one side than on the other, I'd buy it.

Cut it out, yer killing me!!

tippy · November-14th-2003, 12:05 PM

Up until I got my Gemini, Chris, I could completely agree with "futon=The Rack."

I'm telling you guys, the Gemini is where it's AT! The firmness AND contour paradox has been solved. $250 for a full.

Tanager · November-14th-2003, 12:07 PM

Mrs. Tanager & I have had the same Posturepedic for almost ten years now...I love it. It's the perfect mattress for me. In general, we're both fans of firm - we've slept on the floor (carpeted) for extensive periods, too.