Alaska Sleep Education Center

6 Ways a Bad Mattress Can Affect Your Health

After a long and exhausting day, you want to relax in the comfort of your bed. Getting a good night’s sleep helps keep your physical and mental health in top-notch shape. However, getting good sleep can be challenging if you sleep on a bad mattress.

Poor-quality mattresses not only lack the comfort and support you need to enjoy a night of peaceful sleep, but they can also affect your overall health and well-being. Recognizing the signs of a bad mattress is vital for avoiding the adverse effects of sleeping on one. Thus, you must evaluate whether your current mattress provides the comfort and support required for a good night’s sleep. If not, it may be time to consider investing in a new one.

  1. Poor Support

Without adequate support from your mattress, your muscles will not be able to relax properly as you sleep. This is particularly prominent in the lower back area, where most people experience discomfort due to postural issues. If left untreated, there could be an increase in aches and pains that could become permanent over time. Any kind of spine distortion could also stress the ligaments and tendons that link with other bones and muscles. If you are experiencing stiffness or soreness from your mattress, it is time you buy a new one. You can easily find premium quality mattresses in stores and online. You can choose from various beds, mattresses, and bedding accessories. In particular, The Mattress Factory has all the best products that will give you the utmost comfort while you sleep at the best prices! So, hurry up, go shopping, and find the best mattress that supports your spine and allows for restful sleep. 

  • Back and Neck Pain

Having inadequate support from an overly soft or firm mattress can lead to back pain and neck soreness. This usually occurs due to chronic muscle strain caused by poor body alignment while sleeping for a long time on such mattresses. Suppose the body’s pressure is unevenly distributed over the surface area of a bed due to its age or wear and tear. In that case, it may also cause interference with proper body movements for daily activities.

Poor-quality mattresses cause can also cause pain in other parts of your body that may lead to disrupted sleep patterns. An uncomfortable or unsupportive mattress can also leave you tired and sick when you wake up. Thus, these problems must be addressed immediately. Otherwise, it may lead to severe medical conditions, such as sciatica, which causes body pain to worsen over time due to a lack of muscular coordination. 

  • Sleeping Disorders

An old or uncomfortable mattress can significantly contribute to difficulty sleeping at night and general fatigue during the day. If you wake up frequently throughout the night because of pains associated with an old mattress, it will interfere with your ability to get enough sleep. A poor-quality mattress could cause tossing and turning throughout the night, and as you continually adjust yourself to find comfort, your body clock gets thrown out of sync. This will eventually lead to insomnia or other sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea. Statistics from the US show that around 50-70 Million people face sleep disorders, and having outdated mattresses exacerbates this problem. Long-term insomnia causes many issues, which are considerably related to mental health concerns, such as mood swings, depression, and lack of energy.

  • Allergies

Old and used mattresses that have not been maintained can accumulate dust mites and other allergens over time. Dust mites are microscopic organisms that feed off the dead skin flakes humans shed as they sleep. Poor-quality mattresses can accumulate more dust mites, creating a breeding ground for allergens and irritants, leading to severe health problems. Not only are dusty mattresses uncomfortable, but they can also trigger allergies such as sneezing, coughing, and watery eyes. Investing in a mattress with hypoallergenic materials that resist dust mite build-up is best to avoid these potential health issues. More importantly, it is crucial to know how to clean your mattress so that you can regularly do so. Washing the bedding using a vacuum and anti-allergen sprays can help reduce dust mites and other allergens that affect your breathing while you sleep.

  • Night Sweats

Night sweats can be uncomfortable and disrupt a good night’s sleep. But did you know that sleeping on a bad mattress may be to blame? Mattresses made from a dense foam can trap the heat released from your body, causing extreme sweating. This makes it difficult for your body to regulate its temperature at night. As a result, you may wake up in the middle of the night due to sweat and feeling hot or clammy. If this happens consistently due to your mattress, it can lead to fatigue, mood swings, anxiety, or insomnia. Thus, to ensure your nights are sweat-free, you should invest in a new mattress that is comfortable and sweat-free.

  • Stress Levels

An outdated mattress can also cause increased stress levels, leading to detrimental mental health outcomes. Getting cozy on an old mattress can be difficult since it wastes all your time turning in bed rather than sleeping. This can make you feel extremely stressed and leave you physically and mentally exhausted during the day. An old mattress also causes physical aches and pains, which causes frustration, making it even harder to relax and fall asleep. Due to all this, your mood also suffers when you do not get adequate restorative sleep. All these factors combined can create an overall sense of stress that causes harmful effects on your mental well-being if not addressed correctly. Thus, investing in a high-quality premium mattress that provides comfort and ensures a peaceful night’s sleep is vital.

Concluding Remarks

No matter how hard we try, eight hours of sleep can sometimes still elude us. We can become so used to the occasional sleepless night that we may not even realize our mattress is causing problems. We can see that having a lousy mattress has severe implications for your overall health, which include physical discomfort, night sweats, stress, and increased allergen exposure. Getting undisturbed sleep is essential for the body to function correctly. Just like how we control lights and noise before sleeping the same way the mattress’s comfort level is necessary for peaceful sleep. Thus, investing in a high-quality mattress is essential to avoid these potential health hazards. Find one that provides proper support, is comfortable, and fits your sleeping habits and body type. By taking these steps, you can ensure that your mattress will be helping you stay healthy instead of hindering it!

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Alaska Sleep Clinic's Blog

Our weekly updated blog aims to provide you with answers and information to all of your sleeping questions.

Brent Fisher, MBA, FACHE, FACMPE
President and Chief Executive Officer

“Alaska Sleep Clinic has a history of providing the most comprehensive sleep medicine services in the state of Alaska. Its potential has only begun. I am here to take these high-quality, comprehensive services to all Alaskans.”

Experience

Brent Fisher has held leadership positions spanning a wide variety of complex and start-up organizations: manufacturing (pharmaceutical & medical device), software development, hospitals (academic and community), medical groups, consulting, hospice, military, engineered devices, engineered plastics, and private equity.

Publications and Organizations

His writings have been published in various magazines, trade journals, and medical journals, including the Physician Executive Journal, Healthcare Executive, Modern Healthcare, Group Practice Journal, New England Journal of Medicine, and Journal of Healthcare Management (Best Article Award).

He has served on the Board of Directors of professional associations, civic organizations, and businesses.

Hobbies and Activities

Brent enjoys being with his family, serving in the community, hiking, camping, fishing, and hunting.