Scoliosis is a spine curvature disorder and a neuromuscular condition that is characterized by an exaggerated curvature of the spine. Take a look at Counting Sheep’s buying guide and best mattresses for scoliosis, based on extensive research, analysis, and verified reviews.
Scoliosis is a spine curvature disorder and a neuromuscular condition that is characterized by an exaggerated curvature of the spine. Most cases are discovered during puberty and adolescence, and symptoms decrease as the spine straightens with growth. However, in severe cases, when the scoliosis curvature is more pronounced, it may lead to back pain and other problems in adulthood.
Depending on the degree of curvature, scoliosis mostly causes back pain, muscle spasms, heat sensitivity, and inflammation. At night, the aches may make it difficult to find a comfortable sleeping position. In case the sleeper is sleeping on a bad mattress, pressure can build up in the joints causing back pain upon waking up. While the wrong mattress can aggravate the symptoms of scoliosis, the right one can significantly contribute to better sleep.
In this short guide, you will learn everything you need to know about sleep considerations for people with scoliosis. Apart from the buyer’s guide, we will also share our top 6 picks. To create our list, we considered more than 150 models and spent 120 hours of research.
Qualities: Flippable mattress, different firmness settings, excellent conforming and pressure relief, 120-night sleep trial, lifetime warranty
The Layla mattress is a flippable bed made from multiple comfort layers that are infused with high-quality memory foam. The one side of the mattress is rated medium soft, while the other is considered firm. Depending on your preferences and the degree of curvature, you can flip the bed to ensure you get the most comfortable sleeping experience. The model is designed in such a way that it should accommodate sleepers of all weight groups and all sleep positions. The copper-infused foam also ensures you always sleep cool, and reduce inflammation in case you struggle with poor circulation. If you are lightweight or in the average weight group, the medium soft side will be perfect for you because it comes with an extra layer of polyfoam for better padding and quality pressure relief. In case you are a more massive sleeper, you will most likely prefer the firm side.
The Layla contours to the body on both sides minimizes pressure on sensitive areas, provides excellent spinal support and it is one of the best mattresses for back pain. The model also has excellent motion isolation, so if you toss and turn a lot, you won’t have to worry about waking up your partner at night. When it comes to cost, the price point is below average, making it the best value pick. The manufacturers offer free shipping in the US and back up the quality of their product with a 120-night sleep trial and a lifetime guarantee.
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Qualities: Medium firmness, sleeps cool, excellent pressure relief, 120-night sleep trial, 15-year warranty
The Original Nolah is made from polyfoam materials specially designed to keep the sleeper cool and provide excellent pressure relief. The comfort layer consists of bouncy foam, and the base is made from high-density polyfoam.
The mattress contours closely to the sleeper’s body in order to provide pressure relief while also ensuring the spine stays in a neutral position. The model sleeps relatively cool, which is uncommon for memory foam beds. The mattress is also very beneficial for couples due to excellent motion isolation. When it comes to cost, the price point is below average, making it the best value pick. Shipping is free in the US, and the product is backed up with a 120-night sleep trial and a 15-year customer satisfaction guarantee.
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Qualities: Multiple firmness options, innovative comfort system design, sleeps cool, 100-night sleep trial, 10-year non-prorated warranty
The New Purple is a hybrid mattress that combines the company’s signature ‘Smart Grid’ comfort system with an innovative supportive pocketed coil base. The model comes in multiple firmness options – Medium Firm (6.5), Medium (5.5) and Medium Soft (4.5). Multiple firmness options make this bed ideal for sleepers of all weight groups.
The New Purple’s Smart Grid also contains buckling-column gel for ensuring consistent conforming, excellent pressure relief, and quality spinal support. Unlike standard memory foam mattresses, this model doesn’t deteriorate quickly and develop indentations. The bed is also an excellent pick for hot sleepers due to its exceptional temperature neutrality system. Compared to other hybrid models, this mattress doesn’t make any noise, and it is excellent for couples.
When it comes to price, the New Purple is on the expensive side, but if you opt for it, you get free White Glove delivery, a 100-night sleep trial, and a 10-year guarantee.
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Qualities: Flippable, multiple firmness options, durable, eco-friendly, 120-night sleep trial, 20-year non-prorated warranty
The Zenhaven mattress by Saatva is a natural latex mattress that is perfect for sleepers with scoliosis due to its balanced bounciness and excellent pressure relief. Zenhaven, like Layla, is a flippable mattress that is ‘Medium Soft’ on one side, and ‘Firm’ on the other. Due to its multiple firmness options, most sleepers consider Zenhaven comfortable to sleep on regardless of their weight or sleep position.
The eco-friendly mattress is made from organic cotton, organic wool, and Talalay latex. The cover and the tops layers are made from organic cotton and wool, while the comfort layers and support core are made of latex. The latex layers provide not only ratted pressure relief to the different zones of the body, but also ensure excellent temperature neutrality. The Zenhaven is also suitable for couples because it doesn’t make any noise. Like other Saatva models, it comes with free White Glove delivery in the US, a 120-night sleep trial and a 20-year warranty.
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Qualities: Excellent conforming and pressure relief, sleeps cool, 1-year sleep trial, lifetime warranty
The Nectar Sleep Mattress is medium firm and therefore most suitable for people in the average or heavy weight group. For people suffering from scoliosis, a firm mattress can help to prevent pain, and provide quality contouring and pressure relief. Since the Nectar mattress is made of four layers of memory foam, it offers excellent pressure relief in the neck, lower back, and hips.
Apart from providing consistent conforming, the model equally supports all the areas where weight is concentrated such as in the shoulders and the waist. The Nectar Sleep Mattress is reinforced with two additional layers high-density polyfoam to ensure the sleeper always sleep on a flat and even surface. Sleepers with scoliosis cannot allow themselves to sleep on a bed that tends to sag because it can easily cause back pain and aches in other areas of the body. Other benefits include quality motion isolation and the weight of the model. Since the Nectar is also reasonably lightweight, it’s effortless to move it around.
If you opt for this model, you can enjoy free shipping or White Glove delivery for an extra charge. The mattress is covered by a 1-year sleep trial and a lifetime guarantee.
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Qualities: Multiple firmness options, luxurious, excellent contouring and pressure relief, 120-night sleep trial, 15-year non-prorated warranty
Many innersprings mattresses don’t provide proper support or conforming to sleepers with scoliosis. However, Saatva is an exception with its coil-on-coil support system and memory foam and polyfoam comfort layers. Bonnell coils in the support system ensure sagging, and sinkage is minimized which is very important to sleepers with scoliosis.
Saatva mattress comes in multiple firmness options – ‘Medium Soft’ (4), ‘Medium Firm’ (6), and ‘Firm’ (7.5). It also has two profiles–11 1/2″ and 14 1/2″. Due to its firmness and thickness range, it is considered suitable for all sleep positions and sleepers of all weight groups. Side sleepers with scoliosis will probably prefer the ‘Medium Soft’ setting, while stomach or back sleepers are more likely to prefer the firmer options. Due to its natural and breathable materials, the mattress also sleeps fairly cool. If you opt for Saatva, you will get free White Glove delivery in the US and Canada, and a product backed up by a 120-night sleep trial and a 15-year guarantee.
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Scoliosis is a spine curvature disorder that causes the spine to curve to one side, rather than being completely straight. The angle of the curve may be slight or severe, and its shapes may also vary, with the two most common being C or S letter-shaped.
Most common symptoms of scoliosis are neck and back pain, muscle pain and numbness. Some patients are also sensitive to heat. All these symptoms can negatively affect the patient’s sleep quality. The right mattress can significantly help people with scoliosis to alleviate chronic pain and sleep better. On the flip side, the wrong mattress may exacerbate these issues. In this guide, we will show you how to choose the best mattress for scoliosis.
Scoliosis can also cause physiological complications such as cardiovascular and respiratory problems, which may occur when the spinal curve causes the ribcage to twist, pronounced rib bones, and chronic back pain.
Most scoliosis cases do not require treatment. The condition is treatable if it’s discovered in adolescence or before puberty by doing exercises to strengthen the back muscles or wearing corrective braces. When the patient stops growing, there is not much to do to improve the patient’s condition. In severe cases and adulthood, physicians may recommend spinal fusion surgery.
Alternative methods of treating scoliosis and alleviating its symptoms include, particularly back pain, include chiropractic adjustments and electrical muscle stimulation.
People with scoliosis, in most cases, deal with chronic back pain on a daily basis. If the condition gets worse over time, patients may experience neck, shoulder and hip pain. Increased levels of pain and pressure may severely impact the quality of sleep for scoliosis patients. Also, scoliosis may make patients uncomfortable sleeping in certain positions, such as on their stomach. Most patients find comfortable sleeping on their side or back.
When looking for the best mattress for scoliosis and comparing different models, keep the following factors in mind.
Support: A mattress that has quality support always stays flat and even throughout the night. On the flip side, unsupportive mattresses sag in certain areas. Soft mattresses are not a good choice for people with scoliosis because they tend to sag and don’t provide adequate support.
Conforming: Contouring is essential to align the spine, target pressure points, and alleviate pain. Conforming is always tied to quality support. Models that conform closely also provide even support in all areas of the body, while those that don’t contour as closely to the body, support some body areas more than others. Inconsistent support and poor contouring may exacerbate pain and pressure.
Firmness: Support and firmness seem like synonyms, but they are technically different. Mattress support refers to the evenness of a sleep surface, while firmness refers to how the model feels to different sleepers.
Durability: Most beds are designed to last at least 6 to 7 years, but despite that, some models deteriorate quicker than they should, especially in the areas where most of the sleeper’s weight is concentrated. This can easily lead to sagging and indentations that increase pain.
Motion isolation: People with chronic pain are sometimes sensitive to movement on their sleep surfaces. If you are one of those people, you should opt for a model that absorbs or isolates movement.
Ease of movement: People with scoliosis and chronic back pain may change their sleep position a lot in order to become comfortable. If you tend to move a lot in bed, look for a mattress that offers little resistance to movement.
Sleep trial: It’s not easy to choose a suitable mattress for back pain and scoliosis. That is why it is best to look for one that offers a sleep trial. A sleep trial can last anywhere from 30 to 365 nights, and during this period, if you are not satisfied with the product, you can have the option of returning or exchanging the mattress.
Warranty and indentation depth: Every mattress sold today comes with a manufacturer’s warranty that offers repair or replacement in case of defects. Most guarantees specify ‘indentation depth’ and won’t repair or replace the damage (or at least cover the cost of the services) if it does not exceed the listed depth. People with scoliosis are very sensitive to indentations, therefore they should look for a warranty that covers indentation depth of one inch or less.
A wannabe journalist who somehow ended up as an art historian. She is a gamer, a coffee addict and a sleep aficionado. When she is not researching about sleep and finding out new ways to fight off the insomnia beast, she's spending time with her friends, gaming or visiting local museums.
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