
When it comes to sleeping positions, everyone has probably heard that sleeping on your back is the best position. But in fact, there is another position that experts recommend, which is sleeping on your side. Because it has more benefits for the body than many people think. Whether it is helping reduce snoring, preventing sleep apnea, helping with digestion, reducing acid reflux, relieving back and neck pain, suitable for pregnant women, and lastly, promoting brain function.
Benefits of sleeping on your side
1. Reduce snoring, prevent sleep apnea.
Sleeping on your side is the most suitable sleeping position for snorers. This is because when you sleep on your back, your jaw, tongue, and soft tissues in your throat will sag. Causing the airway to narrow, making breathing difficult, and resulting in snoring. If your bedmate snores regularly, try to notice that when you change your regular sleeping position to sleeping on your side. Your snoring will significantly decrease because your airway is clearer. คาสิโนออนไลน์ UFABET ฝากถอนรวดเร็ว เริ่มต้นเล่นง่าย This also reduces the risk of sleep apnea .
2. Helps digest food, reduces acid reflux symptoms.
The human stomach is shaped like a C and is located to the left. When we lie on our stomach or back, there is a chance that digestive juices will flow back up into the throat. Sleeping on our side helps digestive juices work better. But it must be on the left side because when sleeping on the right side, the stomach is above the esophagus. But when we sleep on our left side, the stomach is lower than the esophagus.
3. Reduce back pain and neck pain.
Because when compared to sleeping on your stomach and half-sitting, sleeping on your side is considered a sleeping position. That makes your spine naturally aligned like sleeping on your back and also helps reduce pressure on your spine. In addition, it also helps prevent you from being at risk of a herniated disc. For anyone who is starting to experience back pain, it is recommended to try sleeping on your side with your knees slightly bent and use a bolster between both legs. This will help keep your hips in line with your spine and you will also get the benefit of sleeping hugging a bolster .
4. Good for pregnant mothers.
Sleeping is important for mothers, but many find that sleeping on their backs for long periods causes back pain. Changing to sleeping on their stomachs is not possible, which can lead to insomnia during pregnancy. A way to reduce back pain throughout the night is to sleep on your side more, and it is recommended that you sleep on your left side, as this will increase blood circulation to both the mother and the baby in the womb, and will make the muscles more relaxed, allowing the mother to sleep more comfortably.
5. Increase brain function efficiency
According to a 2015 study from Stony Brook University in the United States, our brain has a waste disposal system called the Glymphatic System, which works similar to the lymphatic system in the body. And if this system works at its best, the risk of us getting Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, or other neurological diseases will be reduced because it eliminates toxic substances in the brain, such as Amyloid Beta or Tau Proteins, which are factors that cause these diseases. This can be seen from an experiment on mice that found that the brains of mice that slept on their sides were able to eliminate Amyloid Beta 25 percent better than mice that slept on their stomachs. Scientists have concluded that the Glymphatic System works best when we sleep deeply, especially when sleeping on our sides.
Disadvantages that can occur when sleeping on your side regularly
- Increased pressure on the heart. Sleeping on the left side puts more pressure on the chest cavity, which can affect the heart rate. People with heart disease should be careful.
- Acne occurs on the face because the face has to directly contact with the pillow, which may have accumulated dirt such as dust mites, makeup, or our own facial oils.
- Shoulder pain: Many people often sleep in the wrong position by sleeping on their side directly on their arm, causing the shoulder to bear a lot of weight. If you don’t use a high-elastic latex mattress, you may experience pain and numbness in your hand and arm. For those who already have a torn shoulder tendon, it is best to avoid this position.
Now you know that besides sleeping on your back, sleeping on your side has many benefits. Just be careful not to sleep in this position often if you have heart disease, shoulder pain, or acne. And if you want to sleep in a healthy position, you have to change your sleeping position often and choose a latex mattress to support your body because other types of mattresses are often too hard or too soft. When you sleep, your spine is not naturally aligned. Unlike a genuine latex mattress that is highly elastic, it helps distribute pressure from your sleeping position evenly. You can sleep on your side or in any position comfortably because a latex mattress can meet the needs of every sleeper.