While some people love a firm mattress, a mattress for someone with arthritis should reduce contact pressure on your most sensitive joints – so there needs to be some softness. Stability is also essential. Yes, we just said a mattress needs to be soft – but not too soft!
But be careful, because softer mattresses can aggravate arthritis in the spine and cause further pain if it is misaligned while you sleep. That's why you will want a medium firmness mattress that aligns the spine, while providing your back with enough support.
Sleepers with arthritis often appreciate mattresses made with adaptive foam comfort systems, which typically offer excellent pressure relief for the joints.
Mattress firmness seems to play a leading role as different studies show that medium-firm surfaces might effectively reduce pain in individuals complaining of back pain [5].
The position you tend to sleep in will also affect your comfort on beds of various firmness levels. Back and stomach sleepers tend to prefer firmer mattresses, while side sleepers prefer a softer feel. These preferences are not universal, of course, but it's a good starting point to consider.
While a softer mattress is recommended for people who sleep on their stomach or side, older people actually need a firmer mattress. Softer mattresses are also harder for older adults to get up from, so it's recommended that older sleepers get at least a medium-firm mattress.
Is a hard or soft mattress better for arthritis? People with arthritis can consider opting for a medium or firm mattress. If the mattress is soft, it can add pressure to the joints and worsen symptoms. They can use a mattress topper if they feel the medium or firm mattress is too firm.
While some people love a firm mattress, a mattress for someone with arthritis should reduce contact pressure on your most sensitive joints – so there needs to be some softness. Stability is also essential. Yes, we just said a mattress needs to be soft – but not too soft!
The goal is to keep your neck in a neutral position, says Picard. If you are a back sleeper, occupational therapists (OTs) recommend using a thin pillow that will keep your spine aligned while you sleep. Side sleepers should choose a taller pillow under their neck so their neck aligns with their head.
Expert Opinion. Memory foam can be an excellent material for joint pain because its slow response to pressure allows it to contour to the curves of the body. This means that as you sink into the material, it's likely to cushion the shoulders, hips, and lower back against any and all tension.
Use of heat, such as applying heating pads to aching joints, taking hot baths or showers, or immersing painful joints in warm paraffin wax, can help relieve pain temporarily. Be careful not to burn yourself. Use heating pads for no more than 20 minutes at a time.
However, orthopedic experts are of the opinion that mattresses that are too soft, disrupts the normal curve of your spine. It allows your lower back to cave into the bed while the upper part of the back curves out. This leaves the entire body unbalanced and makes you even more vulnerable to back pain and hip pain.
Like joint pain, the stiffness is often worse in the morning or after a period of inactivity. Morning stiffness that is a symptom of another type of arthritis, called osteoarthritis, usually wears off within 30 minutes of getting up, but morning stiffness in rheumatoid arthritis often lasts longer than this.
A mattress that is too soft will cause you to sink and hurt your back and spine while you sleep.
Doctors do not fully understand why arthritis pain often worsens at night, but possible causes involve changes in the levels of hormones and cytokines, which are cell-signaling proteins, in the body. Daytime arthritis medication, which some people take during the morning, may also wear off by the evening.
In the past, doctors often recommended very firm mattresses. But one survey of 268 people with low back pain found that those who slept on very hard mattresses had the poorest sleep quality. There was no difference in sleep quality between those who used medium-firm and firm mattresses.
Firmness is an important quality to look for in a mattress. However, a mattress that is too firm can exacerbate joint pain. Research suggests that medium-firm mattresses provide enough support for the spine and relieve pressure on joints.
Is a soft mattress bad for your back? It is if it's so soft that it doesn't support your spine. If you sink into the mattress so that your hips are lower than your shoulders, your mattress may be too soft and could be contributing to back pain. Keep in mind that weight is a factor when it comes to mattress firmness.
One theory is that the body's circadian rhythm may play a role. In people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the body releases less of the anti-inflammatory chemical cortisol at night, increasing inflammation-related pain.
If the mattress is too firm, it will push on your pressure points and cause misalignment. Similarly, if the bed is too soft, it will allow your body to sink into the bed causing bad posture while you sleep, which can then lead to pain. The right mattress should make you feel like you are floating on air.
Tossing and turning or sleeping in an odd position can cause little aches and pains that fade quickly. If you're experiencing a more pronounced level of back, neck, or shoulder pain upon waking — especially if the pain occurs on a nightly basis — then it's a telltale sign that your mattress is too firm for your needs.