Would you mountain bike without a helmet or skydive without a parachute. Assuming that’s a negative, then why would you sleep without the right protective and essential equipment?And, before you shrug thinking a mattress is a mattress… is a mattress, you might be interested in knowing that your mattress greatly impacts your sleep and overall health in some surprising ways beyond the old backache and stiff neck. In this article we explore just how important a good mattress can be for your health and beauty, and see exactly how a new mattress can improve your life.
You Might Want to Get Comfortable Cause Sleep Is a Long Journey
Did you know the average person will spend a third of their life sleeping? That’s roughly 26 years you’ll be up close and personal with a mattress. So, you might want to be comfy.
While this National Sleep Foundation study found that over 90 percent of people recognize that a comfortable mattress is important to a good night’s rest, surveys from the Better Sleep Council found that people delay replacing their mattresses for years. The National Sleep Foundation recommends getting a new mattress every eight years. Meanwhile, tens of thousands are sleeping on mattresses 40-plus years of age.
This study by a UK mattress specialist estimates that around 8 million UK mattresses need replacing, and the number is expected to be similar for Americans.
It’s tempting to delay mattress replacement due to finances and inconvenience, but a comfortable mattress leads to more sleep and higher quality sleep, meaning you’ll see improvements in your memory; mental acuity; weight; mood; and overall health, longevity and well-being.
Your Mattress Is an Allergen
No matter how clean a house is, almost every single one is home to tiny dust mites. They feed off the millions of dead skin cells you and your pets naturally shed each day, and one of the prime places you shed these skin cells is in your bed. Some 20 million Americans are particularly allergic to dust mites that live in mattresses.
To reduce dust mite populations, wash linens in hot water regularly, use an allergy-proof slipcover for mattresses, clean your mattress regularly, and replace it when its life cycle is spent.
Realize That the Characteristic Labels of Mattresses Are Subjective
If you’ve been recommended to sleep on a particular kind of mattress – firm, soft, medium-firm, etc. – know that there’s no standardized definition for a scale that makes a mattress soft versus firm. It’s purely subjective and highly based on your characteristics, not the mattresses. Think about, for example, the hardness a 120 pound person would describe of the same mattress a 250 pound person might describe as soft.
For comfort, spend time examining the dimensions, specs, construction, and manufacturer’s suggested benefits. Also, be sure that the mattress comes with a trail, such as this 100 night trial for this king single mattress.
Signs You Need a New Mattress
Beyond the physical age of a mattress, keep in mind that wear and tear and quality of a mattress can prematurely age it. So, you’ll also need to be aware of the warming signs you need a new mattress. Granted, if your mattress has bumps, lump, and holes, then it’s time to replace it. Also look for these signs you need a new mattress:
- Do you sleep better away from home?
- Do you wake up stiff, sore, or in pain?
- Do you have difficulty getting comfortable on your mattress?
- Does your mattress feel unsupportive or sunken?
- Do you toss and turn trying to find a comfy position before
finally going to sleep? - Is your body changing to need a different level of support?
- Are your allergies out of control?
- Does your mattress have a bad odor?
- Does your skin itch, break out, or you wake up with rashes?
- Has your weight significantly changed?
- Is your bed noisy?
5 Ways to Improve the Quality of Life by a Quality Mattress
As we have covered where mattresses can be negatively affecting your health, we now will focus on the areas where a new mattress can actually help improve it. There are many areas where a new mattress which is of high quality can improve your quality of life. This includes your appearance, pregnancy, stress levels and even your beauty.
1. A Quality Mattress Leads to Better Looks
If you really care about your appearance, well did you know that the quality of sleep? You have really impacts your looks? Many women don’t realize that their
mattress affects their looks, but in actual fact it does. If you find you are sleeping on a mattress which disturbs the quality of sleep you are getting, then this is very problematic for your appearance.
An interesting study was carried out in Sweden on sleep deprived and well-slept individuals, which measured their level of attractiveness by outsiders seeing their photos. The study concluded that the sleep deprived people did in fact appear less attractive and therefore less healthy, whereas those who had at least 8 hours seemed more attractive and healthiest.
This is down to the fact that bad sleep leads to breakouts, bad skin, black eye-bags and all the sluggish feelings that accompany a bad sleeping pattern, and this will lead us to feeling down and our appearance will take a knock at the same time. Over time bad quality sleep is likely to give you more wrinkles, and therefore age the skin a lot faster.
This is why it’s crucial to find a mattress which aids in a comfortable, in fact, the best sleep you could possibly have, in order to avoid all of these issues, and keep your appearance looking fresh and youthful.
2. The Right Mattress Can Improve Comfort during Pregnancy
When it comes to pregnancy, most women find they will have difficulties sleeping anyway during the 9 months of carrying their little one. This is also a period where your current mattress might have to be questioned as you will want to be in the comfiest environment possible, in order to remain pain, and stress free for both you and baby.
Comfort is key when pregnant, and a mattress which allows you to sleep in a state of bliss is definitely considered. Memory foam and Latex mattresses are highly recommended for pregnant women as they allow them to sleep on their sides more comfortably as the body fits to the shape of the bed rather than being pressured to lay flat against a spring mattress.
Sleeping well during pregnancy can also lead to a happier pregnancy altogether!
3. A New Mattress Helps Stress Levels
Being busy women, we already incur a lot of stress in our daily lives, and we shouldn’t have to deal with any extra stress when going to sleep at night.
According to the American Psychological Association’s Stress in America survey, 43 percent of respondents report stress causes them to lay awake at night. Around 50 percent report sluggishness after sleepless nights.
A study asked almost 60 people to sleep on their old mattress for 28 days and then a new medium-firm mattress for the same timeframe. The participants had their stress levels evaluated before and after, and the study found the new mattresses resulted in less stress-related symptoms, such as headaches, worry, nervousness, trembling, irritability, and racing thoughts. Researchers attributed this change to better sleep quality and decreased pain.
4. A Good mattress will improve Happiness Levels
As we have seen that a quality mattress helps with stress levels, this can also be combined with levels of happiness. This is because if you are sleeping extremely well, you will no doubt have a lot more energy throughout the day, and this will increase the levels of dopamine which make you feel happy. When sleeping badly, this hormone is decreased, and hence leads to more feelings of depression and sadness.
Therefore, if you want to increase your happiness levels, then you might only need to change your mattress and see what changes come around for you!
5. Your Bedroom Should Only Be Used For Sleep
Finally, the importance of your sleep environment has to be mentioned.
Sleep experts recommend your bed be used for two things. One is sleep. The other is pleasure, not work. Psychologists explain that working where you sleep confuses your brain. It stops correlating the bed with sleep, especially when using blue light devices, and thus fails to rev down and shut off.
Your brain really needs time to shut off to get through the stages of REM sleep. Without reaching the final stage of REM sleep, you can find yourself with mental health problems, physical and mental fatigue, lacking creativity, and even suffer from a poor immune system.
Summing Up
How does your mattress affect your sleep and beauty? Are you suffering any of these negative consequences of a mattress past it’s prime or that’s simply not up to par for your unique needs? Let us know in the comments section below!
