Avoiding pain in older people
Back care while lying
You should pay special attention to your postures while lying
down, as well as to the characteristics of the mattress and pillow.
a) Postures
Postures while lying down:
It is best to lie down facing upward. Sleeping on your stomach
is not recommended, since it usually changes the low back curvature
and, to enable breathing, the neck is kept rotated during several
hours. If you cannot sleep in any other posture, you should try
turning slightly on your side. If, for example, you turn on your
left side, you should flex the right hip and knee, keeping the
left leg stretched. Try to turn your shoulders and adapt the shape
of the pillow to your head, in such a way that the position of
your neck in relation to the dorsal column is most similar to
the posture maintained when standing.
Characteristics of the mattress:
The mattress must be firm and straight. It should not be shaped
like a hammock, but should be sufficiently fluffy to adapt to the
spinal curves (kyphosis and lordosis). A very hard mattress, like
the floor or a table, is as harmful as an excessively soft mattress,
on which the column "floats" without support.
The mattress should:
1. Support your entire back
2. Be firm and straight
Water mattresses are acceptable, provided that firmness adjusts
appropriately. In any case, a good mattress should provide support
to the entire back. To test it, when lying on your back ("supine
decubitus") with your legs stretched, you should notice that the
lumbar column is resting on the mattress, and does not form an
arch above it.
c) Pillow
Pillow Characteristics:
If you sleep face up, a relatively flat pillow should ensure
that the cervical column and the dorsal column form the same angle
as when in a standing position.
If you sleep resting on one shoulder, a thicker or rolled pillow
would help maintain the neck within the axis of the dorsal column,
keeping the neck from falling without support or from a prolonged
rotation.
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Back Pain Research Network 
Rules
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