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Can a mattress pad help with back pain?

What is a mattress pad?

a photo of a woman sat on her bed, holding her lower back

You will occasionally find slightly thicker mattress pads of around two inches thick.

For this reason, they can be used as an alternative to thebest mattress protectors.

Do mattress pads help with back pain?

Saatva organic mattress pad

Mattress pads may be cheaper than mattress toppers, but they cant realistically offer much support.

Essentially though, a mattress pad isnt much better than a thick towel in many cases.

“Instead, James recommends adecent mattress topperover a pad as they offer more meaningful support.

A woman wearing blue and white stripy pyjamas lays on her side on the Helix Midnight Luxe mattress

“For most people, a medium firm mattress is ideal.

Can a mattress pad cause back pain?

In short, yes, mattress pads can make your back pain worse.

A person sits on the edge of the Plank Firm mattress, Extra Firm side, to test the edge support

Mattress pads are soft, which means they dont add any support.

This will then lead to lower back pain.

“Mattress pads can indeed make back pain worse.

A woman with long dark hair holds her back which is sore after sleeping on a mattress that�s too firm for her

And this may then create specific stress points on the spine.”

Instead, a mattress topper is much more likely to provide back pain relief.

A lack of contouring at these pressure points can also lead to the spine not being properly aligned.

A tester sits on the edge of the bet fiberglass-free mattress, the Saatva Classic

A mattress topper with contouring can help to prevent these issues.

Again, this is due to sleepers tossing and turning at night while throwing covers on and off.

The exception to this is latex mattresses, which can last up to 20 years.

A woman feeling the side and top of a mattress as she shops

If you’re unsure whether your mattress needs replacing, pay attention to thenine signs your mattress needs replacing.

A mattress topper can certainly help.

Do mattress pads help with back pain?

Our lead tester sleeps on her stomach on the Helix Sunset Luxe mattress

A pad is too shallow to provide any meaningful support and could actually make matters worse.

If your mattress isnt that old, investing in a mattress topper will be a far better bet.

Toppers are thicker than pads and actually offer decent support and contouring to help ease back pain.

A woman�s hands placing a clean mattress pad on top of a mattress

At this point youll need to invest in a new mattress to help with back pain.

The image shows the Casper Hybrid with Snow Technology pillow on the left and the Coop Cool+ pillow on the right in a side by side comparison

A woman laying awake at night with arms overhead

The Tempur-Pedic Temur-Cloud Pillow at the head of.a bed, resting upright in front of two other pillows that are propped against the headboard.

A woman sleeping on a curved white pillow in a brightly lit room

The image shows the white Coop Sleep Goods Adjustable Latex Pillow against a white background

Woman changing bedding

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