What Kind of Bed Is Good to Buy for Hips & Back?

Lower Back Pain

• If you suffer from lower back pain, a mattress that provides ample support could help you sleep better, according to the Spine-Health website. That's because a mattress that's too soft can reinforce poor posture during sleep, resulting in pain when you wake up. Having adequate back support can also help you avoid muscle pains in your lower back. Typically, a medium to firm mattress is preferable if your problem is lower back pain.

Entire Back Pain

• If you wake up with your entire back in pain, then it's likely your spine isn't being properly supported while you sleep. Look for a bed that will support the spine's proper curvature. If a mattress can't support a posture similar to what you hold when standing straight up, it's probably not going to do much, if anything, to ease your back pain.

Hip Problems

• If you look at someone lying flat on a bed, you'll notice that the mattress is most indented in the area around the hips. That's because this is one of the heaviest parts of the body. If you have hip problems, you want a bed that provides support to the hip area equal to the support it provides to other parts of the body. Sometimes the mattress isn't the only reason people wake up with hip pain. A good mattress on an old, sagging box spring is unlikely to provide the support needed.

Options

• Today, spring mattresses aren't the only option. You can also purchase a mattress made of special foam or one filled with water or air. No one type of mattress is better than others for back pain because what feels good and supportive to one person may feel uncomfortable to another. Thus, the best way to find a mattress that will address your individual back and hip problems is to test drive as many beds as you can and compare.