What is the Best Mattress for Inclined Sleep?

Greetings Dr. Andrew Fletcher & the rest of the members of this forum,

I've been researching and looking into Inclined Sleep Therapy for general health reasons. I don't have any medical conditions or problems but I would like to prevent any from appearing in the future. One question that has made me scratch my head is "What is the Best Mattress for Inclined Sleep"? Dr. Fletcher, I remember in one of these forum threads that you mentioned about memory foam mattresses and how they were bad for our backs & sleeping. I currently have been sleeping on a memory foam mattress for over a year now and I was thinking of purchasing another one for my inclined bedframe.

If a memory foam mattress isn't the way to go then what type of mattress should I purchase? What type of mattress is the best or very good for someone like me with no health problems? Please answer at your earliest convenance. I would like to know what I need to buy when I go mattress shopping.

Sincerely,
Malachi

Hi Malachi, first of all I'm an engineer not a Dr.

Avoid memory foam or latex foam as this will not support your weight correctly and leads to back ache. Also causes us to overheat. A good quality sprung mattress will be a far better choice. Ours is a sprung mattress with natural fibre fillings, mostly wool, it is very heavy.
Avoid also the so called pillow top type mattress. These cannot be rotated as padding is on one side only.

Ah, sorry my bad.

So why would a spring mattress with natural fiber fillings (wool) work over other another type of mattress?

Also another question I'd like to ask is what type of pillow is the best to sleep on an inclined mattress? Or is it better to just sleep without a pillow using the actual bed as the pillow instead?

We tested a memory foam mattress over several years and both of us developed a bad back. Gave it to our son, and he and his partner both developed a bad back, which vanished when they purchased a new spring and fabric mattress. Our bad back symptoms also vanished within a week of our mattress change.

Re fillings: Have you ever worn a nylon shirt, man-made pyjamas or underwear or nylon socks? If you have, it would have been a brief encounter, trust me on this. All cause us to sweat, whereas natural fibres wick away moisture from our skin and breath. Hence it's best to air your mattress by folding the bedding back rather than making the bed in the morning. Furthermore, static electricity from synthetic materials tends to build up as we move around in bed. It can't with natural fibres. These synthetic fillings / padding's also contain chemicals, including fire retardants, because they are inflammable. I'm not recommending this product. The text about fire retardants should interest you. myessentia.com/blogs/mattress-101/fire-retardants-in-mattresses

As for pillows, one soft duck down pillow should be ok, though we sometimes use two. A pillow is useful to keep the head and spine inline.

So I should buy a "Duck Down Pillow" then. Besides a "Spring & Fabric" mattress are there any other types of mattresses that would work just as well? Just looking to see what the full set of opinions are that I can choose from. Also how and why does the "Spring & Fabric" mattress work for the body? I'm curious since many people would think that those types of mattresses would be the worst for your back.

We got a duck down and feather mattress topper and slept on it last night for the first time. It is excellent. Might be an alternative to purchasing a new mattress at a fraction of the cost.

That might be a good idea to try. Where would I buy one of these toppers? JCPenny or Kohl's?
Still is there any other type of mattress other than the "Spring & Fabric" type that would work for a good back? I'd like to know all my options before I commit to purchasing what is most likely going to be my mattress for 1 or 2 decades.

We have a quality natural fiber mattress. It is very heavy. Ours is a Visprung and it's good. Our topper came from Out of Eden department