Memory foam pillows and memory foam products are all over the place at the moment. What is memory foam and why is it the best pillow for your neck in my opinion? Well visco-elastic (VE) foam pillows otherwise called memory foam pillows are the latest wonder item in sleep technology.
Memory foam companies, like Tempur Pedic UK, have been making visco-elastic foam products, such as pillows and mattresses, for many years. However, only in the last few years has the popularity of memory foam pillows really increased from a public awareness point. So the memory foam pillow article looks to why you may consider getting a memory foam pillow for yourself.
Why Use a Memory Foam Pillow
I have been using a memory foam pillow since my chiropractic college days. Doing lots of studying played havoc on my neck from time to time causing neck ache. So I decided to try out a memory foam pillow to help my neck. Memory foam pillows are a good product choice for people suffering from chronic headaches/migraines/neck ache/cervical disc problems etc… In general though I believe anyone can benefit from sleeping on a good memory foam pillow. Your pillow can make up an important part of your sleep comfort. So if you have a good mattress, but a poor supporting feather pillow then you are holding yourself back from a really good nights sleep. So memory foam pillows are good for both thos in pain and those wanting a better nights sleep.
Why Chiropractors Like Memory Foam
Chiropractors are great believers in the memory foam types of pillows. You are likely to find your local chiropractor stocking a memory foam pillow supplier like Tempur Pedic UK. So what is memory foam? Well memory foam is a moulded flexible polyurethane foam that has slow recovery after compression characteristic. You will see most companies advertise a hand imprint on the cover to show the slow moulding recovery properties of a memory foam pillow. This is why chiropractors like these memory foam pillows. They lower the contact pressure on the side of your head and neck when sleeping on the memory foam. This lowers ‘hot spots‘ from occurring at the main contact points like your ears, which, can stop you from tossing and turning so much to relieve the pressure.
Keeping your neck (cervical spine) in a good lordotic curve is another reason why chiropractors like memory foam pillows. The heavier part of your head will sink in further than the lighter part of your neck so the memory foam will be in uniform contact with your neck to support it better than a normal pillow. Why this is important is to lower abnormal stress build-up on the neck joints (facet joints) when suffering neck ache. This will allow your body a better chance to recover from the days stress on the neck joints by having a restful nights sleep.
Disadvantages of Memory Foam Pillows
Most people will never talk about the cons of memory foam pillows, but unfortunately I feel there are some. The pillow is temperature sensitive so when it is in a cold room, like in winter time, the material tend to harden. Some people have complained about this hardening as the feel the pillow becomes too hard and is uncomfortable to sleep on. However, your head and neck will warm it when in contact with the pillow. So the memory foam pillow will soften with your natural body heat. Memory foam pillows are also heavy in weight. A normal memory foam pillow can weigh ±2.9 kg so to travel with it in your plane luggage can be a problem. However, companies like Tempur Pedic UK do have memory foam travel pillow sets designed to be hand carried.
Other Advantages of Memory Foam
Since memory foam is made of open cells, meaning there is air gaps between the round foam cells, bugs like dust mites don’t like living in them. So memory foam producers like Tempur Pedic UK have claims on them to be hygienic pillows compared to normal pillows as they prevent growth of fungus and dust mites. This makes them hypo-allergenic as so good for allergy sufferers.
Memory Foam Pillow Conclusion
So if I believe if you are looking for an ergonomic, orthopaedic, doctor, chiropractor recommended pillow then memory foam pillows are what you are looking for. Hope you have a good night sleep.