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Traditional medical wisdom has long stated that the firmer the mattress, the better it's for back pain sufferers. Now, a Spanish scientific study published in the prestigious British medical journal The Lancet on November 2003 strongly suggests that traditional wisdom is wrong. The study, conducted by Francisco Kovacs of Kovacs Foundation in Palma de Mallorca, has analyzed 313 people with cronic non-specific low back pain, that sleeped on mattresses with different levels of firmness. After 90 days, the results showed that the medium-firm mattresses outscored the firmer ones by a significant margin, a definitive response and a definitive debunking of traditional wisdom. But, more important, the study also showed that sleeping on a new mattress, whether it's very firm or medium-firm, rather than an old one, was associated with more frequent discontinuation of drug treatment and relevant improvement in pain and disability. So, we have the scientific support that replacing an old mattress with a new one can improve back pain. These results have been recently confirmed by a new, groundbreaking study Subjective Rating of Perceived Back Pain, Stiffness and Sleep Quality Following Introduction of Medium-Firm Bedding System, published in the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine (Winter 2006), authored by Bert Jacobson, EdD, Tia Wallace, MS, and Hugh Gemmell, DC, EdD of Oklahoma State University. The study shows the critical link between mattress quality and sleep quality, as well as the importance of regular mattress replacement. In fact a new mattress, compared to a 5-7 years old ones, improves sleep quality by 62% and sleep comfort by 70.8%, plus reduced back pain by 55.3% and back stiffness by 50.7% over a four week period. The study has also found that lowe back pain was much more prominent for people who sleep on the cheaper beds and the older beds. Recent statistics say 70 millions Americans are affected by sleep problems and this means a bad quality of life. We all know that one third of our lives is passed on a mattress, so this should be one of the most important investment we ever make: and now, we've scientific proofs that a new, high quality mattress leads to a good night's sleep and to an healthier and more productive life. Don't sleep on it
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