There is nothing more debilitating than back pain, especially when compounded with lack of sleep, and it's estimated that 50% of people suffer from various degrees of back pain sometime in their life. Many sufferers of back pain can benefit enormously by sleeping on the right mattress, but which one? Until now there was no set solution, but with the advent of memory foam mattresses, many sufferers of back pain are finally getting their first good night's sleep.

Memory foam mattresses are made from a visco-elastic material that was originally developed by NASA. The first company to see the benefits that this new compound offered the sleeper was a small Danish company called Tempur-Pedic. The company experimented and developed this new compound and soon the Tempur Pedic mattress was born. Tempur-Pedic carried out various clinical trials and soon found that memory foam mattresses - as they were soon called - offered support that was vastly superior to conventional mattresses.

Basically, a memory foam mattress is totally different from conventional mattresses. A memory foam mattress, as manufactured by Tempur-Pedic, consists of a solid block of visco-elastic material; there is no ticking, coils or frame. A memory foam mattress responds to heat and body pressure to mould itself to the exact shape of the sleeper's body. This means that weight is distributed evenly and the correct amount of support is given to each part of the body. A memory foam mattress delivers orthopedically correct alignment of your neck and spine.

Independent research, carried out by the Institution for Clinical & Physiological Research at the Lillhagen Hospital in Gothenburg, Sweden, found that the vast majority of the 23,000 patients studied suffered less pain when sleeping on a Tempur-Pedic mattress and experienced greatly enhanced and deeper sleep. And, to date, over 30,000 medical doctors, chiropractors, physiotherapists and osteopaths world-wide recommend the TEMPUR Mattress and Neck Pillow for those who suffer from back pain.

Other mattress manufacturers soon woke up - pardon the pun - to the amazing benefits of memory foam mattresses. Needless to say they now offer their own version.

The TrueForm Posturepedic mattress by Sealy uses memory foam, and is designed to ensure the easing of pressure points to alleviate back pain. The Sealy TrueForm is a proprietary combination of multilayered memory foam.

The International Touch is the memory foam mattress made by Serta. This mattress uses Serta's patented KoolComfort technology to ensure that the mattress remains cool when in use. It also incorporates a fiber layer to wick away moisture that helps regulate body temperature. This layer is non-allergenic. Finally, Serta claim that their memory foam mattress is up to 30% than their rivals - whether it's as good is debatable.

Another of the big players, Jamison, also makes a memory foam mattress. The Jamison Omalon and Visco Foam mattress. Jamison claim that the manufacturing process of their version of a memory foam mattress 'densifies' the cells contained with the structure of the visco-elastic material, thereby giving more support and durability.

To answer; what is the best mattress for back pain is easy: a memory foam mattress. However, memory foam isn't to everyone's liking. Memory foam lacks the 'springiness' of traditional mattresses. A memory foam mattress feels quite firm initially, before it gradually moulds itself to the shape of the sleeper's body. Sleeping on a memory foam mattress can take a couple of weeks to get use to.

Visco-elastic memory foam mattresses haven't been on the market all that long, but many consumers are giving memory foam mattresses excellent reviews. And there is no doubt that memory foam mattresses are proving a popular choice for those who suffer from back pain. As to which is the best brand of memory foam mattress, that's not so easy. Serta, Sealy and Jamison make fine mattresses; both conventional and memory foam, but to my mind, the original memory foam mattress is still the best; the Tempur-Pedic. But don't take my word for it, go and try them out for yourself.


Visit bestchoicemattress.com for more information about what is the best memory foam mattress, whether it be a Sealy mattress or a Jamison mattress.