Recall carefully, do you have such a situation in your life:
Sometimes when I sit upright, I feel dizzy suddenly; I forget the things I remembered a second before I turn around; I don’t sleep well at night, I think it’s ordinary insomnia…
Attention! These seemingly common bugs may be signs of body aging caused by problems with the cervical spine.
Some people don’t care, they always think that cervical spondylosis is a disease of old age. How can they decline before getting old when they are young? Don’t rush to refute, look at these data first:
According to statistics, the incidence of cervical spondylosis is about 3.8%～17.5%[1], and patients with cervical spondylopathy under 30 years old account for about 11.1%[2].
Young people, it’s time to care about the cervical spine! Otherwise, once something goes wrong, you may really have to bow your head to life.
So how does the cervical spine problem come about?
Small cervical spine pressure
Bad habits add to the burden
Our cervical spine is really not easy! In addition to supporting a head that can lift up to 3 to 5 kg, it also has to bend, extend and rotate. Flexible movement also means that it is relatively unstable.
In addition to the normal aging of human organs, cervical spine problems are also closely related to various bad behaviors in daily life.
Sitting in the wrong posture for long periods of time, using incorrect sleeping posture for a long time, and not having suitable pillows are all causes of various cervical spine problems.
Studies have shown that the simple movement of lowering your head will put a lot of pressure on the cervical spine.
When our head is directly above the neck, the neck only needs to support the head (about 10 kg). But once the head is lowered, the weight of the neck will increase, and the neck can bear about 24 kg of weight by only lowering the head by 15°[3]. Neck working overtime endlessly every day, long hours of playing with mobile phones, using computers, studying at desk, etc., will make the neck muscles sore.
And any part of the cervical spine has a problem, it may make people uncomfortable.
If the vertebral artery is compressed, it will cause dizziness, nausea, blurred vision and memory loss, so it is easy to forget whether it is the cause of the cervical spine. If the neck muscles are too tired, there may be pain and stiffness in the neck and occiput, and limited mobility.
In addition, sleeping on your stomach, sleeping curled up, discomfort in the height of the pillow, etc. will also make the neck muscles stay in a tight state for a long time and cannot relax.
Sleeping is the best way to relieve the fatigue of the day. Due to the wrong posture, uncomfortable pillows and other reasons, if you fail to rest at night, people will become more and more tired over time.
The good habit of using the cervical spine can not be developed in a day or two, but choosing a comfortable pillow is simple and effective compared to providing suitable support for the cervical spine and at the same time relaxing the neck muscles.
Protect the cervical spine from picking a good pillow
Sleep well and start
If you want to sleep comfortably so that your cervical spine can rest, a suitable pillow is very important. “Sit back and relax” is the opposite for the cervical spine.
Each body type and cervical spine curvature are different, it is best to choose a pillow that suits you by trying to sleep. Generally, when lying down, the pillow supports the head about a punch height (5-7cm), and the neck supports about 10-12cm. The appropriate pillow height when sleeping on the side is one shoulder width [4]. Lying on the pillow, remember to adjust the gap between the pillow and the neck to make the pillow fit the neck curve more closely.
In addition to the appropriate height, the material and shape of the pillow also have doorways.
The material of the pillow
There are many pillows of different materials on the market. They have their own advantages and disadvantages. You can choose according to your needs.
Down pillow: It has good fluffiness and soft material. If it is not filled enough, it will not support the cervical spine. It needs to be beaten for a long time to restore it to its original shape.
Polyester fiber pillow: low price and easy to clean, but the air permeability is slightly poor and easy to generate static electricity, and it will deform and appear uneven after long-term use.
Latex pillow: It conforms to the physiological curve of the human cervical spine, has sufficient support and elasticity, and is not easy to deform. However, some people may need to adapt for a period of time when using latex pillows, and they are not friendly to people who are allergic to latex. In addition, latex pillows are prone to foaming and scumming after a long time, and need to be replaced regularly.
Memory foam: It is a new type of material. It was originally used as a device material for space astronauts. It is now widely used in medical and civilian products. It is characterized by slow rebound elasticity, cushioning pressure, and self-generating according to the changing position of the head and neck. Change, keep the zero pressure fit with the head and neck [5]. Moreover, this kind of pillow has strong adaptability and natural partition, which can be customized to generate the curvature of the cervical spine.
The shape of the pillow
Similarly, take a look at the shapes of pillows that are common to everyone, and you can choose the right pillow shape according to your sleeping habits.
B-type pillow: The front and back are high, and the middle is low. The advantage is that it can support the neck and fit the physiological curve of the neck. However, it does not consider the conversion between supine and side lying, and lacks the design of opposite lying.
Saddle pillow: The shape is more in line with the physiological curvature of the cervical spine, and it is more friendly to people who like to switch between different sleeping positions. The shape of the middle is also suitable for the human body, which can relieve the discomfort of sleeping posture caused by the change of body position.
However, B-type pillows and saddle pillows are artificially simulated physiological curves and cannot adapt to everyone.
Bread pillow: It is a pillow type that is widely used and has a long history. This kind of pillow is more in line with the public’s pillow habits. For people who have difficulty adapting to new pillows and those who choose pillows for the first time, bread pillows have better plasticity.
During the day, not only we were busy with work, but the cervical spine also followed a hard day. Have a good pillow for eight hours at night to have a relaxing and comfortable sleep experience. Let our cervical spine relax. It’s best to store energy for the next day’s full blood resurrection just like traveling in space.
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