Sleep is crucial to our good health. The position we take to fall asleep comes naturally enough. There are several: on the stomach, on the right or left side and finally on the back. A priori without consequences, the position in which one falls asleep can impact the quality of our sleep and our health. Here is why you should fall asleep on your left side.
Before presenting the benefits and benefits of sleeping on the left side we explain why you should avoid sleeping in other positions.
Sleeping on your back
Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that manifests itself in episodes in which the patient does not breathe momentarily when he is asleep. Obstructive sleep apnea may lead to high blood pressure, diabetes, poor concentration and even memory loss. According to one study, the severity of obstructive sleep apnea could be twice as severe when sleeping on the couch when sleeping on the side.
Sleeping on your stomach
In an article, physiotherapist Hidde Hulshof returns to this posture. "It's an unnatural position that can impact your neck and back," he says. Sleeping on the back should be avoided because it could cause back and neck pain.
Sleeping on the side, yes but which one?
In an anthropological study published in the British Medical Journal, scientists have studied the sleeping position of nomads. These suffer much less muscular or skeletal lesions than Western men. So they noticed that most nomads take a position on the side.
According to another study published in the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Global Open, sleeping on the side could reduce feelings of numbness and tingling during sleep. These can encourage the development of carpal tunnel syndrome, which is a painful disease that affects the hands as well as the fingers.
According to a third study, the position in which you sleep could have effects on lymphatic cerebral transport. The lymphatic system is the means our brain has to get rid of waste in the brain area. It starts mostly during sleep and is crucial to the health of our brain. Thus scientists have found that this cleaning is optimal when adopting a lateral position during sleep.
These studies would therefore indicate that a position on the side would be beneficial for our body. It remains to choose which side is the best.
Sleep on the right side
According to one study, falling asleep on the right side could encourage gastro-oesophageal reflux or even heartburn. When the body is lying on the right side, the gastric fluid is in direct contact with the end of the esophagus and thus facilitate burns.
The benefits of the left side
The left lateral position is recommended during sleep because it has all the benefits of sleep on the side mentioned before without the inconvenience of sleeping on the back and stomach. In addition sleeping on the left side would avoid heartburn because the esophagus would be higher than the gastric fluid. By the way, sleeping on the left side is recommended for pregnant women. In fact, sleeping on the left side is preferable because the inferior vena cava is released. The left side therefore promotes placental circulation and promotes the health of the fetus.