sleeping in a recliner for acid reflux

Sleeping in a Recliner for Acid Reflux

Sleeping on a recliner for acid reflux is a simple fix that can allow you to have a pain-free sleep. To understand how this simple trick works, you need to know how acid reflux happens. For the food to reach the stomach, it has to go down a tube called the esophagus. At the end of the esophagus is a ring of muscles called the lower esophageal sphincter or LES. The LES relaxes to let food into the stomach. It then tightens to keep food from flowing back up. When the LES fails to prevent backflow, it creates acid reflux.

 

Should You be Concerned?

Having acid reflux every now and then is nothing to worry about. More than 60 million US citizens experience it at least once a month. Studies show that more than 15 million US citizens experience heartburn symptoms each day. Frequent acid reflux may be a symptom of a more serious disease called gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD.

 

How Sleeping in a Recliner for Acid Reflux Works

Now that you know what happens in acid reflux, you can understand how sleeping on a recliner helps. When you are standing upright, your stomach is below your esophagus. This position allows gravity to keep the stomach contents down. If you lie flat on a normal bed, the stomach and esophagus become in line. Gravity will not be able to keep your stomach content down. By sleeping on a recliner, you keep our stomach below your esophagus. This position creates enough gravity influence to help prevent acid reflux.

 

Keeping a Neutral Spine

A recliner helps to have a neutral spine. Many like to suggest that you should keep your back straight for a healthy back. Although this is true, it can be misleading since the spine itself is not straight. Your spine has a natural curve as seen in the photo.

 

sleeping in a recliner neutral spine position

Neutral (Good Posture)

If your spine assumes its natural curves, then you have a neutral spine. In this position, your spine experiences the least strain.

 

Sleeping in a Recliner for Acid Reflux

sleeping on a recliner distributing weight

Distributing weight

Many sleep on their back in a recliner. Sleeping on your back distributes your weight on a larger surface area. This spread out weight distribution can help prevent bedsores. It also helps the back to stay in a natural curve. For example, your spine should be on the reclined seatback. This means that your hips should be at the crease of where the seat and seatback meets, like in the image above.

 

sleeping in a recliner for acid reflux wrong way

Straining Lower Back

If you sit leaning straight back, you can end up like in the image above. The upper spine will have support while the lower spine will not. This position can strain your lower back and neck which can lead to the typical consequences. Some consequences are tension and pain in the neck, upper back, lower back, and shoulders.

 

sleeping in a recliner preventing acid reflux

Sleeping on your Left Side

You can try sleeping on your side, but the limited space you have on a recliner can make it difficult. If your recliner is wide enough to sleep on your side, doctors recommend you sleep on your left side to prevent acid reflux. Your esophagus is at the center of your body, but your stomach is curved like a “J”, and most of its volume is on the left side. Thus, the idea is that sleeping on your left side puts your stomach and its contents below your esophagus. 

 

Recliner for Acid Reflux

recliner for acid reflux

Ultra Comfort Stellar Comfort UC558 Lift Chair

The UC558 Power Lift Recliner is a versatile recliner with many comfortable positions for acid reflux. For acid reflux, you want to keep your head above your feet when you sleep on the UC558 Power Lift Recliner. This position will ensure proper blood supply to your head and lower body.

 

Other Common Reasons for Sleeping on a Recliner

Besides acid reflux, people also sleep on a recliner for other benefits.

other common reasons for sleeping on a recliner

Sleep Apnea

Sleeping on a recliner can help people who suffer from sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common form. It happens when the muscles in your throat become relaxed and block your airways. It often leads to snoring, abrupt awakenings during the night, and sleepiness during the day. When you sleep on a recliner, your head is elevated. This position can help clear your airways and let you breathe normally and sleep better.

 

Pregnancy

Health professionals do not recommend women who are in their second or third trimester of pregnancy to sleep on their back. At this point of the pregnancy, the weight of the fetus can compress a vein called the inferior vena cava. The inferior vena cava is the vein that returns blood to your heart from your lower body. If the fetus compresses this vein, it can lead to high blood pressure and poor circulation. To avoid these complications, health professionals recommend that women in the later stages of pregnancy to sleep on their side. However, sleeping on a recliner can be an alternative as long as the chair is not so reclined that it might as well be a flat bed.

 

Back Pain and Back Surgery

People who experience back pain for reasons like spinal stenosis, degenerative spondylolisthesis, osteoarthritis may find more relief if they sleep on a recliner. Moreover, getting in and out of a recliner chair is easier than getting in and out of bed because there is less movement involved. The same goes for people who just had back surgery. Sitting on a reclined position also puts less stress on your back than sitting in an upright chair, which makes things more comfortable for people fresh off back surgery.

 

Sleeping in a Recliner Alternative for Acid Reflux

sleeping in a recliner alternatives bed

Glideaway Odessa Adjustable Bed

The bed in the photo is called the Glideaway Odessa.  With this bed, not only can you position your whole body on an incline for acid reflux, but you can also adjust certain portions of the bed to suit your comfort needs. Thus, you can take any variations of sleeping on your back or your side while maintaining a neutral spine.

 

Other Options to Prevent Acid Reflux

To get the most out of your sleeping experience on your recliner, you can do the following:

• Take GERD or acid reflux medications like antacids, proton pump inhibitors, and H2 blockers
• Have smaller meals
• Avoid foods that trigger your acid reflux (Note: This is subjective, so you will have to experiment on what foods you should avoid. Typical ones are citrus fruits, fried and fatty foods, spicy foods, and alcoholic, caffeinated, and carbonated drinks)
• Wear loose clothing
• Lose weight
• Quit smoking

 

Conclusion

A recliner chair can be a comfortable addition to your home. After a long day, it is nice to put your feet up and sit back. However, a recliner can be more than just for sitting. With the right chair and knowledge on sleeping positions, you can have restful sleep on a recliner especially if you have acid reflux.

 

References
https://www.webmd.com/heartburn-gerd/guide/what-is-acid-reflux-disease#1
https://gi.org/topics/acid-reflux/
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/gerd/symptoms-causes/
https://badgut.org/information-centre/a-z-digestive-topics/heartburn-keeping-night/

Jesse Crow
Jesse Crow graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Arlington. As a life-long participant in sports and motocross, he suffered considerably from joint and back pain. It wasn’t until he purchased his first quality mattress that he found any relief. After having studied and tested hundreds of sleep products, as well as visiting manufacturers both overseas and in the U.S., Jesse established Rest Right Mattress. His approach is based on assessing the individual needs of each customer, and meeting those needs through expert knowledge of sleep products.