Best Mattress for Sleep Apnea
Last Updated: December, 2024
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Untreated sleep apnea can cause various unpleasant symptoms, including snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness, and fatigue. Moreover, the lack of sufficient air as you sleep limits oxygen flow to your brain, which can lead to severe complications.
While swapping your current mattress can't cure sleep apnea, it will help alleviate its symptoms and improve your sleep quality. The best mattress for sleep apnea is the Ghost SmartBed 3D Matrix. This cooling luxury mattress is adjustable and boasts numerous high-tech features which you’ll see below as we review other ideal choices.
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Our 7 Best Mattresses for Sleep Apnea
Ghost SmartBed - 3D Matrix
With its high-tech design, the GhostBed 3D Matrix is remotely adjustable via a remote control, allowing sleepers to adjust their sleep comfort preference effortlessly. The mattress is also fitted with gel-infused memory foam that keeps sleepers from overheating.
PlushBeds Botanical Bliss Organic Latex Mattress
Thanks to the organic Dunlop Latex, this mattress holds hypoallergenic properties, which help shield against asthmatic and allergic attacks. Moreover, this mattress is made of other high-quality GOTS standard and GOLS-certified materials, making it a perfect pick for persons with sleep apnea.
Amerisleep AS3 Mattress
The AS3 Mattress combines pressure-relieving properties and a supportive design to promote excellent sleep quality. The spectacular sinkage it offers helps keep your nasal airway open, especially when sleeping on your side.
Molecule Hybrid Mattress
This mattress' supportive coils and comfortable foams make it perfect for hot summer holidays. The softness of the pressure-relieving foam makes the sleep surface comfortable for a restorative slumber.
SleepOvation Mattress
SleepOvation employs a sophisticated design in its construction, 700 tiny mattresses in one, which provides sleepers with accurate pressure point relief. Like innerspring mattresses, this mattress has a support coil system that retracts to minimize noise and motion transfer.
Zoma Hybrid Mattress
Zoma hybrid uses a polyfoam base and coil support core, making the mattress more breathable, supportive, and bouncier. The mattress' comfort system comprises zoned memory foam and polyfoam, which helps relieve painful pressure points.
Vaya Mattress
Vaya is an all-foam supportive mattress made of open-cell CertiPUR-US certified polyfoam that is super breathable than ordinary memory foam. Unlike most advanced high-quality mattresses, Vaya is budget-friendly, boasting a price tag of only $699.
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GhostBed 3D Matrix is a one-of-a-kind mattress fitted with cutting-edge smart technology that guarantees not only to relieve your obstructive sleep apnea symptoms but also to provide you with great cooling and pressure relief. Also, unlike most hybrid mattresses, this smart model allows you to adjust your sleep comfort depending on your mood and preference via remote control.
Thanks to the cool-to-the-touch cover, honeycomb 2-inch gel polymer, and gel memory foam layer, the mattress offers hot sleeper sensational cooling relief, unlike any ordinary hybrid mattress.
This high-tech mattress is primarily suited for side sleepers making it an excellent pick for sleep apnea sufferers. This is due to its medium-firm feel that cushions the pressure points of side sleepers. Back sleepers will also enjoy this hybrid mattress' superior pressure point relief, thanks to the latex construction, coil support system, and soft foam layers.
The GhostBed Mattress comes with a 25-year warranty and a 101-night trial period. The company also offers free shipping and full refunds on returns but within the sleep trial window.
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As a natural latex mattress, PlushBed Botanical Bliss is an excellent choice for sleep apnea patients and individuals with asthma and allergies. Since natural latex is super breathable, the bed is also ideal for hot sleepers.
Though fit for any sleeping position, this mattress is better suited for lightweight and average-weight sleepers. Aside from opening your airway to reduce sleep apnea symptoms, sleeping on this latex mattress also helps provide excellent pressure relief while gently cradling your hips, shoulders, and small joints.
As already mentioned, this is a naturally breathable latex mattress, and unlike ordinary memory foam, it traps less heat keeping you cool during hot summer nights. Moreover, the Organic Dunlop Latex helps shield against dust mites, mold, mildew, and other allergens.
The PlushBeds company backs this latex mattress with a 25-year warranty and a 100-night sleep trial. Moreover, they offer free shipping within the contiguous U.S.
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With its unique memory foam, this mattress is an excellent pick for patients with obstructive sleep apnea and hot sleepers. Thanks to its 7-inch dense bio-core foam, sleepers get maximum body support and extended mattress durability.
The mattress' incredible cooling feature stems from the Refresh Cover that converts heat into infrared. Additionally, the 3" open-cell Bio-Pur foam- which is also responsive and pressure-relieving-helps draw heat from your body to keep you cool all night.
This Amerisleep As3 model is a medium-firm mattress that works best for back sleepers due to excellent spinal alignment and pain relief. However, since side sleeping is the ideal sleep position for sleep apnea relief, this mattress still does a great job of keeping your air holes open in that position.
Additionally, the 2" HiVE transition layer beneath the Bio-Pur foam helps cushion your joints while relieving pressure from your shoulders and hips, enabling you to sleep more comfortably.
The Amerisleep As3 bed comes with a 100-night trial period and a 20-year warranty. Also, the Amerisleep company offers free shipping.
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s a hybrid mattress, this molecule model is the right mattress for relieving sleep apnea symptoms with its excellent balance of support and comfort. This luxury bed-in-a-box mattress is excellently cooling, courtesy of its multiple cooling foam layers and supportive coils.
On the firmness scale, it stands at 6/10, which is softer than the industry average of 6.5/10. While the mattress' pressure relieving top layer holds the softer feel, the support layer and the individually wrapped coils provide slight firmness.
Though back sleepers enjoy a decent amount of support under their lumbar area, side sleeping is also similarly comfortable-thanks to the zoning on the surface, which helps relieve pressure around the hips and the shoulders while keeping your nasal airway open. Being a soft mattress, stomach sleeping isn't recommended, especially for heavyweight sleepers; otherwise, they risk spinal misalignment.
Unlike most mattress companies, Molecule offers a 365-day trial with a limited lifetime warranty. They also offer free shipping and returns.
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Sleepers who like memory foam mattresses will really love what SleepOvation has to offer. SleepOvation is a 700-in-one mattress that offers sleepers accurate superior pressure point relief- a beneficial feature to side sleepers.
The mattress has a thin breathable stretch knit cover that ensures efficient cooling. The air channels in its innerspring also facilitate further cooling by ensuring the mattress doesn't trap heat. Moreover, unlike a traditional memory foam mattress, the tiny mattresses have small air channels between them to permit excellent airflow throughout the sleep surface.
Though ideal for back and side sleepers, the mattress' design is perfect for sleep apnea sufferers. And with a good adjustable bed frame or a solid base, this bed can be a great supplement to sleep apnea treatments.
The SleepOvation mattress has a 100-night sleep trial period and a 10-year warranty. Returns for full refund are also possible but should be within the stipulated 100-night trial period.
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Though designed to target athletes, this Zoma hybrid mattress has features that guarantee any sleeper world-class comfort and sleep quality. This is evident in its soft memory foam feel that lets you sink gently into the surface, providing excellent pressure relief.
It also responds to your movements and lets you stay cool all night courtesy of its Reactiv™ layer and breathable perforated gel memory foam. What's more, the layer is ultra-responsive and provides maximum contouring and pressure relief without making you feel stuck on the sleep surface.
Though the Triangulex Gel Memory foam layer is designed to offer more support towards the upper body and the foot of back or stomach sleepers, many sleep apnea sufferers will find this mattress super cozy, since side sleeping on the mattress is not only pressure relieving but also opens the nasal airways.
The mattress is 6x more breathable thanks to its gel memory foam which has cooling perforations, and the moisture-wicking ventilated AirCloth that keeps you consistently cool.
Zoma Hybrid is a U.S.-manufactured mattress made under eco-friendly processes; this Zoma mattress' foam is CertiPUR-US® certified and is free of harmful chemicals or VOCs. The company offers free shipping, and the mattress comes with a 100-night sleep trial and a 10-year warranty.
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Vaya is an all-foam mattress designed to suit virtually any sleeper. And like any all-foam mattress, this mattress excels quite well in pressure relief, cooling, and maximum body support.
Unlike most memory foam mattresses, Vaya is quite reliable during hot summers because of the open-cell structure of its Polyfoam material. While Polyfoam dissipates heat, the breathable polyester cover allows for efficient air circulation across the surface.
Thanks to the 3" polyfoam layer, this mattress cradles your body profoundly while spreading your body weight evenly across the sleep surface. This helps prevent pressure build-up in one spot.
Since it is a medium firm mattress, Vaya provides top-notch comfort to sleepers weighing less than 230 lbs. Overall this mattress is an excellent choice for sleepers seeking to reduce sleep apnea symptoms since its design primarily targets side sleepers.
In addition to a 10-year warranty, this supportive mattress is backed by a 100-night sleep trial period and ships free to clients in the contiguous U.S.
Sleep Position and Sleep Apnea
It's always wise to choose a mattress depending on your preferred sleeping position. That way, you'll rest assured of receiving better comfort and body support and, ultimately, restorative sleep. For individuals with sleep apnea, sleeping style is vital in reducing the sleep disorder's symptoms and improving their health in general.
Side Sleeping
Known as the healthiest and most popular position, side sleeping promotes better spinal alignment and decreases snoring and heartburn. This helps minimize the number of sleep apnea episodes.
If you're not a side sleeper, you can work on becoming one by swapping your mattress with a model that supports this sleep position. Latex foam, memory foam, and hybrid mattresses with excellent pressure relief can help.
Stomach Sleeping
While stomach sleeping can help reduce snoring and sleep apnea, it's not a recommended sleeping position because it comes with other drawbacks. For instance, it can throw the spine out of alignment, causing neck tension and pain that can be problematic during the day. Back pain and sciatica can also occur as a result of sleeping on your stomach.
Back Sleeping
As mentioned earlier, back sleepers risk developing and worsening sleep apnea symptoms. This is mainly due to the collapsing of soft tissues around the back of the throat and the tongue falling back as you sleep in this position. If you can't switch to the side sleeping position, consider using a wedge pillow or mattress topper to prevent airway obstruction.
Best Mattress Type for Sleep Apnea
Those with sleep apnea may struggle to find the best mattress that pairs comfort with relief. While each brand is unique, most beds fall into one of the following categories depending on their construction.
Latex Mattress
Latex beds are made of natural or synthetic latex or both. This material is well-known for its breathability, durability, and responsiveness. Although it also conforms to the sleeper's body, it spreads their weight over a wider region.
Plus, latex is hypoallergenic, thus promoting better breathing throughout the night. If you're searching for the best latex mattress for sleep apnea, avoid synthetic latex, as it features a petroleum base and releases an off-gassing odor. This could aggravate sleep apnea symptoms.
Memory Foam Mattress
Memory Foam mattresses offer excellent pressure point relief, vital for side sleepers. It delivers the right amount of support to your body by cradling your hips and lumbar region for healthy spinal alignment.
Although foam beds are comfortable and supportive enough for side sleepers, their softer versions may not provide enough support for stomach and back sleepers. Moreover, memory tends to trap body heat, which contributes to overheating. That said, if you're a hot sleeper, you may want to go for a memory foam mattress designed with air channels, gel infusions, or phase change technology to help increase airflow.
Hybrid Mattress
Hybrid mattresses feature a coil support system beneath a soft layer of foam or latex. The comfort system offers exceptional pressure relief and motion isolation while the coils deliver support, bounce, and breathability. Generally, hybrid mattresses offer individuals with sleep apnea a great combination of pressure relief and support, making them an ideal pick for a wide range of sleepers.
If you'll use your hybrid mattress with an adjustable base, check with your manufacturer, as some mattresses aren't compatible with adjustable bed frames.
How to Choose the Best Mattress for Sleep Apnea
When shopping for a bed to relieve sleep apnea, you should look for alternatives that conform to your body and relieve pressure while offering enough support to keep your neck and spine aligned. An even and supportive mattress with latex or memory foam comfort layers can perfectly adjust to your body to help minimize pressure buildup. This, in turn, helps reduce sleep apnea symptoms by encouraging good posture.
Here's a list of other vital things to consider before choosing a mattress for sleep apnea.
Firmness
For most individuals with sleep apnea, the perfect firmness range is from medium to medium-firm. If you sleep on a soft mattress, the heavier sections of your body are likely to sink deep into the surface, which may lead to an obstructed airway. Back sleepers, stomach sleepers, and individuals who weigh more than 230 pounds may need the support of a firm mattress.
Material
Although most quality materials usually come with higher price tags, they're worth the investment. Organic and ethically sourced materials promote healthier sleep as they're free from harsh materials, which may aggravate symptoms of sleep apnea. Plus, high-quality materials are long-lasting, which prevents the sinking caused by years of use. You'll particularly benefit from hypoallergenic materials because they're more breathable and they rarely cause irritation.
Pressure Relief
This refers to your bed's ability to distribute weight away from painful pressure points. Pressure relief is usually a vital factor for sleepers with sleep apnea. It's also beneficial for side sleeping - a position often recommended for individuals with sleep apnea. Memory foam and latex foam mattresses offer excellent pressure relief thanks to their body-contouring properties.
Sleep Trial
It's always wise to go for a mattress with a lengthy sleep trial when shopping for a bed to help you address a specific medical condition. This will give you enough time to test your new mattress and see how your body reacts.
Sleep Apnea Sleep Tips
Aside from sleeping on a supportive mattress, these tips can help minimize sleep apnea symptoms and promote better breathing.
Use a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Machine
CPAP machines are the most commonly used sleep apnea treatment. It's designed to keep the patient's airways open at night and provide consistent oxygen using a face mask.
If you opt for a CPAP machine, you may want to use it with a CPAP pillow, which helps create space for the face mask and hoses. It also provides much-needed support to your head and neck.
Sleep on Adjustable Bed Frames
Although side sleeping is often recommended for individuals with sleep apnea, some patients are used to sleeping on their backs. Unfortunately, this position might worsen sleep apnea symptoms.
If you prefer back sleeping, it'd be wise to invest in an adjustable bed frame. With an adjustable bed, you can easily adjust your upper body to keep your airways open with just a click of a button. Plus, these products excel at reducing snoring and improving blood circulation.
If you share your bed with your spouse, consider purchasing a split king adjustable bed. This will allow you to change your bed's position to your own personal preference without interfering with your partner's comfort needs.
Use a Wedge Pillow
For those not ready to invest in an adjustable base, a wedge pillow might be a perfect alternative. Like bed frames, wedge pillows elevate your upper body to open the airways. This is especially an ideal option to back sleepers.
Closing Thoughts
Generally, managing sleep apnea starts with finding the right mattress that will conform to your body and support your spine. We hope our definitive guide helps you find the perfect bed that brings some relief from your symptoms.
Remember to also check with your physician if you consistently feel tired and groggy every morning when you wake up. While the best mattress for sleep apnea will reduce some of its symptoms, your medical practitioner can help you find the main source of your sleeping problems and recommend the right treatment plan.
Gabe is the newest member of The Sleep Shop team. If you like the design of The Sleep Shop, give Gabe a thumbs up. He’s a digital marketing and design guru and the brains behind the design and SEO of The Sleep Shop. He also won’t say no to testing a ton of mattresses either, and helps on almost every mattress review.
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