What sleeping position should you have if you have acid reflux and heart problems?

What is the best sleeping position for acid reflux?

If you struggle with acid reflux and heartburn, the side-sleeping position is a good choice, says Daniel A. Barone, MD, associate medical director of the Weill Cornell Center for Sleep Medicine (and a neurologist at NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City).

“People often say that sleeping on your back makes acid reflux worse, although that’s not really clear,” says Barone.

Barone cites a study that found that sleeping on the left side is associated with reduced heartburn, while sleeping on the right side can actually make acid reflux worse. This is because it relaxes some of the muscles in the digestive system and creates more space for acid to move through.

However, there is no clear evidence that sleeping on your left side can relieve heartburn, so while it is worth a try, it may not solve the problem.

Dr. Barone recommends that people with acid reflux should sleep in a position that raises the bed frame (like a hospital bed) or places bricks under the foot of the bed to raise the head of the bed because it is a fairly effective way to reduce acid reflux.

He also advises against adding too many pillows under your head as this can cause your head and neck to become misaligned and cause pain.

Does sleeping on your side really affect heart health?

Many people worry and wonder about their cardiovascular health by controlling their heart condition through their sleeping position. They think that sleeping position can affect cardiovascular problems. However, Dr. Barone affirms that there is no need to worry too much about this.

“If you’ve heard that sleeping on your right side is better for your heart, that idea comes from research that used electrocardiograms (ECGs) and vectorcardiography (an imaging technique) to measure the electrical activity and position of the heart while people slept. In people who slept on their left side, the activity was slightly different from normal and the heart was slightly tilted; on the right side, there was no change from normal,” he says.

While this may seem to cause some problems, there is no evidence that any of these effects have an impact on overall heart health.

“To my knowledge, sleeping position does not affect your cardiovascular health,” says Barone.

Who should avoid sleeping on either side?

While side sleeping is probably the best position for most people, one thing to keep in mind is that it can cause and aggravate shoulder pain.

"The prolonged pressure on the shoulder from side sleeping can cause pain, stiffness, or soreness," says Charles A. Su, MD, a sports orthopedic surgeon at the University of Virginia Health System and an associate professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of Virginia School of Medicine in Charlottesville.

While side sleeping can lead to shoulder pain for anyone, the risk is much greater for people with certain underlying conditions such as: rotator cuff injuries, shoulder bursitis, biceps tendonitis, and shoulder osteoarthritis.

Source: https://laodong.vn/suc-khoe/tu-the-ngu-nhu-the-nao-khi-bi-trao-nguoc-axit-va-cac-van-de-ve-tim-mach-1365718.ldo