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Katie: Hey guys. This is Katie from Mattress Clarity. Today, I'm going to talk about my
five favorite pillows for back sleepers. Back sleeping is the healthiest sleep position
according to sleep experts. That gives you the best chance of having that gorgeous neutral
head, neck, and spinal alignment.
It's going to leave you feeling refreshed when you wake up in the morning, but only
eight percent of adults in the US sleep on their backs. It's just so interesting. I crunched
the numbers, and that's still a lot of people.
There are no shortage of good pillows for back sleepers on the market today. I'm going
to tell you my five favorite ones. Marten's going to come in and give you his take as
well.
We're also going to give you some tips and tricks about shopping for a pillow for back
sleeping and answer some commonly asked questions. If you're ready to learn more, stick around
because we're about to dive into the roundup right now.
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Katie: I do want to tell you guys something really quick. I've had the chance to review
a lot of pillows. We've got a ton of reviews up on our site at mattressclarity.com. All
you got to do is go to the site and then click on the tab that says Best Pillows. It'll have
a whole list of all the different roundups we have.
We've got best pillows for back sleepers -- of course, we're talking about that today -- side
sleepers, stomach sleepers, if you like foam, if you like down alternative. We've got all
of them on there. We also have a lot of individual reviews and comparisons lined up as well.
Make sure you go to mattressclarity.com to check all that out.
At the end of this roundup, comment below and tell me which of these pillows you think
is going to be the best fit for you. I'm super curious what people are into these days, so
definitely comment below and always let me know if you have any questions.
Let's dive into the first pillow on this list. It's the Brooklyn Bedding Talalay Latex pillow.
I'm holding it up right here. It's actually one of two profile options. They have a low
profile and a high profile. The low profile is four inches tall. The high profile is six
inches tall.
Back sleepers, depending on your body size, either one of these can work for you. Average,
maybe also petite individuals will probably like the low profile. Larger individuals,
maybe those with broader shoulders, you guys will want the tall profile.
Either way, no matter which profile you get, you're going to get a core that's a solid
piece of ventilated Talalay latex.
Talalay latex is really nice. It's hypoallergenic. It's got a nice resilient, bouncy feel to
it. It's going to respond super quickly. It's going to give you a lot of pressure relief,
but you're not going to sink in the same way that you will with a memory foam pillow.
The outer cover is gorgeous. It's 50 percent cotton, 50 percent organic cotton and 50 percent
polyester. It's got a smooth feel to it. The zipper allows you to remove the cover and
wash that. You're going to want to leave the core alone.
It comes in two different sizes, queen and king. The queen is around $89 at full price.
Of course, these things always go on sale and prices change, so make sure to check the
website.
All right, the next pillow up on my list of best pillows for back sleepers goes to the
Coop Home Goods' Eden pillow. We're big fans of Coop Home Goods in general at Mattress
Clarity.
We love the Eden pillow for back sleepers because it has what I call the best-of-both-worlds
feel to it. What I mean is that the core is a mix of uniform pieces of gel-infused memory
foam and polyester fibers.
You're getting a lot of lovely support from those foam pieces. You're also getting a smoothness
and sort of a downy, almost down-alternative feel from the polyester fiber. Combined, you're
getting the best of both worlds.
This pillow is adjustable. Back sleepers, no matter what size you are and body type
you have, you can use this pillow because you can access that foam and fiber fill and
remove it. It also gives you extra in case you want more.
You can adjust to your desire. You're not going to feel all those chunks from big chunks
of memory foam on the back of your head. It's going to have a nice, smooth feel.
I also love the cover. The cover is 60 percent polyester and 40 percent viscose rayon derived
from bamboo. This is a popular fabric that's popping up. This gives it a nice, smooth feel
and a lot of breathability to it. You can remove the cover and wash that separately,
which is great as well. Comes in three different sizes, standard, queen, and king. The standard
is around $70.
Another one of my favorite pillows and one that made the list in last year's best pillows
for back sleepers is the Dr. Loth's SpineAlign pillow. Dr. Loth is a sports chiropractor.
He designed this pillow as a contour pillow to help you get that beautiful head, neck,
and neutral spinal alignment.
The middle chamber is for back sleepers. That's the one that y'all are going to want to focus
on. The side chambers or the ones on the end are for side sleepers. The pillow, as I mentioned,
is a contour pillow which means that it's designed in such a way that the curvature
of your neck, that natural curvature is going to be supported by the edge of this pillow.
If you can't tell, there's a logo on one side. The logo side is for those of you who are
5'7 or taller, about my height or taller. More petite individuals will go with this
side. Whatever side feels good to you is the one that you're going to want to use, but
that's a general guideline.
The outside fill is a mix of something called lyocell, which is really nice synthetic fabric
known for being soft and breathable, polyester, and a little bit of Spandex, so a little bit
of stretch in there.
The inner fill is something that I keep referring to as the best of both worlds. It's a mix
of chunks of memory foam, and different types of foam, and polyester fibers. You can adjust
the pillow using a bunch of little zippers they have. You can adjust just the size. You
can adjust just the middle chamber if you want, depending on your sleep position.
There's a lot of ways to customize this pillow, which I love. I think it's a nice contour
pillow option for you, back sleepers, who are looking for something that's a little
bit different than just a solid piece of foam. Right now, the pillow comes in just one size.
Expect to pay around $149 for it at full price.
Next up is one of my favorite pillows from the mattress brand, GhostBed. This is one
of their Ghost pillows. It's the faux-down pillow. It's got a down-alternative-like filter,
very soft and fluffy and plush overall. What's really nice is this cool outer cover. It's
a mix of cotton and polyester, but it's also a wrinkle-free fabric. It's got a lot of that
velour velvety feel to it.
If you are a back sleeper who moves to their side or ends up on their stomach even though
you do identify as a back sleeper -- sometimes you move, and we end up in different positions
-- it's not going to create wrinkles on the side of your face, which is such a cool, nice
touch.
Overall, this is a great down alternative, hypoallergenic option for back sleepers. It's
seven inches tall, but because it's got that plush microfiber gel-cluster fill, it's going
to sink down and give you that plush, soft feel.
You can remove the cover and machine-wash and dry both the cover and the pillow, so
it's easy to clean as well. Right now, it comes in just one size. Expect to pay around
$85 at full price.
Last but not least on my list is a very nice, luxurious option. This is the TEMPUR-Down
Precise Support pillow from Tempur-Pedic. It is a very nice mix of beautiful down and
feathers inside this pillow, but also a supportive core, which is their TEMPUR material. It's
a proprietary memory foam feel.
There are shreds of that inside the core of this pillow that help to give the pillow support
and stop it from going flat. You're going to just feel like it's a down pillow overall.
This outer cover is 100 percent cotton, 500 thread count. It has that beautiful, crisp
hotel pillow feel to it.
Inside the cover is this down and feather combination. You're getting that beautiful
down feel right away when you lay your head on this pillow. Then the core is supporting
you.
I love that there's a down option for back sleepers. You guys are going to be able to
lay your head, feel that soft fluff of that down, but you're not going to sink all the
way through, causing neck strain. It's going to help keep you supported. I love this combination
for that reason.
This comes in two different sizes, queen and king. It's around $149 for a queen. I do want
to let y'all know that Tempur-Pedic does not offer returns or trial periods. This pillow
is definitely an investment, but it's a nice, luxurious option.
Marten: Hey guys, Marten here to offer a different perspective. I'm a larger person than Katie.
I'm 6'7. I'm 250 pounds. As a larger person, I have different needs as a back sleeper,
especially when I'm looking for a pillow. Out of these pillows she talked about today,
I think three stand out for larger people like myself.
First off, we have the Ghost pillow. Now, I like this one quite a bit. It has that fluffy
down-alternative feel. When I'm on my back, head sinks in the right amount. I'm getting
just enough support, a very good match for back sleeping.
Then we have the Coop Home Goods. A big fan of the Coop Home Goods here because it has
more of that, has some fluff to it but also a little bit of that slow-moving memory-foam
feel as well, a nice balanced feel, good support on my back, good neck support. My head sinks
in just the right amount.
Last but not least, we have the SpineAlign pillow. As Katie mentioned, you have these
two sides you can choose from, depending on how much neck support you need. As a larger
person, I chose the more lofted side, definitely got enough neck support. My head sunk in just
the right amount, a very good match for back sleeping.
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Katie: Let's dive into some questions that are commonly asked about pillows for back
sleepers. The first one I get a lot is, "What kind of pillow is best for back sleepers?"
The thing is that the best pillow for you if you are a back sleeper is one that's going
to have the overall feel, that material that you really like, whether it's foam or more
of a down option, crisp cotton cover, or maybe you want something that's more moisture-wicking.
All of that can be found in any sort of pillow that's best for back sleepers. What you want
to focus on is the right loft and the right support level to give you a beautiful head,
neck, and back spinal alignment.
If you're looking at yourself from a back-sleeping position, you want a straight line to run
from your forehead to your nose to your sternum and your spine. That is going to identify
as a natural neutral spinal alignment even though our body's spine, itself, is curved.
Remember, you've got a curvature on the back of your neck. There's a curve by your lower
back. All of that is natural, and you want to maintain that natural position.
You definitely want a back pillow or pillow for back sleepers that's going to support
the back of your neck without pushing it up or without letting it fall too flat overnight
where your head then sinks down. You need to identify that beautiful and perfect height
and loft that's right for you to give you that natural spinal alignment.
Another question we get is whether or not memory foam pillows are good pillows for back
sleepers. The answer is definitely yes. Memory foam is known for being contouring, pressure-relieving,
doing a nice job of supporting the back of the head and the neck and relieving pressure
in those areas, which then translates to more comfort in the rest of your body.
I tend to be a bigger fan of those adjustable foam options, ones that either give you different
high or low profiles, or they have chunks of memory foam inside or even combinations
of memory foam and other fabrics or other materials that allow you to add or remove
as much as you want.
That gives you the chance to personalize the pillow to make sure its the right feel for
your specific body type. That's why I've got a few on my list.
I definitely think the SpineAlign, the Coop Home Goods' Eden, and the proprietary memory
foam or TEMPUR material in the TEMPUR-Down Precise Support pillow. Those are all options
that have memory foam, but they do have some lovely adjustable features as well.
A funny question we get that I want to end on is, "Do back sleepers even need pillows?"
There's definitely a whole contingent of people out there who don't think you need pillows
to sleep. That's fine if you're on that side, and you feel like that's best for you.
I am inclined to say yes, back sleepers, you're going to want some form of a pillow to help
support your head and neck at night. One of the things that's going to help determine
which pillow is right for you as a back sleeper is how plush or how firm your mattress is.
If your mattress is really plush, you're going to sink further down. You're going to need
a smaller, flatter pillow to help support the rest of your head and neck. Likewise,
if you're on a super firm mattress, you're sleeping right on top of that mattress, which
means that you do need more support and more loft for your head and neck.
Take a little time to determine, "What kind of mattress am I sleeping on? What am I most
comfortable on?" and then look for pillows that offer a good trial period, because you're
going to get a nice time to test out the pillow and decide if it's the right fit for you.
All right, there you have it. Those are my five favorite pillows for back sleepers. I
hope something in here spoke to you or helped you narrow down all the million choices out
there for back sleeping. You guys are definitely already in the healthiest sleep position.
Good for you.
Find the pillow that suits your needs best. There's so many out there. I'm happy to give
you a personal pillow recommendation if you want to comment below and give me your details.
I'm always here with any general questions you have.
Comment below and like or subscribe to our channel for more. We've got a ton of pillow
reviews and other mattress reviews and other content out there. I hope I see you again
soon. Thanks.
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