Experts Explained Why You Might Want To Avoid Sleeping On The Right Side Of Your Body

Do you have a favorite way to sleep? Lying on your front, perhaps? Or curling right up into a ball? Well, according to experts, how you sleep can have a dramatic impact on your health. And, more specifically, they say there’s one position that may be doing your body more harm than good. Here’s what you need to remember next time you’re drifting off.

Sleeping position matters

It seems crazy that the way you sleep can affect your health, right? But it’s true. Try not to stress, though. It’s completely normal to fall asleep in a fetal position and wake up like a starfish – much to your other half’s despair! And while there’s one way of snoozing that experts say is the worst for your health, it turns out that they all have different perks and drawbacks.

Personality link

Weirdly, some researchers even claim that your sleeping position is linked to your personality. Professor Chris Idzikowski is one of these people. He surveyed a thousand volunteers to try and find out more about the poses we humans find ourselves in as we’re drifting off. And the results are really quite fascinating.

No hiding in bed

Idzikowski’s investigation concluded that our body language reveals lots about us as we fall asleep. This means our personalities are there on display for anyone to see while we doze. Let’s just hope no one is watching us, eh? “Hey, Chandler Bing?”

A time to restore

And what goes on inside of us is even more amazing. For one, being in a restful state allows our bodies to get to work mending our cells and replenishing us with vital hormones and proteins. Plus, rather obviously, our energy is restored – meaning we’re ready to face whatever challenges we’re presented with the following day. But that’s not all.

Purging and reflection

Our nerve cells also get to work on cooperating with each other and reordering themselves. Recent scientific studies suggest, too, that when we’re in a slumber, the brain flushes out any toxic waste with cerebrospinal fluid. And, subconsciously, sleep gives us the time to reflect upon any key information we’ve learned during the day.

Critical for survival

Without these functions, our health and wellbeing would suffer dramatically. And this would, of course, eventually result in death. Put simply, then, sleep is as important to a human’s survival as eating enough food and drinking the right amount of water. But what is the main reason for sleep? Well, scientists have a few compelling theories, as it turns out.

Primitive instincts

One of these suggestions is to do with the way sleep preserves energy. Basically, resting lowers your metabolic rate, meaning you don’t need to eat as much to keep your body going. This explains why we tend to doze at night, too. Not only is it typically colder than during the day, but the dark also makes it harder for us to catch any prey. Yes, it’s hard to remember sometimes, but we are actually evolved animals! Super-intelligent primates, to be exact.

Brain plasticity theory

We’ve already touched on the amazing way the body mends its cells while we sleep, which is the basis of the restorative theory. And the way the brain reshuffles memories and nerve cells and flushes out toxins is known as the brain plasticity theory. Yep, you can thank us next time this crops up at trivia night!

The vicious cycle

But did you know that sleep and good mental health also go hand-in-hand? You see, restless nights tend to send the amygdala – or the part of the brain that controls how stressed we are – into overdrive. It’s a vicious cycle, really. Not getting enough shuteye can cause stress and anxiety, and then stress and anxiety can lead to a lack of sleep. So, what’s the answer?

Find a wind-down routine

Well, it’s simple really: we should all try to make sure we get enough z’s. Like this adorable fox. Why not have a relaxing bubble bath before bed? Or minimize screen time before hitting the sack? And there’s something else you should bear in mind as well: your sleeping position.

Finding the right position

Going to bed is not as simple as just tucking yourself under the duvet and dozing off. Yep, as we’ve said, how you lie during the night can have a big impact on your body’s sleep processes – and, therefore, your overall health.

Stomach, back, and side

And when it comes to sleeping positions, there are three top categories: stomach, back, and side. Let’s start with the one that has been found to be more popular than any other. Can you guess what it is?

The classic fetal

Well, the winner is… drum roll please… the fetal position! Yes, according to research, this is the most common, with approximately 47 percent of people in the U.S. dozing off in this manner. It falls into the side-sleeping category. And as you may have guessed, it involves bending your knees towards your chest – just like a baby in the womb. Interestingly, fetal sleepers are also said to be a little reluctant to show how they really feel. But what about the others?

Free fall position

Well, another popular pick is the so-called free fall position – and it’s how approximately 17 percent of Americans like to sleep. It’s a stomach-lying pose in which you lay your head to one side and fold your arms around a pillow – or alternatively underneath it. And free fallers supposedly have friendly personalities. We suspect Tom Petty slept this way...

The yearner

In third place, and just making it onto the podium, is the yearner. Approximately 13 percent of Americans sleep in this manner. It involves resting on your side with arms outstretched in front of the body. And for some reason, the folks who doze like this are said to be quite mistrustful of other people. Baby boomers are most commonly found to sleep this way, funnily enough.

The soldier

And just missing out on a medal in our imaginary sleeping position Olympics is the soldier. This pose is a back position that involves facing upwards with your arms by your side. Presumably, it gets its name from the way soldiers look in their constricted sleeping bags. Apparently, 11 percent of Americans doze like this, and those people tend to be quite shy.

The starfish

Next up in the list of America’s favorite positions – sleeping ones, we mean! – is the starfish. And it’s exactly as it sounds. It’s a back-based pose where the person spreads their arms and legs out to resemble the aquatic animal. Interestingly, the peeps who rest this way may be more inclined to get up and sleepwalk.

The log

Then there’s the log, which is used by approximately 6 percent of Americans. This is a side position, in which sleepers place their arms by their sides – effectively making them look like big thick pieces of wood. People who get their shuteye this way – let’s call them loggers – are said to be genial. And they, too, are more prone to sleepwalking than those in most other positions.

The pros and cons

There you have it: the main six ways to sleep. There are probably a few more obscure ones – including the book position illustrated by the dozing fella here – but that’s pretty much your lot. So, what are the benefits and downsides of slumbering in these specific positions? And which are the best and worst for your health?

Back is number one

Psychologist and author Michael Breus penned the book Good Night: The Sleep Doctor’s 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health. Naturally, then, he knows a bit about the subject! And he told CNN that lying on your back is the “best position for getting high-quality sleep.” Folks dozing in this manner tend to stay fairly still during the night, you see, and so they often wake up feeling nice and restored. Sleeping this way also balances your weight across your body and skeletal frame, meaning it’s a good way to combat back pain.

Snorers beware

If you find this position causes more back pain, though, then neurologist W. Christopher Winter, MD told CNN that putting a pillow under your knees should help. But do bear in mind that there are some dangers that can come from sleeping on your back. For some, it isn’t great for creating a clear airway and can lead to sleep apnea. And then, of course, there’s snoring, which isn’t the best if you share a bed.

Bad news for stomach sleepers

What about stomach sleeping, then? Well, we hate to break it to you, but it’s not particularly good news if you need to plant your face on the pillow to doze off. The pros? It can help with sleep apnea by opening your airways a bit. But the cons are numerous, as both Winter and Breus note. For starters, you could end up with neck and lower back pain. In fact, if you love sleeping this way, it’s best to ditch the pillow!

Opening the airways

Now all that’s left to discuss is side sleeping. And broadly, this position has generated some of the most interesting findings. Yes, nodding off on your side can provide a whole host of health benefits, as this smiling Buddha seems to know. First, sleep apnea sufferers and snorers will likely get some relief when adopting this position. That’s because it helps to open your airways and allows you to breathe more easily.

Good for the back and the brain

Plus, side sleeping can contribute to relieving back pain and protecting the curve of your spine – especially if you go one step further and take up the fetal position. Snoozing on your side could benefit your brain, too, by reducing the chances of suffering from Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s or other conditions affecting the nervous system. Yes, really.

Optimal brain flushing

A study using mice discovered that their glymphatic systems were more efficient when lying on their sides than on their backs and stomachs. This meant their bodies could flush toxins out of the brain more efficiently and, in turn, help to prevent the onset of dementia or other neurological problems. Whether this is the same in humans is not so clear yet. But the findings are promising.

Go for the left

When sleeping on your side, though, it’s important to remember that one side is worse than the other. That’s right: experts say you should try and sleep on your left rather than the right. Why? What difference does it make? The answer is a really significant amount. In fact, this seemingly trivial choice could be the difference between good health and bad.

Improve blood flow

First, dozing off on your left is believed to aid blood flow to your heart. Yes, as Winter explained to CNN, after your heart pumps blood out, it goes all the way round the body before returning to the right side. So if you snooze while leaning on your right, the pressure of your body’s weight may, to some degree, crush the blood vessels that return to your heart.

Improving heart health

Winter added to CNN, “Sleeping on your left side with your right side not squished is supposed to potentially increase blood flow back to your heart.” And given the importance of keeping this vital organ healthy, it can only be a good thing to protect it and help it to work efficiently.

The best for pregnant women

Winter also suggested that it’s important for pregnant women to ensure that they doze off on their left sides if they don’t already do so on their backs. Why? Well, a baby in the womb will thrust the mom-to-be’s organs upwards, potentially affecting the blood flow to their heart. A pregnant woman’s ticker is already toiling overtime to sustain the baby, and right-side sleeping could make its job even harder.

Gut impact

But it’s not just your heart that benefits from you adopting the left-sleeping position. No, far from it. This sleep pose can have a positive impact on your gut health, too, and can have you jumping out of bed full of vitality. How exactly?

Aiding in your daily doo

Well, sleeping on the left side influences the movement of waste through the colon, from the ascending section down to the transverse and finally the descending part. So you should be ready to, ahem, do the business when you wake up. Yep, a little trip to the bathroom to start the day!

Working with our asymmetry

And left-side sleeping could potentially provide much-needed relief for folks living with conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, constipation and inflammatory bowel disease. It’s all to do with our body being asymmetrical in terms of where our organs lie – and the way the small intestine moves waste to the large intestine.

Dodging heartburn

Left sleeping can also help foil heartburn that may arise from snoozing on the right. Gastric juices are apparently less likely to make their way up the esophagus in this position. Add to that the brain waste clear-out we’ve mentioned, the prevention of neurological conditions and sleep apnea, and you have a pretty convincing argument for leaning left in the night.

The clear winner

So, the facts are in, and it’s clear: sleeping on the left has a remarkable list of benefits for your health and wellbeing. Out of the four main sleeping positions, it’s won the gold medal. But all this researching and writing has actually made us a bit – yawn – tired. Perhaps it’s time to go for a nap – on the left side, of course!