The habit of sleeping on your stomach of many people will bring many disadvantages to health as well as affect sleep quality.
According to experts from the health website Healthline, sleeping on your stomach will directly affect the body with the following harmful effects.
Puts pressure on the spine and back
One of the biggest disadvantages of sleeping on your stomach is the pressure it puts on your spine and back. The spine is an important part of the body, so sleeping on your stomach can easily unbalance the natural curves of the spine. This can cause tension in the muscles in your back and neck, leading to pain the next morning.
In addition, sleeping on your stomach puts a large portion of your body weight on your abdomen and pelvis, while your head and neck have to lie to one side to breathe.
This increases pressure on the spinal discs, impairing balance and easily leading to spinal degeneration or disc problems.
Causes neck strain and headaches
In addition to back pain, the neck is also a part that is affected a lot when sleeping on the stomach. The reason is because the person sleeping often has to turn their head to one side, which causes tension in the muscles around the neck.
This tension, if prolonged, can lead to chronic neck pain, difficulty turning the neck, or stiffness in the morning.
In addition, sleeping on your stomach will limit blood circulation to the brain, leading to symptoms of headaches or dizziness after waking up.
Especially for those with a history of bone and joint problems, sleeping on your stomach will make the pain worse.
Effects on the respiratory system
Sleeping on your stomach can also affect your respiratory system. When your body puts pressure on your chest and abdomen, your lungs are compressed, limiting their expansion.
As a result, the breathing process is obstructed, not enough air is absorbed into the lungs, causing difficulty breathing.
In addition, compression of the chest and abdomen can reduce blood circulation, affecting sleep quality and the ability to recover energy after a long tiring day.
For people with respiratory problems such as asthma or bronchitis, this sleeping position can also aggravate breathing difficulties, causing some more serious complications.
Bad impact on the digestive system
Some studies have shown that sleeping on your stomach can cause a number of digestive problems, including gastroesophageal reflux.
When the body lies on its stomach, the pressure on the stomach and esophagus can increase the risk of acid reflux, causing discomfort, heartburn and negatively affecting sleep.
Bad blood circulation
One of the lesser-known effects of sleeping on your stomach is its effect on blood circulation.
When parts such as the chest, abdomen and face are compressed, blood circulation in the body is restricted, making it difficult to circulate effectively.
This can lead to symptoms such as numbness in the hands or feet or even increase the risk of blood clots in people with circulatory problems.
