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  1. #1
    Senior Member Dcolon13's Avatar
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    Question Real health benefits of a hammock?

    After a visit to my chiropractor today, I found myself wondering about the effects of hammocks on the body. Now, don't get me wrong: I love my hammocks and often do wake up feeling better than when I sleep in a bed. My quandary, however, is that most of the purported benefits I've read of are either vague or highly anecdotal, but when I think about it logically, I'm not sure why sleeping with a curved back and rounded shoulders could be good for you.

    Could anyone point me to some research or give a reasoned explanation of the actual physical benefits of a hammock? What does it do to the curvature of the spine and posture? What effect does the position have on the upper back, lower back, shoulders, etc?

  2. #2
    Senior Member oldpappy's Avatar
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    Did your chiropractor provide any insight? Seems he/she would be a good source of info. Can you email him/her and ask?
    Enjoying the simple things in life -
    Own less, live more.

  3. #3
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    My wife is a chiropractor and I run her office so this is coming second hand but sleeping in a position where your shoulders are open, your spine is straight and your cervical and lumbar spine has good support is always going to provide for a healthier spine. We are both hammock sleepers on backpacking trips for comfort reasons alone (soft hammock is better than hard rocky ground any day) but there are no health benefits we can see for sleeping in a hammock rather than a traditional mattress.

  4. #4
    Senior Member Pipsissewa's Avatar
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    THIS on generally better sleep and THIS on back health written by an orthopedic spine surgeon.
    "Pips"
    Mountains have a dreamy way
    Of folding up a noisy day
    In quiet covers, cool and gray.

    ---Leigh Buckner Hanes

    Surely, God could have made a better way to sleep.

    Surely, God never did.

  5. #5
    Senior Member Dcolon13's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by oldpappy View Post
    Did your chiropractor provide any insight? Seems he/she would be a good source of info. Can you email him/her and ask?
    She told me pretty much what toddseimer said above, with the exception that it could provide temporary relief to someone with a preexisting back condition by decompressing the spine. Still curious to hear a counterargument...

  6. #6
    Senior Member Deadwood's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by toddseimer View Post
    My wife is a chiropractor and I run her office so this is coming second hand but sleeping in a position where your shoulders are open, your spine is straight and your cervical and lumbar spine has good support is always going to provide for a healthier spine. We are both hammock sleepers on backpacking trips for comfort reasons alone (soft hammock is better than hard rocky ground any day) but there are no health benefits we can see for sleeping in a hammock rather than a traditional mattress.
    Don't mean to hijack the thread but, having your chiropractor living in the same house. You are a lucky guy.

    Back to the discussion.

  7. #7
    Senior Member Dcolon13's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pipsissewa View Post
    THIS on generally better sleep and THIS on back health written by an orthopedic spine surgeon.
    These articles are exactly what I mean by vague information; both discuss the neurological benefit of "rocking," while neither actually say anything about spine health.

  8. #8
    Senior Member zukiguy's Avatar
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    Another curious member here.....no matter how cushy of a mattress I use, sleeping on the ground leaves me stiff and sore all over in the morning (but I sleep like the dead). In the hammock I wake up several times through the night but wake well rested and without the aches and pains. Winner: HAMMOCK!!

  9. #9
    Senior Member BigE94's Avatar
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    I think the real question is how do you feel when you get up in the morning? If you find that you are making more few questions trips to the chiropractor then maybe it is an issue. If you start hurting and hunching it's a problem.
    I would rather be in the woods... my dog would rather be in the pool. My wife thinks we are both nuts.

  10. #10
    all secure in sector 7 Shug's Avatar
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    I say the benifit is it restores my back when it is give-out and makes me smile. So the mental health aspect is a right goodie too.
    I don't sleep in one at home. I save it for backpacking and nights in the backyard from time to time.
    Shug the Calm
    Whooooo Buddy)))) All Secure in Sector Seven

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