Elevating your legs can result in all sorts of health benefits, including better circulation and reduced swelling in the lower body. However, it does have limits, and elevating your legs can’t undo other bad habits that affect your lower body and/or circulation, such as smoking, wearing high heels often, sitting or standing all day, never exercising, eating an unhealthy diet, etc. Elevating your legs is not a silver bullet that will fix the consequences of other bad health decisions, and this technique should be used to support a healthy lifestyle, not cure an unhealthy one. Wedge-shaped pillows for acid reflux can be a helpful tool for those suffering from gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and heartburn. The double concave shape helps the leg pillow stay in place thanks to its heightened side wings. The hollowed-out middle is meant to allow for better airflow, preventing your legs from getting heated while using the pillow.It also comes with an elastic strap to help it stay in place wherever you choose to place it. Leg elevation pillows can be used for many purposes. In particular, people buy these pillows to reduce swelling or pain in the legs during sleeping hours or to comfort them post-surgery. A way around this issue is by using folded-up blankets instead of pillows. Blankets could be folded up so that you can adjust the height to suit your needs. Additionally, a leg elevation pillow could provide an excellent solution, as they are created specifically for the purpose of raising one’s legs.

Knee pillows exist to increase a person’s comfort while sleeping. They do so by promoting spinal alignment, relieving pressure, and helping keep the body in a comfortable position. The pillow’s firm feel helps ensure optimal spinal alignment and good stability for the pelvis and hips. The ergonomic shape also allows the pillow to fit comfortably between your knees while lying on either side. Thanks to the foam’s dense composition, the pillow should hold up well over time and resist the shape loss that often occurs with low- or medium-density foams. Sleeping with your head or legs elevated can both be very beneficial to your sleep schedule as well as your overall health. However, they differ in what they help. While keeping your legs elevated helps keep your spine aligned and promotes better circulation, sleeping with your head propped up helps alleviate snoring and some of the symptoms of sleep apnea and acid reflux. How high should you elevate your legs? Some people use regular bed pillows beneath or between their knees. While this might provide comfort, a specifically designed knee pillow is likely to provide more comfort with less bulk. Knee pillows are much smaller than standard bed pillows and are often ergonomically designed to fit between a person’s legs.

We encourage you to look past vague advertising claims and examine specific features of knee pillows instead. The best pillow for you will depend on your body and personal preferences. Swelling in the lower extremities is common during pregnancy. This may be due to increased fluid retention, hormonal changes, and pressure from the expanding uterus. Leg elevation may help ease this swelling. Cellulitis Your doctor may have specific tips on how best to do leg elevation for your condition. It’s also possible that leg elevation may not be recommended for your condition. Inflatable pillows offer customizable elevation levels and are great for travel, as they can be deflated when not in use. Body Pillow: A body pillow is usually the width of a bed pillow, but double the length. Body pillows work well for side sleepers and pregnant women. In addition to putting space between the knees, they give people something to hug.

The Cooling Foam Leg Pillow from Sharper Image features a gel coating on each side. The gel is designed to dissipate heat and prevent excessive warmth – a common issue with solid memory foam pillows. A cover made of breathable velour also promotes airflow to enjoy the pressure-relieving benefits of memory foam without overheating. Snoring can be reduced with the help of inflatable wedge pillows for the bed or a mattress wedge that sits between the bedframe and your mattress. A soft and velvety microfiber cover wraps the pillow. Sleepers can remove the cover to machine wash and dry when necessary. For best results, the foam should only be spot cleaned. This pillow is available in grey and in one standard size. Sleep Number has designed its Knee Pillow to be hypoallergenic. Try finding a pillow that is hypoallergenic, as well as breathable. Those who tend to overheat at night should also consider getting a leg pillow that has a cooling gel pad in it. Waking up with sweaty legs thanks to your leg pillow defeats the entire purpose of the pillow. In this section, we delve into the various factors that are important when it comes to knee pillow shopping. With a deeper understanding of shape, support, firmness level, and more, you will be prepared to evaluate the many knee pillow options on the market.Get More Info: Best Mattress for Adjustable Beds Use Pillows Our writer, Sosha Lewis, testing out a pillow. Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG). (2020). Deep vein thrombosis (DVT): overview. When it comes to choosing the best leg elevation pillow for you, Dr. Drechsler recommends a few key features to keep in mind. When purchasing a knee pillow, it’s important to keep your needs and characteristics in mind. Your sleep position preference, body weight, and budget impact which pillow is best for you. What to Consider When Purchasing a Knee Pillow

The Knee-T Leg Pillow has a streamlined design that is less bulky than other knee pillows. It comes in three sizes: standard, long, and pro. The standard size is designed for sleepers shorter than 5 feet, 8 inches, and under 160 pounds, while the long and pro sizes are intended for taller and heavier sleepers.People with allergies can rest assured that the pillow is completely hypoallergenic and resistant to dust mites. In fact, it’s one of the few knee pillows that has CertiPUR-US certification. Height: "The hips should be flexed to about 30 degrees. If you go beyond about 30 degrees, there is negligible benefit with increasing patient discomfort,” the dual board-certified physician said. “The shins should be at least parallel to the floor, up to about 10-15 degrees of flexion (not completely straight).” As a general guide, a height of 6-8 inches works well for most people. Despite being a niche product, there are lots of options available on the market. In this article, we are looking a bit closer at the best leg pillows for side sleepers and the different features of these. We will also go through the different reasons for using a leg pillow, what to keep in mind when purchasing one and how to best use them depending on your needs. The most common knee pillow type is shaped like an hourglass, and all of our recommendations feature variations on this shape. Still, there are knee pillows of other shapes available, so you should be aware of them.

The leg pillows featured in this article are primarily designed with side sleepers in mind. However, there are lots of different types of pillows that you can place between your legs on the market if this particular shape doesn't attract you. We have already mentioned the larger pregnancy pillows that are usually U- or C-shaped. Each member of our testing team has extensive experience in the sleep product industry. We draw on our in-depth knowledge to bring you the most trustworthy pillow recommendations. Elevating your legs places them above the level of your heart. This means that gravity is now working in your favor. This may help improve blood flow in the veins in your legs. Reduces swelling The position can also help reduce inflammation, which can help keep swelling down, particularly for those who are pregnant or of advanced age . If you have tense muscles, this could also be relieved by putting your limbs up, helping blood circulate, and giving your extremities a rest. 3. Prevent Deep Vein ThrombosisThis particular leg pillow doesn’t just come with the classic, heart-shaped design as many other leg pillows do. What is interesting about this one are the materials. The orthopaedic Beautrip Leg Pillow comes with a high-density, slow-rebound memory foam, which is pretty standard. But added to this is a cooling gel pad which is designed to help reduce inflammation and, of course, to keep your leg nice and cool throughout the night. Additionally, it may not be comfortable for those with restless legs syndrome (RLS) 7. Those who experience this condition have a difficult time getting quality sleep because of an almost irresistible urge to move their legs. If a prop to keep your legs elevated is added to the equation, your quest for comfort may be further hindered because you will now have to move the prop as you move your legs. The outer cover is made of breathable bamboo fibre and comes with a handy zipper for easy removal whenever you want to throw it in the washer. Another feature of this leg pillow is the elastic strap that will help your pillow stay in place, even if you switch position or move your legs.