Although getting enough sleep improves both physical and mental health, other factors also come into play. For the best possible health, the position in which you sleep is crucial. According to traditional Ayurveda, sleeping on your left side has more positive effects on your health than any other position. Learn more about the advantages of sleeping on your left side by reading on.
The symmetry of the human body must have you wondering how this is possible.
Our bodies are internally asymmetrical due to the placement of the organs.
As a result, sleeping on the left side has more advantages than on the right.
The following are some health advantages of sleeping on your left side that science has supported.
1. Aids Detoxification Lymphatic vessel stimulation and the moisture balance of the body are both positively impacted by sleeping on your left side. By removing impurities and toxins from the body through the thoracic duct, which empties into the left side of the heart, the lymphatic system transports metabolites and removes them from the body.
You will hasten and facilitate detoxification, or the removal of toxins from the body, when you sleep on your left side. The lymphatic system will have to work harder to move materials to the other side of the body if you sleep on your right. Arthritis, headaches, muscle damage, chronic fatigue, skin conditions, and other serious health issues can be brought on by a clogged lymphatic system. Try sleeping on your left side to clear your lymphatic system and restore it to its ideal state if you notice these symptoms.
2. Spleen function is supported by the spleen, an organ on the left side of the body. It is a component of the lymphatic system and has the job of filtering lymph and cleansing blood. Sleeping on your left side has spleen health benefits.
Lymphatic fluid can easily pass through lymphatic vessels and into the spleen when lying on the left side.
The spleen can filter impurities because of the increased blood flow caused by gravity. As a result, according to Ayurveda, sleeping on your left side improves spleen function.
Instead of being pumped by the heart, the lymphatic system drains every body cell through movement and muscle contraction. By using gravitational force, it is advantageous to aid lymphatic drainage to the spleen and heart.
3. Keeps Pregnant Women Safe According to Midwife Gail Tully, founder of Spinning Babies and a specialist in fetal and mother positioning, sleeping on your left side while pregnant has more health advantages than sleeping on your right.
Compression of the inferior vena cava and a decreased venous return are both related to a pregnant woman lying horizontally with her face and torso facing upward. Since less blood is being pumped by the heart each minute, there is less blood flowing to the uterus, which could be harmful to the baby’s health or necessitate C surgery. The liver is located on the right side of your abdomen, and sleeping on your left side can help to gently lift the bump and relieve pressure from your uterus. The placenta can then receive better blood flow and nutrients as a result. For these advantages to be supported, however, there is not enough research on pregnant women.
Better blood circulation, knee and leg support, and back support are additional health advantages of lying on your left side while pregnant.
Before changing your sleeping position while pregnant, it is advised to speak with your doctor. If you are pregnant, then take advantage of the advantages of sleeping on your left side.
4. The left side of your heart pumps blood into your body. Maintain Healthy Heart Function.
The heart has to work less hard while pumping blood through the body when you sleep on your left. This is so that the heart has less work to do, which favors lymph drainage toward the heart.
However, because the aorta and inferior vena cava are on the right, sleeping on your right forces your circulatory system to pump blood more forcefully against gravity.
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The right side of the spine houses the IVC, a large vein that assists in delivering your heart with deoxygenated blood.
The aorta leaves the top of the heart when you sleep on your left side, bends to the left, then leaves the heart and carries blood to the body. In other words, sleeping on the left side makes it simpler for the heart to pump downward.
Eliminates Toxins From the Body and Prevents Liver Congestion The liver is crucial in the body’s detoxification and elimination of toxins. Since the liver is located on the right side of the body, sleeping on your right side can make it easier for congestion to accumulate there and result in health problems. According to Ayurveda, sleeping on your left side will improve liver health and prevent indigestion, bloating, elevated cholesterol, and even depression.
Promotes Proper Digestion In Ayurveda, it’s common to sleep on your left side after eating. The stomach and pancreas, which produce digestive enzymes, naturally hang on the left side of the body when one is lying on their left side, enabling optimum and efficient digestion. Sleeping on your left side has a number of significant health advantages, one of which is this. Gravity’s force causes food to pass through the stomach gradually while releasing pancreatic enzymes as necessary for digestion. Because your digestive organs are placed in somewhat unnatural positions when you sleep on your right, they are forced to empty their contents earlier than they would normally, making this less likely to occur.
Sleeping on your left side has a lot of positive health effects. Are you prepared to try this sleeping position tonight—and if so, tell us about your experience in the comments section below.
