A body pillow is a form of long pillow; they are designed to be used down the length of the body rather than across the body at the head and shoulders like a normal pillow.
Body pillows are a fairly new way of making the best use of pillows in the Western World, South East Asian cultures have a longer history of using pillows in a different way to that of the West, as body or hugging pillows they naturally go under a number of different names around the world, many of which are new to most of us.
People who find it difficult to sleep because of aching shoulders, back, hips and knees whether caused by general wear and tear or joint disease can also benefit from the extra areas of support these types of pillow offer over and above traditional pillows.
Maternity pillows or pregnancy pillows are those types of body pillows designed specifically for use during pregnancy or nursing, the latter can provide support for the mother and cradled baby helping to relax both, thus making nursing a less tiring and more likely a successful experience.
During the later stages of pregnancy, when the expectant mother's belly and chest has swollen considerably, backache and aching hips are extremely common. Aches and pains are a hardly surprising consequence of pregnancy considering the extra unbalanced weight being carried around all day, pregnancy pillows are designed to at least help you recover from these stresses and strains during the night.
Even when anyone is lying down there are always certain muscles under tension, but with a heavy belly to support a pregnant woman finds getting comfortable even more difficult. Thus you will sometimes see pregnancy pillows referred to as a belly pillow, but that would only be half the story, a good pregnancy pillow can still support the head, back and hips too, depending on the shape.
The medical profession recommend that pregnant women ideally should lay on their left side, this is for anatomical reasons, mainly to do with the heart blood supply vessels and the position of the large organ, the liver, that is positioned on the right side of the body. With regard to the liver lying on the left prevents it being compressed, which may otherwise hinder its ability to filter the blood as efficiently as it does.
The side sleeper pillow is similar to the maternity pillow and is ideally designed to enable a comfortable side sleeping position for anyone, it can be especially good for sufferers of joint pain (hips, shoulder or knees) and lower back pain conditions.
The maternity pillow designs differ in that some shapes offer extra support to the belly and back, all at the same time in some cases, this is in addition to the head, neck and shoulders.
The price of body pillows varies depending on design and what the pillow filling material is, whether man made fiber or natural material for instance, but they are not expensive for the relief they can bring.
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