Paleo Sleep

When I interviewed Erwan Le Corre a couple of years ago, one of the things I asked about was sleep.  I was expecting an answer about the importance of sleep to health and recovery but while that was there, he also talked about where and how to sleep:

Sleeping enough, resting frequently, going to bed early, leave a window open to make sure air is renewed, avoiding synthetic fabrics.

I personally like to sleep on the floor, not in a bed, not even on a real mattress. To me it's more comfortable this way, and this way I can sleep about anywhere without experiencing discomfort whenever I'm travelling.

I thought of Erwan's answer today when I was on Facebook and saw that Mark Reifkind had posted a link to a really interesting study of how hunter gatherers sleep.  The paper is a few years old but it is fascinating:

Instinctive sleeping and resting postures: an anthropological and zoological approach to treatment of low back and joint pain

The whole paper is there and is worth reading.  This is the summary

• Forest dwellers and nomads suffer fewer musculoskeletal lesions than “civilised” people
• Nature's automatic manipulator during sleep is the kickback against the vertebrae by the ribs when the chest is prevented from movement by the forest floor
• Various resting postures correct different joints
• Pillows are not necessary

 Largely anecdotal evidence has been collected by “old timers” for over 50 years from non-Western societies that low back pain and joint stiffness is markedly reduced by adopting natural sleeping and resting postures. This observation must be recorded to allow further research in this direction as these primitive societies no longer exist and the great apes living in the wild are heading for extinction. All we have to do is to be good primates and use these preventive techniques.