Sleep position: How to improve comfort in bed

(CBS News) If you didn't sleep well last night, it may be time to change the way you sleep. Position is essential to improving your comfort in bed, according to Dr. Ana Krieger, medical director of the Weill Cornell Center for Sleep Medicine at New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

She said position is particularly important for people with health issues. If you have back problems, for instance, she suggested avoiding sleep on your stomach. "That leads to a misalignment of the back," she said.

She advised a side or back position would be best for people with back problems.

Kreiger's advice echoes a story in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal that demonstrates how your body position in bed can affect your health.

Most people move often -- once or twice an hour -- in their sleep, according to Krieger. "Sometimes it's mild movement or there's a change in body position. You always look for a comfortable position to sleep in."

Among married couples, Krieger said just half sleep in the same bed or bedroom. Why? She said, "Because of comfort issues. You may have a spouse that snores or someone who has a different schedule than you have, who goes to bed late or wakes very early and disrupts your sleep. We are very sleep-deprived, so we need to capitalize on the sleep that we have for good quality."

To get better sleep and assure your family does as well, watch Krieger's full "CTM" segment in the video above for her complete list of tips.