The most important benefit of an organic mattress is the fact that it contains no harmful chemicals. But first, here’s what you must know about home mattress trials and what makes a good organic mattress.
If manufacturers are indeed careful and keep their products all-natural, sleeping time will definitely benefit your health. Some Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients may find their symptoms reduced slightly while sleeping on an organic mattress due to a lack of irritating chemicals found in other mattresses.
Some European studies also showed that wool may lower heart rate, but these studies are yet to be backed up by solid evidence.
Many memory mattress manufacturers and retailers also make health-related claims, saying that their products can cure insomnia and/or many other sleep disorders, back pain, joint pains and so on.
Mattress Recommendations from Doctors
Contents
- Many customer reviews say that a Tempur-Pedic mattress or pillow has helped apnea and fibromyalgia patients, insomniacs and people suffering from back and hip pain. There are no relevant medical studies to back up these effects which is why doctors are still skeptical about recommending (or not recommending) visco mattresses.
- The Federal Flammability Standards require all mattresses be flame retardant. However, if your medical condition requires an all-natural sleeping surface, you may be allowed to buy a non-treated mattress by doctor’s prescription only. Organic wool mattresses are best because wool is a natural fire retardant.
Back Support
- Visco foam mattresses will provide good support as long as it is dense enough (4lb minimum), is layered over a firmer core made of good quality high resilience foam, is firm enough (ILD rating of 14-15) and, most importantly, is sensitive to body temperature.
- Organic cotton and wool mattresses cannot offer back support unless they have a latex core underneath. They are simply too soft and collapse under your weight. All-natural mattresses with inner springs core offer minimal spinal alignment and back support.
Pressure Relief
Health care specialists say that to be labeled as providing pressure relief, a mattress has to have the pressure of 32mmHg or lower, whereas pressure reduction performance is agreed to occur between 32mmHg and 50mmHg.
- A good quality viscoelastic mattress like Tempur-Pedic Swedish mattress and other leading brands were shown to reduce average pressure to around 15 mmHg from nearly 30 mmHg.
The inner structure of natural wool fibers used in organic mattresses are like small spirals that retain air in a somewhat similar fashion to open-cell foam. Wool has the ability to slightly contour your body, but not in the way latex or memory foam does.
- A thick wool layer in a mattress will indeed reduce some of the pressure points, but if you are a heavy person, the wool will collapse under your weight. Cotton padding cannot offer you any pressure relief because it is very soft and light and it simply sags underneath you.
Allergy And Mattress Choice
- Lanolin is a natural substance found in wool which makes it dust-mite resistant (against feeding and nesting). Some people have a allergy to lanolin which can be easily solved by using sheets to avoid contact. Organic mattresses are not recommended for all allergy sufferers, though.
- There are people allergic to organic cotton or latex, so before you rush out and buy the product, consult with your doctor to see whether you are allergic to any of these.
- Cotton and latex can, unfortunately, host dust mites and mildew, which may trigger allergies.
- Open-cell memory foam mattresses do not promote dust mite nesting, nor are they a food source in themselves, but unfortunately they can and do host dust mites.
- Due to its structure, an open-cell foam mattress (like almost any other type of mattress) cannot be cleaned of these microscopic creatures. The only way to prevent allergy-provoking dust mites in your foam mattress is to use dust-mite resistant encasings and covers.
Customer Opinions
I am so disappointed in my new organic mattress! It stinks so much it gave me a headache!
groups.google.com/group/alt.support.mcs
I am very reactive to organic cotton. My thought is that it is less processed and has a natural oil that is somehow diluted or altered during the processing of regular (pesticide) cotton that makes it more tolerable. I am also reactive to organic wool. Regular cotton is much less a problem for me (to my dismay, after spending hundreds of dollars on organic cotton blankets, futon, and clothing!).
www.dld123.com
I have owned this mattress a year and a half and I will NEVER go back to a spring mattress ever! I love foam, and memory foam is the best of the foam mattresses.
www.epinions.com/content_87339798148
We bought ours on-line without a Dr’s note. I am pretty sure that the mattress is a mix of organic cotton and wool. I know the outside of the mattress is definitely cotton. And then we got a wool cover to put on it (under the fitted sheet). We are so glad today that we haven’t exposed our son to that awful dangerous flame retardant coating! Only organic for us!
parents.berkeley.edu/recommend/where2buy/mattress.html