Consumers looking for a mattress typically decide which one to buy based on price and level of comfort. However,the health aspect of buying a mattress is often goes overlooked.
Choosing Healthy Bedding Options
Mattress manufacturers add many flame retardant chemicals to the average mattress to make it flame retardant compliant. However, flame retardant chemicals such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBBDEs) are highly toxic. They are breathed in and absorbed in the skin over the course of the consumer’s lifetime and have been directly linked with dysfunction of the thyroid, stunted mental and physical development, memory and learning problems, lower IQ, autism, allergies, asthma, advanced puberty and decreased ability to conceive. Other flame retardants like vinyl have even been linked to cancer when the consumer is exposed to higher levels.
Definition of an Organic Mattress
Since 33 percent of a consumer’s time is spent sleeping, the selection of an organic mattress versus a standard mattress is a step taken to eliminate high levels of chemical exposure. Overall, consumers who switch to organic products do notice a difference in their sleep patterns and general health. However, not all organic mattress manufacturers deliver an authentic organic mattress that can still contain some of the same health hazard chemicals as a conventional mattress. Any product claimed as organic must be certified by a third party organic certifying agent organization which certifies products to be organic. Therefore, an authentic organic mattress is defined as:
– Being free of synthetic materials
– Having not been treated with carcinogenic flame retardant chemicals
– Complies with organic standards
– Pigment-free, bleach free
– Made from a combination of natural materials that are cultivated without pesticides.
– Biodegradable
– Infant approved
Organic mattresses are noted as a whole in making a considerable difference in the consumer’s health and comfort because they have the ability to cushion pressure points, while regulating body temperature and wicking away body moisture at the same as the consumer sleeps throughout the year.
We talked with Nest Bedding Organic Mattress and Bedding about how organic mattresses really work, and they explained, “A high quality organic mattresses typically contains a combination of durable, supportive flexible materials like latex and wool that do not compress as quickly and are more resistant to tearing. This helps the structure of an organic mattress last up to 20 years or more.”
Organic Mattresses Are Infant Approved
Changing what directly comes in contact with the body on a daily basis is especially important to consumers with infants. According to a CBS video report, parents are strongly warned against buying infant and children’s mattresses treated with flame retardant chemicals to avoid serious health problems from short and long term exposure. For this reason, mattresses containing natural components are highly recommended for infants.
Aside from being impregnated with multiple toxins, the most common issue related with older conventional mattresses is the accumulation of common allergens created from the presence of fungus, bacteria, mildew, mold, bacteria, bedbugs and dust mites. Authentic organic mattresses are beneficial for babies because they create a cushion that helps cradle and soothe the baby’s body. Mattresses containing organic components are also flame-retardant, water-resistant, anti-microbial, and anti-bacterial in nature.
Although environmental toxins cannot be completely eliminated, there are measures that can be taken to minimize their affect within the consumer’s bedroom. Once the differences of an organic mattress versus a conventional mattress are compared, several buying factors are usually considered. Many people like to lay on a mattress for a few minutes to get the feel of it and check its firmness level. Some organic mattresses are available to try out in-store, but most organic mattresses are only available online. So, it is important to make sure the organic mattress purchased can be exchanged or returned, or that the pieces of materials themselves can be exchanged to adjust to the consumer’s specific level of comfort.
