How to Choose an Eco Friendly Mattress

Mattresses are the most important purchase for a bedroom and one of the most expensive. Although your mattress may feel comfortable, it might be harmful to your health and the environment. Here's how to spend your money wisely on an eco-friendly mattress for a good

Instructions

1. Choose an eco-friendly mattress with a wood frame that's Forest Stewardship Council certified. This means the wood has been sustainably and responsibly harvested. Ensure the wood hasn't been treated with chemicals.
2. Examine the core of the mattress. If you choose a foam core, natural latex is the eco-friendly filler of choice. Natural latex is tapped from rubber trees like syrup and involves no harvesting of the tree itself. Avoid foam cores that contain the fire retardant polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, which have been linked to breast cancer. Because you'll still need a mattress that passes the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission fire test, look for mattresses with naturally fire-retardant wool.
3. If you prefer to buy an organic mattress with springs, look for a high percentage of recycled steel content. Also ask if the mattress is wrapped with organic wool and cotton, your top eco-friendly choices for this type of green mattress. In addition to its fire retardant properties, wool is highly breathable and naturally resists dust-mites for a healthier sleep.
4. True eco-friendly mattresses are wrapped in biodegradable and/or organic fabrics.
5. Hemp mattresses are the firmest of eco-friendly mattresses. Three times as strong as cotton, hemp also provides natural mildew and mold resistance like wool.
6. For allergy sufferers, organic mattresses made with bamboo are a natural, anti-microbial option. Bamboo is commonly used for mattress pads and other bedding, but can be found in memory foam mattresses from Overnight Mattress.
   

Tips & Warnings

• Soy-based foam (made from renewable soy beans), which is found in green designer Danny Seo's mattress line, adds additional comfort to an eco-friendly mattress.
• Watch out for companies who use green-washing techniques to sell their products. Always do your research to make sure the entire mattress is eco-friendly and organic--not just portions. -Caren Baginski