While most of the decisions made when purchasing a new bed are made on aesthetic quality and practicality of the bed base, it is important to match this with a good quality mattress on top. The mattress is the most important part of your bed and a good quality individualised mattress is key to having the best possible nights sleep.
The most commonly purchased mattress types are outlined below but be sure to speak to your chiropractor for advice on which option is best for you, so hopefully this will help you when you ask “how to choose a mattress?”.
Latex Mattresses
This style of mattress is steadily increasing in popularity. The increasing demand is due to the option of a memory foam pillow top. These memory foam pillow tops are made of a material that moulds to your body posture as you sleep. This allows your muscles to completely switch off and relax as you sleep. This is important when it comes to the quality of your rest. Releasing as much muscle tension as possible when you are asleep allows you to enter a deeper sounder sleep and wake up refreshed and revitalised. The characteristic of the foam is that it is heat and weight sensitive viscoelastic which allows it to mould and recover to its original position. This decreases the occurrence of uncomfortable indentations. Due to the nature of the memory foam moulding to your body during your sleep it can also help with partner disturbance as you are less likely to toss and turn.
Innerspring Mattresses
This is the most common style of mattress purchased. The spring component is designed for your support while the pillow top component is designed for your comfort. There are pocket spring systems which use individually encased springs that contract on their own separate to the unit. This system provides the best sprung support as it shapes to your individual posture. This system provides individualised support for different areas of the body according to their weight distribution. The individual springs minimise partner disturbance as none of the springs are connected and therefore your partners’ springs will not move in response to your movement. Other spring systems use continuous or group springs. These systems provide good overall support but transfer the weight over the entire mattress. This can disturb your partner with movements during the night and also doesn’t allow for individualised support for areas of different weight on your body.
Multizonal Inner Spring Mattresses
This style of mattress contains 5 different zones of springs which allows for a more individualised support than the continuous spring system. Different regions of the body receive different support according to their different weights. This is not as effective as the individual pocket spring system but allows for a more individualised approach than the continuous spring mattresses.
Spring mattresses generally come with pillow tops for comfort over the springs. There are single sided and double sided pillow tops available. It is preferable to have a double sided pillow top. This allows you to flip and turn the mattress in more directions therefore reducing the occurrence of an uncomfortable indentation in the mattress.
Waterbed Mattresses
Water beds can have therapeutic benefits as you sleep by controlling the water temperature, this can help reduce muscle tension and spasm. However water beds are hard to maintain at a therapeutic level as you need to constantly have the water height correct for your required support. While some waterbeds now have inserts to help control the movement of the water, many still have significant amounts of movement which can create significant disturbance to your partner and also make it difficult to turn in and rise from.
Summary
Remember when choosing a mattress it is important to also address the hygiene of your mattress. The fabric types and single or double sided pillow tops make a big difference when it comes to the cleanliness of your mattress. It is important to speak to your chiropractor regarding the best type of support for you and your individual needs.
The Chiropractic Association of Australia endorses the “Sleepmaker Original Chiropractic Collection“. Here is the list of Chiropractic Association of Australia Endorsed Products.
See more information:
Memory Foam Pillows | Bed Bases
