Picking a Quality Mattress
In the sometimes desperate pursuit of comfortable sleep we are generally confronted with a choice between tree options ” standard innerspring mattresses, foam mattresses and air mattress beds. Though each can meet an individual’s needs, for my money, only one stands out as a clear winner.
For a good night’s sleep on any mattress, several variables come into play including the bed’s firmness, its affect on pressure points and, a less measurable variable, general comfort. Every mattress manufacturer aspires for perfection in all three areas but must inevitably make sacrifices in their pursuit.
By far the most common choice, innerspring mattresses are particularly susceptible to increases in price in pursuit of increases in comfort. Quality construction options and plush padding can greatly improve a mattresses impact on pressure points. Likewise, higher spring density or materials greatly improve comfort, but all of these options increase the cost of construction and that cost is passed on to the consumer. Simply put, the mattress becomes more expensive as it becomes more comfortable.
An alternative to innerspring mattresses which will help save on cost are foam mattresses such as those offered by Memory Foam or Tempur-Pedic. The major advantage to these beds is that they can offer substantial improvements in comfort without an equally substantial increase in price. Foam mattresses do wonders, particularly in terms of pressure point comfort, but they do come with their own drawbacks. Without a quality topper or padding, foam mattresses tend to cocoon a sleeper in a way that feels terribly confining to some (me included).
In addition, both innerspring and foam mattresses have the downside of only providing ideal comfort for one sleeper. The level of firmness afforded by the mattress may be ideal for you, but not at all comfortable for your partner. Sacrifices like that are what can lead to one person or the other always waking up grumpy. The only real solution is the purchase of two separate mattresses or beds.
This leads us to our third option and my hands down favorite, the adjustable air mattress bed. In particular, I’m a fan of Select Comfort products which you might better recognize as the Sleep Number bed which is really just a high-end, quality air mattress bed with some enhanced engineering.
Sleep Number beds have many of the desirable qualities of foam mattress beds. In particular, both do exceptionally well at minimizing uncomfortable pressure points owing to the absence of internal springs. The benefit to their design means that pressure is more evenly distributed and the beds can form to the shape of your body regardless in what position you may sleep.
The addition of a topper or pad is key to making both foam mattresses and air mattresses comfortable. In the case of an air mattress, you don’t want to sleep on the cold vinyl of a bare bed. But foam mattresses require the topper for legitimate comfort (to avoid that cocooning sensation I mentioned) while air mattresses only really need the topper to separate you from the material of the mattress itself. The topper isn’t required to adjust the bed’s firmness or softness.
Both foam mattresses and air mattress beds perform well in independent sleep studies. Though one study might favor one mattress over another, the cumulative results of multiple studies I’ve analyzed leaves the beds about even in terms of general comfort, pressure point accommodation and sleep quality. But in one regard, Sleep Number beds routinely beat the competition.
Where sleep number beds shine is in their independent firmness offering. You single folks might not care about this feature but those of us with a spouse can attest to the fact that being able to set the firmness on your side of the bed where you want it, independent of your partner’s preference, is a major benefit.
Foam and air mattresses provide very similar levels of general sleep quality, support and pressure point comfort. The only real considerations in your decision of which to buy are price and flexibility in accommodating different preferences. High comfort innerspring mattresses will generally be the most expensive. A quality air mattress will generally fall between an innerspring and foam mattress in cost. But don’t make the mistake of letting price alone dictate your decision. The money you save at purchase won’t count for much compared to the countless hours you’ll spend in a barely adequate mattress. With great benefits in terms of comfort coupled with the ability to adjust firmness as required without annoying your partner leaves an adjustable air mattress bed like the Sleep Number bed the clear winner in this equation.