The first innerspring mattresses may not be as comfortable as expected but they are affordable and supportive enough. Thus, companies started to source and maximize other materials to offer different types of mattresses to consumers. Since NASA engineers invented memory foam, it became a groundbreaking addition in the mattress industry to combine comfort and support.
Over time, memory foam mattresses were introduced in the market to compete with innerspring or spring mattresses. But, which one is better for you? Read on to find out which one between the memory foam and spring mattress suits you best.
Spring Mattress
Purchasing an innerspring mattress is easier nowadays since it is very popular worldwide, especially in the US. We also got Heinrich Westphal, a german inventor to thank after inventing the first innerspring mattress in 1871. But one of the main reasons for its popularity is its affordability. Innerspring is the least expensive type of mattress because of the basic materials it contains.
The production of an innerspring mattress is also easier which helps decrease its cost. Depending on the brand and size, the total cost of constructing an innerspring mattress can even take less than $150. Of course, some companies tend to overprice them and increase their prices from $300 and above. Still, lots of customers tend to prefer the traditional spring mattress over foam mattresses in the market. It can be firm, supportive, and bouncy. But apart from having bouncy springs that can keep you bouncing, there’s more to see about the popular traditional mattress. So if you’re thinking about getting one for yourself, you might want to know what’s going on inside it first.
Spring’s Support and Pressure Relief
Surely, sleeping on an innerspring mattress is way better than sleeping on the floor. However, the innerspring mattress seems comfy only if it has an additional pillow-top to reduce the feel of its spring coils. However, most traditional spring mattresses tend to provide insufficient pressure relief due to its unbalanced support. That’s because the layer with the steel coil support system is still too thick compared with its foam topper.
For instance, some back sleepers feel more pressure on their head, back, and hips. With regular occurrence, those affected pressure points can lead to body pains due to the lack of enough blood circulation. The springs may accept your body weight against the mattress but it can also push your body back. Even though it can last decades, its support push back can still increase.
This means that the pressure on other parts of your body can also increase during your sleep. Without proper support, some of your body parts can sink deeper than the rest that targets pressure points. Hence, this leads to poor blood circulation, restlessness, improper spinal alignment, and other health issues.
Advantage of Spring Mattress
On the bright side, the innerspring mattress can be made of natural materials. With the help of its spring coil support system, the mattress can have better air circulation. For those who tend to experience night sweats, its improved air circulation throughout the mattress can disseminate heat. On top of this breathable feature for warm or hot sleepers, some high-end models can even have a hypoallergenic cover.
This way, it can also attract those customers who seek mattresses that suit sensitive users with asthma or allergy. Therefore, spring mattresses are great for those who seek an affordable mattress with a traditional feel. Lastly, it can also be used right away once you remove its plastic covering upon delivery.
Memory Foam Mattress
If the innerspring mattress is known as the traditional mattress, the memory foam mattress is known as a body-contouring mattress. Originally designed by NASA to ensure the safety of their aircraft cushions, the first memory foam is made of polyurethane. Eventually, the first memory foam arrived in the market in 1991 to handle pressure and offer comfort to sleepers. Soon after, hospitals also adopted it for immobile patients in hospital beds as well as in wheelchairs.
Indeed, memory foams have come a long way in the mattress industry as a product of the latest technology. Memory foam mattresses offer more options when it comes to the level of comfort to target different types of sleepers. Most models are made of layers of foams with different densities to ease pressure points, especially for those with back issues. Back pain is a pretty common nuisance among sleepers worldwide.
It can be due to back-breaking activities, injuries, improper sitting posture, poor mattress support, and other health-related issues. Thus, the memory foam mattress is designed to contour to body curves and alleviate pressure points.
Memory Foam’s Support and Pressure Relief
To avoid different body pains, memory foam provides natural support by distributing body weight evenly throughout the surface. Somehow, it feels like having tons of smaller and gentler spring coils underneath the cover to support you. For that reason, a high-quality memory foam mattress can reduce the pressure points to up to 80%. Sleepers’ restlessness due to poor support can be reduced as well by memory foam.
However, its additional comfort and customized support also come with a bigger cost. It has a slower bounce back to retain your body’s shape after indenting it for a few seconds. This also means that it is not as bouncy as innerspring. Since most models are now sold as bed-in-a-box mattresses, it takes more time to expand to its full size. Some also come with strong chemical smell due to its synthetic materials which also retain heat and trigger sweating.
Advantage of Memory Foam Mattress
Despite being a little costly, quality memory foams can also reduce the motion transfer and provide proper spinal alignment. Some are also made with hypoallergenic materials to prevent dust mites and allergens. With proper care, this kind of mattress can also last longer than innerspring. You can also sleep cooler if it is infused with gel and constructed with breathable holes.
