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About eight hours per night adult people spend in bed. The body uses this time to regenerate and recover. Despite this, however, many are familiar with the feeling of waking up wiped out and feeling even more tense than the night before. Sleep no longer fulfills its function, the body cannot recharge its batteries – there are many reasons why this can be the case. A pathological sleep disorder must be examined by a physician so that physiological as well as psychological reasons can be excluded. A disordered falling asleep or sleeping through the night is called pathological if it occurs for more than four weeks in the majority of nights and there is no improvement in sight. Since a general feeling of not being able to sleep and a tired body cause stress in everyday life, it is necessary to get them under control quickly. Frequently occurring sleep disorders should first be examined by a family doctor and, if necessary, treated further in a sleep laboratory. An ergonomic mattress individually adapted to the person affected can be helpful against sleep disorders. If you want to do something yourself for your night’s rest, you can ensure healthy sleep hygiene – this includes, among other things, a bedtime ritual such as brushing your teeth and then locking the front door. However, the mattress can also be responsible for restless sleep if it does not adapt properly to the body. There are several variants that can be used – the important thing is to find the one that is right for you. However, this is not so easy with the large selection. However, if you know your sleeping habits and roughly what you value when sleeping, you can find the optimal carpet pad for your own needs by comparing the different types and consulting a specialist store.
Sleep is essential for body and mind
If you stay awake for more than three days at a time, you have to fear for your mental health. The brain has an emergency switch that it uses to put people into deep sleep when they are awake for too long. The mind needs the time out during sleep to be able to sort and process the impressions of the day. Unrested people are usually unfocused because they lack this part of sleep. Mental recovery takes place in the REM phase. Gesundheit.de describes an experiment in a sleep laboratory in which people were awakened in each REM phase – after just two days, psychological effects such as depressive moods became apparent. After several weeks, anxiety and psychosis may appear. Another irreplaceable phase of the night’s rest is deep sleep. During this period, the body recovers: essential building blocks are formed that are important for the maintenance and repair of the organs. Sleep is therefore necessary for the body and mind to remain healthy – the choice of the right mattress is therefore not to be made lightly.
Lying comfort and quality of different types of mattresses.
To choose the right mattress, a comparison in terms of lying comfort and quality is crucial. However, one thing should be noted with all variants: a cheap sleeping pad for under 100 euros from the discounter usually does not meet the necessary properties required for a restful sleep. In the case of mattresses, the brand name is not bought along with it, as is sometimes noticed with products from other sectors – a high price here stands for a higher quality, as it were, which improves the sleeping experience sustainably and effectively.
Innerspring mattress
The innerspring mattress is the classic among sleeping pads in Germany. The system is now more than 60 years old and still popular in bedrooms. The pocket spring mattress model is a newer invention, but basically it works just like its predecessor – with steel springs embedded in the sleeping pad to provide elasticity.
How it works
In specialty stores, the various types of beds and mattresses can be tried out. Since mattresses are often cheaper on the Internet, it is worth comparing prices. In the core of the mattress between the padding of foam are steel springs, which should provide a good lying comfort. In the spring mattress there are different degrees of hardness, so that the preferences of different people can be taken into account.Since it is possible to sink into the mattress, it is also suitable for side sleepers – but in this case it is best to choose a soft springing. The pocket core mattress also works on this principle, but has an advantage: the steel springs are grouped in different pockets, so they can react to the body even more precisely. The pockets are connected to each other to increase elasticity. Due to improved foam padding, these mattresses are overall of higher quality than the previous model – It is therefore appropriate to rather opt for a pocket spring mattress. To be sure that the mattress is designed according to this new type of suspension, it should be informed.
Adaptation to the body
The springs yield when pressure is applied and, if it is reduced, swing back to their original position. This relieves the body when lying down, the weight is distributed reasonably evenly. This relief works better in the new type of pocket spring core model than in the older one. These mattresses are often very rigid, precise relief is not possible. When the elasticity of the springs decreases, it can happen with both models that a hollow forms in the mattress. Optimal relief is no longer possible within this hollow. Frequent turning of the mattress is a good way to counteract this. Due to the different degrees of hardness, it can also be adapted to any body type, so it is not inferior to the other mattress variants in this point.
Cost factor
From 150 to 500 euros there are good innerspring mattresses, with and without pocket springs. It is possible to spend even more money on it, but this is usually not necessary. Nevertheless, it makes sense to try it out – if you like the more expensive version more, you should prefer it. When going to a bed specialty store, sleep pads of different price ranges should therefore be tried out to find the right one for you.
Foam mattress
The foam mattress is finding its way into more and more bedrooms. One of its great advantages over the innerspring mattress is its light weight: the cold foam is light and can therefore be easily handled even by older people. Especially when washing the cover or turning the mattress, this is pleasant. There are two versions of this sleeping pad: Cold foam and Visco foam. Both have the same mode of operation. The latter has only the disadvantages that the ventilation is not optimal and the elasticity is not given when the temperature is too cold.
Functionality
Foam provides very good point elasticity. The body is thus optimally relieved. This material is especially recommended for bedridden people or people with complicated bone fractures who need ideal pressure relief. Since cold foam is open-pored, good ventilation is also ensured – visco foam, however, is rather fine-pored and thus very dense. These mattresses are only offered in zones, usually seven are integrated. As a result, each area of the body is optimally relieved and supported, so that the body and mind can effectively recover during sleep.
Adaptation to the body
Different degrees of firmness allow the mattress to be optimally adapted to any body weight. The resilience of the foam provides optimal support for the body – but if it is too soft, the sleeper may sink in too deeply. This can cause the body to heat up, as there is insufficient air supply. Heavy sweating can be the result. Despite the sinking in, however, there is normally no hollow – cold foam, especially Viscom material, returns to its original shape when the pressure is removed from the mattress. In addition, these sleeping pads are very durable – they can be used for up to ten years.
Cost factor
Cold foam mattresses are more in the middle and upper price segment, if value is placed on the quality. With about 200 euros as a minimum price, consumers should therefore expect, a viscoelastic mattress usually costs even more. A test lying is important here, so that the specialist staff can see whether the sleeping surface is too hard or too soft and advise the customer accordingly.
Waterbed
Waterbeds are an invention that transfer the lying comfort and adaptability of the wet element into the bedroom. What was considered a luxury until a few years ago, is now affordable for almost every household.Therefore, this form of sleeping place should also be included in the selection when buying a new mattress. In addition, it is very hygienic, because each part can be washed or wiped.
How it works
Water has a high adaptability. Any shape can be flowed around by water – but at the same time, the element is hard, so when it is limited, it provides a good load-bearing capacity. This is used in the waterbed: The mattress is filled with the element and thus perfectly adapts to the body without the person sinking too much. Through a built-in heater, the water can also be heated – especially in winter, this is convenient, because the bed so directly has a comfortable temperature and does not first have to be heated by your own body heat.
Adaptation to the body
The great advantage of a waterbed is that it cannot become saggy. It retains “even after 12 years, the same lying comfort as when purchased,” reports this website. A conventional mattress usually needs to be replaced after four to ten years because it has lost its elasticity or a sleeping hollow has formed. By individually adjusting the degree of hardness, the water mattress can be very well adapted to any body weight – even if this varies in a person due to increase or decrease.
Cost factor
Waterbeds are in the middle price segment. Who buys such a sleeping place for the first time, should also take into account the assembly or let it be explained in the store exactly how this is to be carried out. A test lying is necessary so that the correct hardness setting is found.
Futon mattress
This mattress comes from Japan. There it is unrolled in the evening on the tatami mats, the traditional flooring in Japanese homes, rolled up again in the morning and stored in a closet to save space. In the often small apartments in the big city, this is an advantage in order to have enough space to live. Europeans, however, rarely have a tatami floor and also usually have enough space for a bedroom. Instead, the futon mattress is placed in a bed frame – sometimes this has a tatami floor to replicate as closely as possible the lying comfort found in Japanese homes.
How it works
The futon is filled with coconut, horsehair, cotton, hemp or a mixture of two or more of these materials. To ensure dimensional stability, latex is also used in some models. The sleeper lies hard, because the mattress is kept very thin. Nevertheless, a different degree of hardness is given, depending on the filling of the futon. In addition, the higher the latex content, the better the mattress adapts to the body.
Adaptation to the body
The futon consists of a large number of layers, which are connected to each other at some points. The natural fibers are compressed by the body weight, so the lying comfort is high. However, this can also create a hollow if the fibers do not straighten. The hardness or softness of the mattress depends only to a limited extent on the body weight, but rather on the position of the sleeper. Since a futon is generally very thin, sinking too deeply is not a problem. A side sleeper, however, needs a softer sleeping surface so that not too much weight rests on the shoulders and hips. Consequently, those who sleep on their back can buy a harder futon mattress.
Cost factor
Mattresses made entirely of natural fibers are in the low to medium price range. The cost factor varies by size and materials used. A test lying is appropriate here, so that people can see whether this thin sleeping surface is something for them at all, or they prefer to fall back on more western bed models.
Comparison of the individual variants in terms of their advantages and disadvantages.
| Spring mattress | Foam mattress | Waterbed | Futon mattress |
|
| Lying comfort | High | High | High |
High |
| Adaptation to the body | High elasticity | Point elasticity |
Point elasticity | High elasticity |
| Different degrees of hardness | Available |
Available | Available | Available |
| Danger of sleeping hollow |
Available | Conditionally present | Not present | Present |
| Cost factor | Low to high | Medium to high | Medium to high |
Low to medium |
Conclusion
Anyone who adheres to the various quality criteria will quickly find the right mattress. With a small financial margin, innerspring and futon mattresses are appropriate; who prefers the best possible, pinpoint relief of the body, should rather opt for a waterbed or a cold foam sleeping pad. A short test lying in the bed specialized trade is usually not sufficient, in order to find out whether the mattress satisfies the personal requirements – the experience is to be included for this reason. If the night’s rest was previously on an innerspring mattress, but sleep is disturbed, another system should be resorted to – provided that other causes of the sleep disturbance have been ruled out.
