Least Non-Toxic Mattress Option
We've previously talked about organic baby mattresses, but Anne was particularly interested in finding a mattress for a big girl bed. According to one of our favorite resources (we love Sarah and OEC), you can find mattresses not treated with flame retardants at:
Is an IKEA really an option? Any others for Anne? She writes:
We are trying to figure out what the least toxic, non-futon type mattress is out there to buy for a new big girl bed. Has anyone done any research on this, bought anything, happy with anything that they could recommend?
I actually did a ton of research on this a year and a half ago when we transitioned our first daughter into her big girl bed. Wool is naturally flame retardant, plus it's a wonderful insulator -- keeps you cool in summer, warm in winter. We have a wool comforter we use year round because it's so perfect in any weather.
Anyway, we decided we wanted a wool mattress, but not a futon. Something with structure and springs. I ended up buying a mattress from Earthsake (www.earthsake.com), a Berkeley, CA, company. I felt the quality and prices of their wool and cotton mattresses beat the other online retailers, plus it's a company I am familiar with and trust from when I used to live in the Bay Area.
We are very happy with the quality of the bed. I only wish I had spent more to get the pillow top version because her bed seems rather firm to me, though my daughter hasn't noticed.
Posted by: Danielle | November 28, 2007 at 09:46 PM
I am pretty sure Mother Nature's (SE Portland) carries organic mattresses for baby and kid beds.
Posted by: Milagros | November 29, 2007 at 03:16 AM
I recently ordered my son's mattress from Mulligan's Mattresses, they are located at 1200 SE 7th Ave, (503) 222-3723. We ordered a natural latex bed and with our doctor's prescription for a non flame retardant bed we have a chemically free bed. I asked about wool as I too understand it is a natural flame retardant but he said it also harbors dust mites and mold which would defeat the purpose of buying a natural latex bed. The owner is extremely helpful and could tell you about options for healthy beds. And you can buy locally!!!
Posted by: Christine | November 29, 2007 at 09:10 AM
I just did a little research on this last week. IKEA mattresses use a natural based flame retardant, which I can't remember what is now, but not the super nasty ones typically used on beds. We just got one this week, when we realized we were having house guests this week, and we needed another mattress. As much as I'd love to have an all natural mattress, we just didn't have that in the budget or time to wait for it right now.
Posted by: Liz | November 29, 2007 at 09:21 AM
Hey Christine can you give us an estimate or run down on what their prices are like? Nothing listed on their website which makes me a little worries that they are very expensive.
Posted by: Melissa | November 29, 2007 at 09:26 AM
I think the twin size natural latex mattress is about $500.
I have done a bit of research regarding my claim that wool harbors dust mites and mold and I have found conflicting information. I always thought wool was a healthy fiber. So, disregard my claim about wool and do a bit of research yourself and see what you come up with. We ordered the natural latex bed with out a wool topper.
Posted by: Christine | November 29, 2007 at 01:37 PM
We ended up going with futons that we got at a place called Futon Cloud or something like that (it's on Broadway in NE). Anyway, for us, we ended up with the pricier latex + cotton + wool and for our daughter we got just cotton + wool. (We figured we didn't need to get such a soft mattress for her since she doesn't have our tired old bones :-)
You know, I sure could have done a whole lot more research, we just got tired of thinking about it. Plus it was nice to be able to try out the mattresses at the store.
Posted by: Ana | November 29, 2007 at 03:28 PM
I bought my daughter's crib mattress at www.daxstores.com. It is the same Viviteque mattress that is about $100 more at Mother Natures. I'm all for supporting our local businesses, but in this case I just couldn't afford to. I know they have big kid size mattresses too, but I have not priced them. When I bought it, they had free shipping over $100 and it arrived within a week of ordering.
Posted by: Rachel & Matt Allen | November 29, 2007 at 09:32 PM
I bought my daughter's crib mattress at www.daxstores.com. It is the same Viviteque mattress that is about $100 more at Mother Natures. I'm all for supporting our local businesses, but in this case I just couldn't afford to. I know they have big kid size mattresses too, but I have not priced them. When I bought it, they had free shipping over $100 and it arrived within a week of ordering.
Posted by: Rachel | November 29, 2007 at 09:32 PM
I think the store Ana is referring to is called Cotton Cloud Futon on Broadway. We bought my daughters organic futon crib mattress there. They also sell mattresses other than futons that are organic (spring, latex etc). Give then a call at 503 459 4981, all the staff were very helpful.
Posted by: Lara | November 30, 2007 at 09:09 AM
we bought our mattress (e king!) from lifekind. it's natural rubber (watch out for "natural latex" - this phrasing is used sometimes but isnt actually natural anything. the lifekind folks were incredibly knowlegable and helpful. havent looked into kids beds yet but wanted to share this organic shop. look online for lifekind.
Posted by: sarah | December 02, 2007 at 07:29 PM
FYI - wool is a nice option, however make sure it is NOT close to a heat source as wool when it burns becomes cyanide gas. Not something we want to be breathing in.
Posted by: Sara | July 30, 2008 at 03:38 PM
You should change the title of this post to "least toxic" instead of "least non-toxic". (Unless you're looking for a toxic mattress...)
Posted by: Heather | February 12, 2010 at 07:41 PM
You'll want to check us out www.myessentia.com
We make the only natural memory foam in the world.
Posted by: Essentia | February 20, 2010 at 11:53 AM
yes... "least non-toxic" means "most toxic".
Posted by: christine | July 07, 2010 at 09:01 AM
yes; you're correct. Have often chastised Government officials and the media when they use verbiage such as "near miss" regarding airplane incidents - no, it was a "near collision" and a "miss" in that the aircraft did not collide.
Posted by: Diana | September 24, 2010 at 03:53 PM
The comments are very helpful. They have a point on the "least non-toxic" term. This site is very informative too: http://bestbedcovers.com/. Check it out. It might help.
Posted by: Debbie Kindred | August 08, 2011 at 05:50 AM
I purchased an 8" dunlop-processed latex mattress at Mulligan Mattress in Portland yesterday because I was impressed with their product, service and warranty policy. Here are their current prices:
King $1800
Cal King $1800
Queen $1600
Twin $650
Good luck in your search!
Posted by: Sid | December 30, 2011 at 03:36 PM
we too have a cal king latex mattress from Mulligan Mattress. we have had it for a year and absolutely love it!
Posted by: lindsay | December 30, 2011 at 06:47 PM
haha I think they meant least "non-toxic".
Posted by: hav | January 19, 2012 at 11:23 AM
What about a waterbed mattress filled with bleach. Would that qualify as the least non-toxic?
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Posted by: california home insurance | April 17, 2012 at 09:53 AM
Organic mattresses would be good for kids. It would be less toxic than the normal mattresses.
Posted by: Cristina Cab | May 01, 2012 at 03:26 PM
I have been learning about flame retardants at my University. The storyofstuff.org is great for an intro to toxic chems. It is pretty scary stuff and now that I have a baby it really concerns me. I have been doing a ton of research and find that a lot of places do not tell the whole truth because it is required by the fda to have a flame resistant mattress, however you can get around it and i am thankful I found this site. There are a few other places, but this is much more affordable and I have a a safe bed for my husband and I also.
http://www.nontoxicbeds.com/store.asp?CAME_FROM=adansmom
Posted by: heather S | May 10, 2012 at 09:29 PM
Cotton Cloud Futons has several styles of Organic Cotton and wool combinations.There is also 100% certified organic latex, but the person who said wool harbored dust mites and mold is CRAZY! It is the opposite and could not be further from the truth.Wool not only does NOT harbor dust mites, but also will not produce mold. Their pricing is Twin-$900. Full-$1200, Queen for $1300 and King$1600 and Cal-king$1700. The organic cotton and wool mattresses are less and also nice, but the latex is Oeko-Tex certified and yes you can get it with a wool shell quilted inside of organic cotton.
Posted by: Bronwyn mccracken | May 19, 2012 at 12:12 PM
We bought the Sultan mattress from IKEA but I am going to return it. We have had it about a month and it still gives off a bad smell. While their claim is that it has a safer natural flame retardant (than the nasty flame retardant that used to be in their mattresses until 2010) I still question if it is really safe, and I think the foam itself is actually the culprit. While I hate to drop upwards of $500 for an organic or wool mattress, I think it it will be worth it for the years my son will spend sleeping on it.
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