Memory Foam

Memory foam. Memory foam mattresses, memory foam mattress toppers, memory foam pillows, memory foam slippers, memory foam beds, memory foam bedding, memory foam mattress pads, memory foam insoles, memory foam seat cusions, memory foam chairs, memory foam travel pillows, memory foam cushions… who would have thought all of this would have been made available as the result of research conducted at NASA. Back in the 1950’s NASA began conducting research to make jet pilot seats safer and more comfortable. What they developed was a version of what we know of today as memory foam. Its other name is visco elastic foam and so you have bedding like the visco elastic foam mattress or visco elastic foam pillow. This name represents the characteristics of the foam. Visco standing for viscous which is that attribute best described by cool honey as it is poured out of a jar onto a plate. As it touches the plate, it slowly spreads out. Elastic is the characteristic of memory foam that causes it to slowly return to its original form. When both of these characteristics are put together, you have foam that can be slowly pressed in and moulds itself to your body, but once left, slowly returns to its original form. The original name for memory foam was temper foam and since having released the rights to making it to the public, it has been taken on by many companies with the manufacturing process having been improved in such a way as to make it much more economically viable. As a result we now have all of the different memory foam products that you see above with many more available.

The Mattress

The memory foam mattress is possibly one of the most popular uses of memory foam with people the world over appreciating the comfort that it provides. One of the great things about memory foam is that when a person lies upon it, not only does the weight of the person cause their body to sink into the foam but their body heat also reacts with the foam causing it to mold to the body’s shape. The density of the memory foam in a mattress is very important with 80 kg/m2 and above being considered a high quality mattress. The only problem is that most mattresses come in below this figure and as density of the mattress goes down, the mattress begins to feel like a normal mattress.

Mattress Uses and Sizes

Because a memory foam mattress supports the entire body and not just those body parts that protrude, it is perfect for those people who must spend a great deal of time in bed. For instance, people who are bed ridden due to sickness, gain great advantage from these mattresses as they alleviate bedsores that occur through constant pressure on the protruding parts of the body caused by regular mattresses. Memory foam mattresses are also excellent for asthma sufferers as the chemicals they contain inhibit the growth of dust mites. The only problem in this area is that the mattress has a nasty tendency to smell of chemicals for a period of time after it is bought. This smell has been known to irritate those that have a sensitive respiratory system. So whilst a memory foam mattress is great for asthmas sufferers in one way, it may not be quite so good in another way. This chemical smell does fade after a time though. Memory mattresses are made in a variety of sizes that match regular mattresses including king size, queen size, double and single. It is even possible to get a mattress set that includes a mattress cover, mattress topper and pads. In fact the uses for these mattresses is wide ranging with some people even buying small versions for their cats and dogs.

Although it may be thought that a more appropriate use is the baby’s crib, bassinet, moses basket or cot bed, with the awareness of SIDS increasing, the level of sinking of the mattress needs to be considered if used for this purpose. A mattress that is too soft and sinks to far as it molds itself to the baby’s form may inhibit breathing and the chemical smell from a new mattress may also irritate the baby’s breathing. It would be wise to consult your doctor or pediatrician before using a memory foam mattress with a baby.

Other products that have been created with memory foam include the memory foam mattress topper. In case you haven’t heard of this before, this is a layer of foam that is placed over the top of a standard mattress. This is used when the mattress you already have is high quality and expensive or comes custom made with the bed base that you own. In both cases you are likely to want to keep the mattress that you have rather than going through the expensive exercise of swapping it for a memory foam mattress. But if you still want to get the feel of a memory foam mattress on your bed, then laying a mattress topper upon your existing mattress will provide the same function. To get the best benefit from your mattress topper, it needs to be between two and six inches thick. If less than two inches, it won’t feel like there is any real difference having the topper there and if it is six inches or over, it will feel too soft. A memory foam pillow is another addition to the memory foam bedding range. This acts in much the same way that a mattress does in that it contours to the shape of your neck and head and ends up supporting both. This is excellent for people with neck aches and most people will feel a certain amount of relief after having used one. Another version of the pillow is the memory foam travel pillow that circles the neck and stops your head rolling from side to side whilst providing the comfort of the standard foam pillow.

The range of uses for this type of foam goes on and on with some people even using it for the insoles of their shoes and for slippers around the house. Both of these uses provide a wonderfully comfortable walking experience as the foam shapes itself around the curves of the feet. It is clear then that with memory foam having many uses that make life more comfortable, it is an invention that is here to stay.