Latex Mattress Review Part 2: The Bed and Bedding Review (Updated!)

If you read part one of my review on my new latex mattress, you will have learned the need for choosing a natural non-toxic mattress. I encourage you to at least skim that post before reading this view, because this review is based on my need for a natural bed.In this review I'll cover 4 bedding items I bought from Sleep On Mattress: The Pillow, Foundation, Mattress, and Mattress Pad. In the upcoming Part 3 I'll discuss other pillows, sheets, and blankets. Bedding should not be as complicated as it, but because it is, this review deserves 3 parts to cover it all!

The Pillow: Malouf Convoluted Contour Latex Pillow
(Click the link to see the pillow on the company's website)
Yep, the name is a mouthful, as my husband was quick to point out, but bear with me! After too many dollars and too much neck pain from buying several different pillows online, I decided to try something novel: going into an actual store and trying out pillows before I bought them! The problem is that I can't step foot into most stores without getting sick. Thankfully for me, Sleep On Mattress is a store in Bismarck, ND, where I live, that caters to people like me. They offer natural synthetic-free bedding, and they're located in a mall that isn't heavily scented (like most malls are - I normally would never dare step foot into a mall.) I learned about them because they advertised their organic latex beds through the health products store I work at, Terry's Health Products. Amazingly, the very first contoured latex pillow I tried in the store ended up being a winner! It's a Malouf pillow, but done right (I tried others of this brand first, which I'll get into in Part 3.) It is made from natural talalay latex in a polyester case, so I removed the polyester case and replaced it with an organic cotton zippered case:

I love this pillow. So. Much. One side has a higher loft than the other and it's contoured, so it supports my neck if I'm on my back or side and it doesn't put too much pressure on my ears. It's soft and supportive without being hard and firm, meaning that it keeps my head at the right height and angle all night, whereas other latex pillows I tried let my head sink down to the mattress or didn't let my head sink in at all.

The latex on the pillow falls apart very easily, and that is my only complaint. It needs to be treated gently. Sorry folks, this will not work in a pillow fight. In simply switching out the cases I lost lots of small chunks of latex. You can see in the photo that some of the points are missing. I haven't had any problems with losing latex since then, and it hasn't affected how comfortable and supportive the pillow has been for me.


The FoundationI do not have a brand name on this foundation, my apologies. This was the hardest part of purchasing the new bed. Let me back up a bit. My husband was willing to try a new mattress if it meant improving my health, but he did not want to lose the frame we already owned. It's an upholstered queen size frame with a built-in head board that looks very nice. I also like it, so I agreed we could keep it (even though it's all synthetic and probably has plenty of flame retardants, it's old enough where it has off-gassed, the mattress doesn't actually touch the frame at any point, and we hardly ever lean up against it.) That meant we needed to buy a traditional foundation to support the mattress, because the frame is meant to hold a foundation.

(Latex and Memory Foam mattresses cannot use a box spring. They need to be supported by a foundation with no more than 3-4" between each slat. The mattress will wear out too quickly on the wrong type of foundation or on a box spring, because they'll allow the mattress to sink in when it should never sink in at any point.)

I looked into a couple of different options: a Savvy Rest Insert without any synthetic material concerns (sold by Sleep On Mattress), a much cheaper basic wooden foundation with a removable synthetic cover that had flame retardants (I don't have a brand name on this) (also sold by Sleep On Mattress), and a solid wooden Amish foundation that was on sale on Amazon.com. If money were not a barrier, I would have chosen the Savvy Rest Insert without question. It really was the right choice for us, but our finances said otherwise. The basic affordable wooden foundation with the removable cover made me a bit nervous - did the wood absorb some of the flame retardants? For someone without MCS it would have been a great option. The Amish foundation on Amazon looked like it would fit my needs very well, but there were just enough reviews cautioning me against buying it. Then we were presented with a new option: Sleep On Mattress had one metal and wood collapsible foundation for sale. The price was right at $130, it appeared to be right for our needs, and it was easy to transport because of the collapsible frame. My husband chose to go with it. Sleep On Mattress does not normally carry it, but I bet they can order it for you if you're interested.

The foundation has been working just fine, but if I were to make the decision over again, I probably would have tried to convince my husband to get the Savvy Rest Insert instead.


Setting this foundation up was not at all as easy as it was supposed to be. This photo shows the foundation after we opened it up from the collapsed form. We then attempted to put the two horizontal support bars on. The idea is that the end of the bars go into holes - they should slide right in. The reality is that the fit was very tight and they required a cloth and a hammer to force in.



Then we inserted the wooden boards across the top. The ends of the boards have plastic caps with two little pegs in them. The pegs go into holes in the metal frame to support the boards. 3 of these pegs were broken off. The construction was fairy poor on these pegs, and I wouldn't be surprised if most of them break off in tearing down the foundation - if we ever do that.





We then put an old sheet over the top of it as the cover. It came with a synthetic flame retardant infested cover, but the cover came separately so we simply didn't put it on.

Even though the wooden slats are flexible and look thin, the foundation has worked well. It is supporting our 150 lb latex mattress.

...But it's also a bit squeaky. This was my greatest concern when buying a metal foundation, and it proved to be a bit of an issue. The squeaking is only on my side of the bed, and I only hear it when I get in and out of bed. Thankfully it never squeaks once I'm already on the mattress. A wooden foundation can squeak too, but squeaky metal tends to be higher pitched and it echos through the rest of the foundation.


The Mattress: Sleep On Mattress's own Latex Mattress

The mattress we chose to go with is Sleep On Mattress's own brand of a 9" Dunlop Latex mattress with an organic cotton and wool casing. The wool is the fireproofing that brings it up to industry standard, so they didn't have to add synthetic flame retardants. They have it manufactured for their own store. They explained to me that they were searching for a natural latex mattress comparable to Savvy Rest (an organic latex mattress company that's top tier), but with a lower price tag. Making their own ended up being the most economical, and the mattress is therefore more affordable than the Savvy Rest. It is normally $2,000 for the queen size, but in exchange for this review I was given a reduced price. If you are interested in this mattress, but are not from Bismarck, don't despair! They will ship!

I was told that they are in the process of making different models of their own store brand of latex mattress, some with gel and foam added in, and with different heights. So if the mattress we bought from them doesn't sound right for you, ask about their other models. The owners are interested in working with you to find what you need instead of pushing their agenda on you. They'll help you find what you need, and they do understand the issues between natural and synthetic mattresses!

When we purchased the mattress I expected this review was going to be very easy to write. I expected within a week I'd be able to write all about it with ease, but that hasn't been the case. 3 weeks later and we're still trying to make a decision on the mattress! This isn't a bad thing, and I'll explain:

First and foremost, is the mattress solving my MCS problem? Was it worth purchasing a natural mattress to better my health? YES! On the old memory foam mattress I regularly fought a rising heart rate every night I went to bed, and if I couldn't fall asleep before my heart rate skyrocketed, I'd be doomed to toss and turn and take even more herbal sleeping pills to try to knock myself out. I regularly had stress dreams and nightmares. I would often feel high anxiety as I was trying to fall asleep and again when I woke up. I experienced more fibromyaliga pain in that bed than anywhere else. I also had more skin rashes when I slept in that bed.

I haven't had a single nightmare or stress dream since sleeping on this new latex mattress. I have not experienced the skyrocketing heart rate on most nights (but I had the problem on a few nights after a food reaction or being in a public place where I was reacting.) I'm waking up feeling peaceful, not on high alert. The fibromyaliga pain has been greatly reduced, and I'm feeling it more after eating the wrong foods and not so much in bed. My skin rashes are reduced, but not gone (but there are other causes, such as the mycotoxins in my body.) Yes, I feel SO MUCH BETTER on this mattress, and my sleep is higher quality.

Secondly, is it comfortable? Yes... The floor model of this mattress was softer than the one we received. The floor model was about right for us, in that it was firm enough to give support, but comfortably soft around pressure points. My hips and shoulder sank in the right amount. The mattress we received was definitely more firm. It didn't let our pressure points sink in much, and my husband and I both woke up stiff and sore for the first week. The longer we sleep on it, however, the softer it gets. We've had it for 3 weeks and both of us are less stiff and sore, and I'm feeling my hips and shoulders sink in further. At first we were seriously discussing buying a topper to soften it up. Sleep On Mattress offers a soft dunlop latex topper in 2" or 3" that is of the same quality as the mattress itself. We chose not to purchase the topper because the mattress continued to soften up. It's still not as soft as the store model. I went back into the store and tried it out and I could immediately feel the difference. It is, however, finally feeling comfortable for me. If my husband decides it needs a topper then we'll go with a 2", not 3", because we both like a slightly firm mattress. 3" would probably soften it up too much. All we would want from the topper is softer pressure points.  (Update: we bought the 3" topper, and it's so so so so much better than expected: please see my review of it below.) If you're the type of person who needs a firm, but comfortable and cozy, this mattress will probably be perfect for you. It's not nearly as firm at the floor, thankfully, but if you feel best sleeping on the floor then you're probably not shopping for a mattress anyway.

One adjustment I had to make to reduce my shoulder pain on the new mattress was lift my pillow up a bit. I'm a side sleeper, so a little more loft was all it took. I did this by adding a homemade organic cotton pillow under my latex pillow. I made it a while back to try to add loft to other pillows I was trying to make work for me, but that failed because the pillows I was trying to make work were simply wrong for me. I made the pillow very flat, so it only adds about half an inch, but that was enough in this case. I'm noticing that as the mattress softens up with use the pillow is starting to feel a little unnecessarily high, so it might continue to soften up enough that I no longer need to use the second pillow.

Third, how easy was it to set up? Well, let me be clear: this is a 150 lb mattress that comes compressed and rolled up into a tube. It's not easy to transport due to the weight and awkward length. Once it's unrolled, it's like trying to move a queen sized piece of Jello that weighs 150 lbs. Once the mattress is set up, leave it set up. Don't plan to move it. My husband and I were able to carry it out of my truck, up the stairs, down the hallway, and into the bedroom. By "carry" I mean slide on the carpet as much as possible. We were able to unroll it, get a full encasement allergy cover on it, and then get it in place on the bed. Nether of us are that strong. Neither of us want to do it again. But it was well worth it, and we quickly forgot about the hassle after a few nights of sleeping on it. And if setting it up yourself really bothers you, have the guys at the store do it for you. ;)

It came in an awkward box:



It was plastic wrapped to keep it rolled up and compressed:




Removing the plastic made it quickly decompress and unroll, before we could control the process. First thing we did was slide this allergy protector on it, which was the biggest pain of all. I'll explain which allergy cover I got in Part 3. We had to lift the mattress and pull up the cover an inch at a time, which was very tedious and difficult. I forgot to get a photo of the mattress before the cover was put on, so I pulled back the cover for this photo so that you can see the organic cotton and wool casing. Notice how the mattress falls like jello off the end of the foundation to the floor:

Set up and made our bed (forgive all the clutter, we had to push our stuff out of the way to set up this bed). As you can see, it's thinner than most mattresses. Our former mattress was 12" thick, and this is 9" thick. Big difference! We're closer to the floor, we don't have to jump up onto the bed to sit on it, and best of all, we're not stretching out our sheets! We have deep mattress sheets, but even they would come untucked on our old mattress. Our blankets hang further off the sides of this bed, which means we no longer have cold air attacking our legs in the middle of the night!

Final verdict (which I will update in another few weeks to see if it softens up more):

The mattress was worth it! While I would prefer it to be a bit softer, it is comfortable now that it's had time to soften up. I love that we have the option to add a latex topper of the same quality if we choose to soften it up more. The latex feels better than the memory foam in that I can adjust my sleeping position on it easily, whereas the memory foam mattress wrapped around my shape a bit too much to make it easy to move. I love that I'm getting better, deeper, more restful sleep on it! I'm not reacting to the mattress at all, so my body can actually relax at night!

If you're intrigued by all the benefits of this mattress, but the firmness worries you a bit, Sleep On Mattress does sell other latex mattress options. They carry a Talalay line that has some synthetics, but is mostly natural. They also carry the top-of-the-line Savvy Rest mattresses, which are certified organic latex mattresses. They had a couple options in the store to try in this line, and they have different feels. Again, this store is awesome because they will work with you. And they do ship! You don't have to live in Bismarck to buy from them!

UPDATE 12/22/16 - Latex Topper:The mattress continued to soften up and my body began to adjust to it. I actually found it to be comfortable and would have been happy with it as it was. My husband, however, still found it to be too firm, so we ordered the 3" soft topper. He decided against the 2" because he wanted to make sure we bought the best topper and not take a chance on a thinner model that might not have been enough for him.

I'm being sincere when I say that the mattresses was comfortable before the topper. But I'm also being sincere when I say that the topper is an AMAZING addition! I was worried it was going to soften it up too much, but this latex is amazing in that it softened it up a lot for my husband (who is obviously heavier than I am) and didn't soften it up much for me. The topper is very supportive, but lets pressure points sink in easily. I was worried about losing support by going softer, but I didn't lose any support while gaining pressure point relief! I stated in the original post that I needed to prop up my pillow so that my shoulder wasn't squished on the original mattress. I do not need to prop it up now. This topper lets my shoulder sink in the perfect amount and my head rests perfectly on the pillow. My husband went to the chiropractor, finally, and got rid of his back pain (for now - he needs go to regularly.) So he can say for sure that this mattresses and topper is not giving him back pain. He's sleeping very well, waking up feeling good (not stiff and achy like on the mattress before the topper), and is actually starting to compliment the bed!

This topper is normally about $400. Don't fear the price tag: it's worth it. Remember that latex can last 15-20 years if you take care of it. Most mattresses only last about 5-8 before you really should look into replacing them. So investing an additional $400 into a bed that is safe, healthy, won't make you sick, very supportive and comfortable, and very long-lasting is an excellent deal.

The ONLY thing I'm a bit sad about it is that we now have a 12" mattress + topper. Many of you might think this is better - it all comes down to preference. My husband likes the height better. For me it just makes it a tiny bit more challenging to put my sheets on. They are now a snug fit. I'm only 5'5", so I have to jump up a bit to crawl into bed.

I, of course, have photos to share:

It came in a much less awkward box. They were able to fold the topper in half before compressing it and rolling it up, so the box was actually very manageable. I could carry it up the stairs into the bedroom myself.


I was able to unroll it on the bed because because it wasn't awkward, unlike the mattress. The mattress was difficult to set up, but this was very easy.


It unrolled folded in half. What you can see in this photo (which I forget to get a good photo of for the mattress itself) is the organic cotton cover. This is the exact same cover (and type of latex) as the mattress has.



It does add some height, as you can see. You can also see how much padding it gives in order to soften up the mattress. Thinner versions are available (they're also cheaper), but I think it's good to see what the full size looks like when making a decision.

  (Sorry, excuse all my pill bottles in the background. I meant to clean up the bedroom before taking photos, but I only had enough energy to set up the topper.)



The Savvy Rest Cotton Mattress Pad:

I didn't purchase this with the mattress. I understood the benefits of it, but I thought the allergen cover might be enough for my needs. What changed my mind was reading up on how to care for a latex mattress, and I kept seeing that body sweat and heat can slowly deteriorate latex over time. I want this mattress to last me as long as possible (I've read 15-20 years when cared for correctly,) and I decided that I really don't want to have to wash the allergen any more often than necessary because it is such a pain to get on. The mattress pad is very easy to take off and wash, and it will collect any body fluids that get through the sheets. What really put me over the edge and made me buy the pad is when someone told me that they had a latex mattresses that molded. This really confused me, because latex is naturally mold resistant, and that was one of my biggest reasons for choosing latex over another natural mattress. She was not using a mattress pad. I wouldn't be surprised if the latex wasn't molding, but body fluid that got into the mattress was molding. She had mold toxicity in the past, and mycotoxins do sweat out of out of people with mold in their bodies. Either way, this made me decide to buy the topper. I do have a mycotoxin issue in my body, and I don't want mold to grow in my new safe mattress.

The topper is very nice: it's 100% undyed organic cotton with a stitching pattern to keep it from bunching. It is made slightly over sized so that it has room to shrink after washing. I washed mine in cold water with plant-based non-toxic detergent, and then I dried it by draping it over two dining room chairs and placing my air purifier under it. The air purifier creates quite the breeze on the high setting. Even after washing it properly, it did shrink to exactly the same size as the mattress. So that wasn't a problem, and it was very easy to care for.

I thought it might add a soft layer to the mattress, but it did not. At first it actually made the mattress more firm, but that was because I tied it too tight. After loosening the grip of the ties the mattress felt the same as it did without the pad.





Thank you for reading my review! Comment with any questions, and I'll be happy to answer them. You can look forward to Part 3, which will be on the bedding (blankets, sheets, etc) in a week or so. Let me get past Thanksgiving first. :) (Update - that might come after Christmas. This month is too stressful for me!)

Thank you so very much to Robert and Mike at Sleep On Mattress for this amazingly healthy mattress and for your wonderful high quality service! I've really enjoyed working with you both, and I cannot recommend your store enough!

Latex Mattress Review Part 1: Addressing the Need for a Non-Toxic Bed

This is part one of a two part blog review on the new natural latex bed in our bedroom. Part one is about the need for a non-toxic mattress. Part two will be the review of the mattress we chose.

Did you know we spend, on average, a quarter of our lives sleeping? That's around 25 years in bed. When we spend such a significant amount of time in one place, shouldn't we make sure it's a healthy safe place to be? Then you should think about your bed.

4 years ago, when my husband and I moved to North Dakota, we needed a new bed. An old spring mattress was left for us to use, but it was giving us backaches that made it too unhealthy to keep using. So we did what any other poor young couple would do: we went searching for the most affordable new bed. We ended up deciding on a Paula Deen 12" thick memory foam mattress that was on sale at Big Lots. The mattress, foundation, and plush upholstered frame cost us a combine total of $500, which is relatively very affordable. The bed was very comfortable. It was firm in all the right areas, but let pressure points sink in comfortably. No more backaches!

... And then we fast forward a couple of years. Every time I laid in the bed at night to fall asleep my heart rate would slowly increase more and more. If I didn't manage to fall asleep before my heart rate got too high, my heart rate would be the reason I couldn't sleep. I started tossing and turning more and more. I would experience more fibromyalgia pain in that bed than anywhere else. My health was deteriorating enough that it was difficult to know if the bed was causing the problems or if other health problems were causing my problems. I eventually had to quit my job due to chronic illness. I was in chronic pain, fought severe chronic fatigue, and lost a good amount of brain function. I ended up spending most of my time in bed, where I could not improve.

I have a condition called "Multiple Chemical Sensitives," or MCS for short. It's also known as Environmental Illness (EI) or 20th Century Illness. It can also be a part of Sick Building Syndrome, which generally refers to mold (but I do have mold illness too - that's another story.)  What this means is that when I encounter synthetic chemicals in the air, such as perfumes, cleaners, paint, cigarette smoke, car exhaust, flame retardants, and so on, my body has an allergic-like reaction. I have several types of reactions: heartburn, headache, severe sudden fatigue, gut ache, skin rashes, fibromyalgia flare (widespread pain in my muscles and joints), blurred vision (sometimes vertigo), rapid heart rate, difficultly breathing, sinus infections, tinnitus, nerve pain, and more. I react more strongly to synthetic chemicals than most other people, but that does not imply that healthy people are not affected by the synthetic chemicals. Many people with this condition refer to themselves as "canaries," referring to the Canary in the Coal Mine. We get hurt by these toxins before other people do, and we see our reactions as warning signs to those who are healthier. The implication is that even healthy people who are exposed to too much of these synthetic (and sometimes natural) toxins will eventually have health problems from the exposure.

Our memory foam mattress, as comfortable as it was, was made from 100% synthetic chemicals. We purchased this mattress before I developed full MCS, and I question if it was part of the reason that I developed MCS. Something to consider is what the University of Rochester found in a sleep study. They found that the body clears out toxins from the brain during sleep. If our body uses sleep as at time to clear out toxins, isn't it counter productive to be sleeping on a bed that is full of toxins? In my case, after many dollars and tests later, we've discovered that my body's normal detox pathways do not function well. I do not make or use gluathione well, the body's master antioxidant (which binds to things the body considers toxic and pulls them out through our bowel). Imagine the scenario in which my body is unable to process toxins normally, and then I sleep on a mattress full of toxins for years. The toxins would build up in my body because it can't keep up, right? That would cause health problems, right? Yes, my thoughts exactly. I can't prove anything, but I have good scientific reasons to believe this was the case. Now imagine you, a hopefully healthy person with a normally functioning detox pathways in your body, regularly polluting your body with toxins. You eat artificial ingredients in your food, apply synthetic ingredients to your skin and hair (your skin absorbs most of what you put on it into your blood stream,) you wear clothes treated with formaldehyde and flame retardants and made from synthetic polyester, you breath in car exhaust and cigarette smoke while in public, you encounter artificial fragrances on other people and in the stores you shop in, you're surrounded by synthetic cleaning products in your work place... and then you go to sleep on a synthetic mattress. How much do you expect your body to take until all of these regular daily exposures wear out your body and cause health problems? What if you could sleep on a non-toxic bed that allowed your body to actually detox during sleep, like it is meant to, instead of fighting more foreign toxins?

"Heather Stapleton, an environmental chemist at Duke University, says there's simply not enough data to determine whether low levels of these chemicals will eventually make people sick. "It's the dose that makes the poison," she says. "If they're not getting out, maybe it's not a problem—but we don't know. There are plenty of lab studies that show that these compounds are harmful. It's just a question of what levels people are exposed to.""

What is memory foam made of and do we really have proof of its toxicity? Due to the fact that I could easily write a whole book on this topic, I'm going to point you in the direction of people who have already written on this topic:

1. http://www.sleepjunkie.org/are-memory-foam-mattresses-safe/

"Memory Foam & Polyurethane Foam Components

• Polyols – the binder/bulk ingredient. Usually composed of petroleum oil-derived ingredients, but may also include botanical sources like soy or castor beans.
• Diisocyanates – the reactive ingredient. Reacts with the polyols and blowing agent to produce a flexible polyurethane foam. The most commonly used sources are MDI and TDI, which alone in raw forms can cause respiratory and dermal sensitization and may be carcinogenic. MDI is regarded as the safer and less toxic option, and is known to be the least hazardous organic isocyanate. The primary hazard with these compounds is during manufacturing; after reacting they are inert but can offgas.
• Blowing Agents – introduces carbon to create the foam. Used to use CFCs, though today manufacturers may use water, HFC or other agents."

2. https://savvyrest.com/info/does-memory-foam-contain-toxic-chemicals
"So what are those “additional chemicals”? What do we know about memory foam?

1. There have been legal consequences for memory foam companies which claimed their products are free of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
2. Some memory foam mattresses contain toxic chemicals such as formaldehyde, benzene, and naphthalene.
3. Memory foam contains isocyanates which (according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) can cause irritation of the eyes, nose, throat, and skin.
4. Exposure to isocyanates can lead to chest tightness and asthma. According to Yale University, continued exposure to isocyanates can lead to “regular asthma, and asthma attacks that are triggered in many environments, not just by isocyanate exposure.”
5. Isocyanates contain compounds classified as potential human carcinogens (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)."

3.  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/12/30/mattress-toxic-chemicals.aspx

"Why Flame Retardant Chemicals in Your Mattress Could Be Dangerous

The primary filling material used in most conventional mattresses is polyurethane foam — a highly flammable petroleum-based material. Because of its high flammability, polyurethane foam must be treated or wrapped with fire retardant chemicals.
Flame-retardant chemicals have been linked to serious health risks, including infertility, birth defects, neurodevelopmental delays, reduced IQ scores and behavioral problems in children, hormone disruptions, and various forms of cancer.
The risks may be especially dangerous to children, as research revealed that children born to women who were exposed to high levels of PBDEs during pregnancy had, on average, a 4.5 point decrease in IQ.⁴ Such children are also more prone to hyperactivity disorders.
Remember, these chemicals don't "stay put" in the mattress. They migrate out and collect in house dust. As a result, an estimated 90 percent of Americans have some level of flame-retardant chemicals in their bodies.
Long-term residents of California, which was the first state to use flame retardant chemicals, tend to have far higher levels.
This is no small concern. Flame retardant chemicals have even been identified as one of 17 "high priority" chemical groups that should be avoided to reduce your risk of breast cancer.⁵
Adding to the conundrum of using flame retardant chemicals, when on fire, objects doused in flame retardants (yes, they can still catch fire) give off higher levels of carbon monoxide, soot, and smoke than untreated objects.
These three things are more likely to kill a person in a fire than burns, which means flame retardant chemicals may actually make fires more deadly."

It's a lot to consider, and a lot of this probably sounds like a conspiracy theory. Companies can't make products that are harmful, right? There's regulations to prevent toxic products from being sold, right? It's not that simple or easy. We live in a consumerist society where synthetic chemicals are considered safe until proven harmful, and who is going to take the time, resources, and energy to test all the new chemicals being invented?

So, knowing what you know now, do you think it's a good idea to consider purchasing a non-toxic mattress? That leads us to the next question: what does non-toxic mean? For me, in my condition, it means one specific thing: made from natural materials without any added synthetic chemicals. In my case natural materials do not cause me to react (I am allergic to many natural things, but that's an entirely different issue.)

There are several different options of non-toxic bedding: organic or natural cotton, wool, down, dunlop latex, or talalay latex. Each option has a different price point, comfort level, and function. Each option has different advantages and disadvantages. For instance, organic cotton mattresses tend to wear out quickly, even though they're the least allergenic. Wool mattresses tend to last longest, but they're most expensive when you want one that offers good support. Talalay latex is known as a softer latex than Dunlop, but it generally goes through a more synthetic processing to make, making Dunlop more natural.

I chose to go with a natural dunlop latex mattress for several reasons. First, my naturopathic doctor introduced me to the latex pillow and it worked very well for me, so I knew I'd be safe with a full latex mattress. Second, it's the most similar to memory foam, which is what we were used to sleeping on. Third, it's the most economical for our needs. Most importantly, Robert from Sleep On Mattress in Bismarck, ND gave me an offer I couldn't refuse on a natural dunlop latex mattress. His offer was the best I'll ever get and it came at the right time.

I will review Sleep On Mattress and the pillow and mattress I bought from them in Part Two, but here's a sneak peak of the process of setting it up (we were able to get a natural cotton allergen cover on it, which is always a good sign of a good mattress):





For further information, I highly recommend these detailed and scientific documentaries:

Stink!

Toxic Hot Seat

Tea Gelatin Recipe

Some of you who know me in person have been asking me to share this recipe for a while, so I apologize that it's taken me so long! Fighting fatigue makes it hard to keep up with the world, sadly!

This one is super simple, hard to get it wrong. I decided to try making my own gelatin because I remembered how nice it was to eat Jello when my digestive system wasn't feeling well. I figured that it shouldn't be hard to make an organic version without all the food coloring, fillers, and sugar. My experiment worked!

Tea Gelatin

What you need:

-Two 12 oz mugs

-1 glass container that can fit 24 oz of liquid

-2 tablespoons of grass-fed gelatin (I use Vital Proteins.)

-3-6 tea bags or equivalent of loose tea (My favorites have been Choice's Lemon Lavender Mint, Frontier's bulk Rooibos tea, Tuli's Cinnamon Rose tea, and Numi's Gunpowerder Green Tea. The Rooibos mixes well most of these other flavors.)

Optionally, you may also use:

-Lemon juice (for sweetness and flavor, but don't pair it with green tea because it can draw the aluminum out of the green tea leaves, according to both my chiropractor and this article.)

-Nut milk (I used coconut milk, but only a light amount or the fat films on top of the gelatin.)

-Organic vegetable-based food coloring (I haven't done this)

-Organic non-sugar sweetener such as stevia or xylotol. (I have not used sweeteners in this recipe, so I cannot testify as to how well they work.)

-Possibly extracts for flavor, but I have not tried this yet.



Recipe:
1. Put 2-3 bags of your choice of tea in one of the mugs and fill it with filtered water. Let it sit, covered, in the fridge for 24 hours. Alternatively, you can use hot water to brew the tea and then place it in the fridge to cool. The goal is to make a strong cold tea. If you want to add lemon juice or nut milk for flavor, add it to this cold tea.

2. Once the cold tea is ready, make hot tea in the other mug. I use 2-3 bags in this mug too, as the flavor needs to be strong. Let it brew for about 6-7 minutes, long enough to steep, but not long enough to cool down.

3. Remove the tea bags from both mugs.

4. Stir in 2 table spoons of gelatin to the hot tea. Keep stirring, try to avoid letting it gel onto the spoon. If you want to add a sweetener, add it to the hot tea while you're stirring in the gelatin. I have never used sweeteners in this, so let me know how it works if you try it.

5. Once dissolved, pour the hot tea into the glass bowl. Then pour the cold tea into the bowl. If you wish to use safe organic food coloring (I will NEVER advocate using synthetic food dyes since they are extremely dangerous to your health), add it in now. Stir gently, just enough to distribute the coloring.

6. Cover the bowl and put it in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. The reason I suggest a glass bowl is so that you can see when the gelatin has set. It should be solid.

7. Enjoy!





Note:
Keep in mind that tea has medicinal properties. You're also making a few servings of gelatin. Even though it might be tempting, you should be careful eating the whole batch in one sitting, especially if you're using tea with caffeine!

Also keep in mind that this is not a meal replacement. It is high in protein, but it's not very filling. Treat it like a snack or something you can get down when you're feeling sick.