Crib Mattress
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Crib Mattress
April 2008
I want to buy an organic crib mattress, but there seem to be zillions out there.
Anyone either have one that was affordable that they love or know of a website
that evaluates such things? Thanks!
Melanie
Rockridge kids carries them, as does ecobaby.com
organic mama
We got our organic crib mattress from Ecobaby Organics
(www.ecobaby.com) through O!BabyBaby, the eco-friendly baby shop
at the top of Solano. They have a frequent buyer program there
-- something like 'you get a $50 gift card for every $500 you
buy' -- so we were that much closer to our gift card! Plus the
people who run the shop are wonderful and the mattress was the
one I'd wanted anyway. I think Ecobaby mattresses are made in
San Diego and they're around $300. I'm very very happy with the
quality and comfort, and it was shipped quickly to the store
(I'm not sure if you can get it shipped directly to your house
if you order through O!BabyBaby).
Alexandra
I highly recommend Life Kind for organic mattresses of all
types and sizes. www.lifekind.com. They're based near Grass
Valley, CA and I've purchased a few for various beds in the
house. Love them!
Jan 2008
I know crib mattresses are supposed to be firm but my daughter
will only sleep on her side and I can't help but feeling like a
little give in the mattress would make her more comfortable.
Is there any crib mattress or mattress topper with side sleeping
in mind? Or, alternatively, should I put a small folded blanket
under her head? Am I just projecting my own ideas onto her (as
my sister says) and just leave it alone? anon
I think she's probably perfectly comfortable. I also worried
about how comfortable it would be for my baby to sleep on her
side without a pillow, until I realized babies' heads are huge
compared to ours. For us to sleep on our side without a pillow,
the head sort of would hang down from where the shoulder touches
the mattress. But their heads are so large compared to the rest
of their bodies, that I think their heads naturally touch the
mattress even without a pillow to raise it up. And since soft
mattresses and extra bedding (especially around their faces) are
associated with strangulation and SIDS, I think it's best to
leave her alone.
sarah
It would be worth entertaining the idea that you are projecting
your own concerns onto your child. Is she having any trouble
sleeping? Do you have any evidence to suggest that she is having
a problem?
We have found ourselves surprised at the positions, temperatures,
etc. that our son finds comfortable. Head in a corner, no
covering, legs in the air....As long as he is sleeping, I don't
change a thing!
If it ain't broke....
My eldest baby (who's now 5!) had trouble sleeping in his crib
when he was a young infant. I had a firm crib mattress and
very thin mattress pad for safety. The bed seemed so hard so I
bought some ''ultra mattress pad'' from Babies 'r us that was a
lot more plush. Immediately he was able to sleep in his crib
for longer stretches. Seems safer than putting a blanket under
their heads. Neither of my children started using pillows
until they were out of their cribs, around 2 1/2.
Good luck
April 2007
Any recommendations on organic crib mattresses, preferrably at a reasonable price?
I'm looking for good brands and/or where to find them.
I bought our organic crib mattress at www.nontoxic.com which is
actually based in walnut creek. The owner is a very sweet woman,
Daliya Robison. She gets the best prices i could find. also has
sheets, bumpers, etc. we also, by the way, bought our totally
natural, non-toxic wool carpet from her and it was SIGNIFICANTLY
cheaper than anything else I could find (and i did a lot of
research for that huge purchase.)
Lisa
I found a good organic crib mattress online at DaxStores. it was
more expensive than a conventional one but cheaper than other
organic ones. overall their prices are better on such things than
other companies and their service is personable and excellent.
no chemicals please
i bought an organic mini co-sleeper mattress (futon actually) through tiny birds
organics (http://www.tinybirdsorganics.com/) that i really liked. i don't think
they
sell the futon anymore but they have a few choices for other organic mattresses
starting at around 200 bucks (not cheap but i think you get what you pay
for...).
they also have some good choices at dax (http://www.daxstores.com/index.html).
i
bought a secondhand one through bpn that was originally purchased at earthsake
on 4th street in berkeley. we also have been very happy with that mattress (you
can
also purchase their mattresses online (http://earthsake.com/shopsite_sc/store/
html/cribmattresses.html). i really like knowing that my baby sleeps on an
organic
mattress and organic sheets. i haven't bought one yet but am considering
getting a
wool puddle pad to put on top of the mattress or a yard of wool fabric from tiny
birds organics that they say you can use for the same purpose.
just a side note - if you take good care of your mattress i think it would be
very easy
to sell on bpn when you are done and at least make back some of the money.
good luck!
another mama who doesn't want her baby breathing in chemicals all night
Sept 2003
I am interested in buying a non-toxic, non-offgassing organic
cotton and wool crib mattress. I have looked at a number of
websites that sell these mattresses including: EcoBaby, Organic
Bebe, Abundant Earth, Allergy Buyers Club, and Nirvana Safe
Haven. [I have also checked the BPN website for
recommendations, but they are older and not very specific.] I'd
like to find a local seller if possible because you can't
actually feel the mattress first if you buy it online, and the
shipping time can be up to four weeks. We'd like to buy one
sooner if possible. But, I'd also like to hear from anyone who
bought one online.
Has anyone purchased one of these? Are you happy with it? Was
it firm enough (I prefer quite firm -- for safety)? Is there
anywhere in the Bay Area to purchase this type of mattress in
person?
[Please note: I am not interested in buying a crib futon, foam
mattress, conventional mattress, or latex mattress.]
Thanks!
Emily
Well, I sort of found the answer to my own question! So, in
case anyone else is interested . . .
After lots of research, I think the best deal is the ''SNQ-Crib''
model mattress made by Crown City Mattress. They have a good
reputation for manufacturing ''green'' products. They have two
crib mattresses. The cheaper one referred to above is made from
organic cotton and Pure Grow wool. It is machine quilted and
tufted. There are many re-sellers online who sell it for a
variety of prices. The cheapest I could find (cheaper even than
direct from Crown City) was at NaturalEmporium.com
(http://www.naturalemporium.com/snq-crib.html) for $264. Their
other mattress is with the same materials, but hand tufted and
with more of the materials to make it thicker and loftier. It
is around $430.
Other websites sell a Canadian-made organic crib mattress, but I
couldn't find much information about it and decided to go with
this one. I'm still interested in hearing what others might
have to say!
Emily
Hi! We bought an firm, organic wool crib mattress from Earth Sake (on fourth street) about two years ago. I can't remember the brand, but i am sure they can help you out. We have been extremely happy with it, no complaints!
We bought organic mattresses for ourselves (double size) and
our son (twin size) at Earthsake on 4th Street in Berkeley. So
far, we have been very happy with them. They have several
different organic styles and firmness levels on display, so you
can check them out there. They also have a website. I don't
know if they offer any of the mattresses in crib size, though.
Their number is 559-8440.
R.K.
July 2003
I need recommendations for what kind of crib mattress to buy
and where to buy it. I looked at previous recommendations but
couldn't find any for my dilemma . The mattress that I'm using
now for my 19 months old is very used (by others). The reason I
want to replace it now, is because I suspect it may be the
reason for her cough and having some asthma episodes. I'm not
looking for a top-of-the-line kind, since I'm going to invest
in a hypoallergenic cover specially made to protect from dust
mites and other allergens.
Thanks for any recommendation.
There's a book called something like ''Baby Bargains'' (narrow
format, i think the cover was green) that recommended mattresses,
among other equipment. It bases its recommendations on consumer
reports and other such research. I leant the book to someone, so
can't give you details. But our crib mattress is a Colgate Ultra
II, and I'm pretty sure it was highly rated by the book.
By the way, I think the best part of the Baby Bargains book is
not the ideas it gives for low cost shopping, but the evaluations
and ratings of products. I recommend it.
mary
Have you considered an all-cotton crib futon? They are foam-
free, chemical-free, and naturally hypoallergenic. We got one at
Matsu (http://www.matsu-store.com/) on Solano Ave., and paid
only $70 for an 8-layer futon. The people who work there are
really knowledgeable, and worth talking to if you're at all
interested!
Monica
About 3 1/2 years ago I bought our crib mattress at Toys R Us.
It's a big-name one, like Serta or Simmons, and it was about
$60.00 for the deluxe one, well worth the price. It's plastic
covered, and is still in new condition (it's on kid #2, who is
now 18 months).
Heidi
The problem with baby mattresses is the material used in them.
Cotton as a crop is heavily sprayed with pesticides and then
cotton material is treated with chemicals to finish it, so
organic is preferable. Then the mattresses are treated with flame
retardant - which sounds good in theory but you may have seen the
article in the SF Chron the other day about the health hazards of
flame retardant and babies are just more vulnerable to that
stuff. That's why I'd recommend an organic cotton mattress.
Ecobaby, a San Diego based mail order business has them - on line
www.ecobaby.com or call for a catalogue (sorry don't have the
number handy). Unfortunately, not cheap but check it out, you may
not find it too much.
susan
Many crib mattresses, especially those for small children, come packed with
flame retardant and for good reason too. Recent information suggests that
these chemicals may be harmful to susceptible children. Dr.Lendon Lee, a
pediatrician, wrote about research in New Zealand that showed that SIDs was
greatly reduced there when the baby mattresses were wrapped in a special
mattress cover. The cover prevented the normally occurring household
bacteria from dining on the chemicals and producing toxic gas by-products
that hovered close to the surface of the mattress. The article appeared in
the Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients and I reported this in an
earlier post, which I hope can be found in the archives. You could also
do a search at www.mercola.com to locate the information.
Perhaps simply wrapping the mattress would be helpful for your child.
Nori Hudson
When you look at the study recommended in the last newsletter a
couple of things quickly pop up:
1) they are selling a product (a baby safe mattress cover)
2) the study had all folks who ''wrapped'' their mattress also
placed their child on the back to sleep, which has been shown in
many studies to reduce the risk of SIDS
3) No sample size was given, no longitudinal studies, nothing
else was given in the Mercola article. It's very hard to figure
out whether the study is relevant at all.
4) Fire Retardence clearly is one of the most cost-effective life
saving interventions (see Five Hundred Hundred Life Saving
Interventions and their cost-effectiveness, (Harvard School of
Public Health ) and the risk that your child faces from fire is
actually higher than the risk of SIDS
I think assuming that any one product can ''save'' a child from
SIDS is somewhat dangerous, and is likely only to blame a parent
for not purchasing a product.
Public Health Educator
April 2003
We are considering buying a new mattress for our 6-month-old
son. However, my sister told me that there is concern that new
mattresses can give off fumes that may be harmful to infants.
Does anyone know about this? Is there a source for fume-free
mattresses? If we go ahead and buy a new mattress, would it
help to let it ''cure'' unwrapped & unused for a few weeks?
Thanks in advance!
Patrick
There has been some concern that the chemicals that off-gas from
mattresses can do harm to the people, adults as well as children,
who sleep on them. My perspective was that there was so much I
couldn't control about the amount of chemicals that my baby was
going to be exposed to throughout her life - this was one thing
I did have control over. There are many different organic
mattresses on the market made with chemical-free wool or cotton,
or a combination of the two. You will have to decide if the added
cost is worth it to you, versus investing your money in some other
aspect of your baby's well-being. Ecobaby sells several models of
organic crib mattress and futons (www.ecobaby.com). The Earthsake
store on 4th street in Berkeley has organic adult mattresses; you
might call to see if they carry crib size too.
steadman
A good friend just sent me this link regarding cribdeath and new
mattresses. The study was conducted in New Zealand.
http://www.healthychild.com/cribdeathcause.htm
Wrapping my mattress
Go with an organic mattress! No fumes, no poisons to the ground
that grew it, no chemicals used and dumped in the process of
making it - safe and wonderful for your baby. A great source is
Lifekind Products, www.lifekind.com
This was a big issue for me when my son was born. I was quite
concerned about outgassing (from mattresses certainly but also
from the crib itself, a new dresser, the rug ...). I read a
book called ''The Natural Nursery'' which made new, vinyl covered
mattresses sound quite dangerous, especially now that babies are
sleeping on their stomachs and have their faces right up against
the mattress. I looked around for a toxin-free solution, but I
wasn't able to locate an affordable ''green'' mattress that I felt
comfortable with -- I found ones without the vinyl covering or
foam inside, but I was concerned about my son peeing in bed and
soaking the mattress. The ''non-toxic'' mattresses I found also
cost 3x the price of a regular mattress at Babies-R-Us. My
husband and I ended up buying a regular foam-free crib mattress
and letting it out-gas for a couple months (unwrapped) before we
used it. I feel like we may have compromised too quickly,
though, and in hindsight I wish that we had investigated getting
a used mattress from a friend.
Kathryn
Kathryn wrote: ''especially now that babies are
sleeping on their stomachs and have their faces right up against
the mattress'' And I became extremely alarmed. Babies are NOT supposed to be
put on their stomachs and should ALWAYS be put on their backs. The SIDS
organizations have been trying to get the word out through advertisements, etc.
for parents to be sure to put their babies to sleep on their backs! Please
don't put your baby to sleep on his/her stomach - this has been found to be one
of the leading causes of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome!
Anon
Hi everybody - I wanted to thank the anonymous person who
corrected my recent post, and I wanted to apologize to the
network for not proofreading more carefully. When I wrote my
response, I had meant to convey that I believe it is unhealthy
for babies to sleep on brand-new mattresses and (in my opinion)
it is probably especially unhealthy if they are on their
stomachs on new mattresses. I don't know where my brain was
when I totally jumbled that thought and implied that kids are
supposed to be on their stomachs to sleep. Again, THANK YOU
anonymous person for not letting my mistake go unnoticed! I
really value this network and feel terrible that I accidentally
contributed incorrect information.
Kathryn
Feb 2003
I was just wondering if anyone has heard anything about how you
aren't supposed to use a crib mattress for more than one baby.
My brother and his wife recently went shopping for baby
furniture and when they were looking at mattresses the person at
the store was telling them that you shouldn't re-use one unless
it is the expensive kind that is waterproof and scotchguarded
and what not. She said that when the baby throws up, pees, or
whatever on the less expensive ones it goes into the mattress
and stays there. So even though the first kid had no troubles,
the next child may not be immune to the same things and could
then get sick from it. I hope I'm making sense. It sounded
better when he said it. But anyways, it still kind of sounds
like a load to me. It just seems a little over-cautious. Has
anyone else heard this and is it legitimate? Or is the lady
just trying to sell a more expensive bed? She also mentioned
buying a waterproof mattress pad if you want to re-use the
mattress but don't want to spring for the extras. But a water
resistent mattress pad isn't good enough. Of course that's what
we have. Ah well. Thanks for your input!
Sarah
Sounds like a sales pitch to me, too. Urine is practically
sterile; gut bacteria from feces and vomit don't survive drying
out too well, and it's unlikely your baby will have his mouth on
the mattress, since presumably you are using a clean sheet and
pad.
Tot #2 WILL get sicker than tot #1, though--it's the sheer math of
two sets of playmates coming into contact with the baby. Not to
mention that with your attention divided, #2 tends to a lot more
dirt and crud, too. I wouldn't blame it on the crib mattress,
though.
virginia
In my opinion, you are right, that IS a load. My now 2 year old
son is using the crib that was his cousin's (and her sister's
before that!) I bought two new waterproof mattress pads so I can
be cleaning one and still have one on - and just washed them
before I put them on. Then, of course, there is a sheet on top
of that. How can months-old pee, spit-up, etc even GET to the
baby? It sounds like a good way to sell more mattresses to me.
Go with your gut - you're probably right!
A thrifty mama
There have been two studies linking reusing a crib mattress
to SIDS. Both showed a small but significant positive
correlation between a reused crib mattress and the baby
dying of SIDS, with a stronger correlation if the mattress
came from another family. Researchers (and crib
salesmen) hypothesize that the reason for this link is that
bacteria get into the mattress and can then sicken baby
number two, though no one actually knows why this
correlation appears. The problem with these studies is that,
although the second one tried to control for socioeconomic
factors, it is almost impossible with a retrospective study. I
mean, let's face it. How many people of limited means are
going to throw out a perfectly good crib mattress just so the
new baby can have an unused one? That's the main
criticism I've read of the conclusion.
My opinion: I think it is premature scientifically to conclude
that buying a new mattress will protect your baby from SIDS
or other health problems. This is the sort of
recommendation that is easy for doctors to promote, and
easy for worried parents to latch onto, and it doesn't hurt that
there is an entire industry benefitting from the anxiety. I'd
wash the mattress cover and not worry about it.
Judith
The concern about mattresses is related to Sudden Infant Death
Syndrome (SIDS), also known as crib death. The theory is that
some of the fire-retardant chemicals in the mattress react with
naturally occuring mold (which gets a boost from moisture coming
from baby). This reaction releases toxic gases. Wrapping the
mattress with a water proof cover which does not contain the
chemicals in question works both by keeping moisture away from
the mold, but more importantly keeping gases away from babies.
There is more info at the link below:
http://www.johnleemd.net/articles/sids.html
safety dad
My instinct is that a used crib mattress is probably safer than a
new one because it has had more of a chance to offgas. Chemicals
used in the manufacture of crib mattresses are suspected of being
related to an increased incidence of SIDS. We chose a crib futon
instead, to avoid these toxins, but if I had to I'd use an old
mattress over a new one. Here is more information:
The source we got the crib futon from, admittedly biased has a
bit of information on this topic... look in the crib section:
http://www.whitelotus.net/
avoiding indoor air pollution!
2001
I currently have a Simmons Baby Beautyrest Backcare IV mattress for my six month
old baby. However, from day one it has always seemed so hard. We often compare it
to sleeping on a wood floor. I didn't let it bother me since I felt it would be
safer for her but I just can't stand seeing her sleeping on it any longer. I am
looking for a mattress that is firm but still comfortable.
Also, since trying to research one on the Internet I have come across lots of
information regarding the dangers of chemicals found in commercial mattresses.
Is it really better or worth it for a natural chemical-free mattress or is this
a lot of hype to sell expensive mattresses? Is there a place where one can go to
buy these besides the Internet? Thanks for any info you might be able to offer me.
Liza
Regarding the chemicals in new mattresses, I avoided them by buying a
used crib mattress.
Jennifer
The best crib mattresses are the lightweight ones because you change
the sheets so constantly. Buying an expensive equivalent of an adult
mattress is unnecessary & bad for your back.
The best lightweight ones are simply foam, which can be very very firm
or softer. If foam exhudes chemicals it's news to me but aren't you
going to encase it in plastic anyway, then a cotton mattress cover?
I'd let the plastic air for a day or two & then forget about it.
Mary Ann
I did a lot of research on crib mattresses when we were decorating our son's
bedroom. I found a fabulous book in the Berk. public library's downtown branch
about eco-friendly, non-toxic "stuff" for children. Sorry, I can't remember
the name of the book, but I'm sure you could peruse the bookshelves of the
library or Cody's and find it.
We bought a Crown II mattress from Lullaby Lane in San Mateo. Very reasonable,
about $120.00. Sturdy coils, and very little(1/4" foam. Foam is the material
you want to avoid in mattresses. I had read it off-gasses formaldyhyde(sp?).
Any mattress you purchase should be aired out for at least a few days outside
before putting your child on it.
Maya
I saw the posting about the recommendation to buy a used crib
mattress. I would caution you about using a used mattress for your
newborn or very young baby. You run into issues about mold,
contamination from urine,bacteria, etc. Also, can you really verify
the complete history of a used mattress? How many kids slept on it?
Was it ever stored improperly? My sister-in-law cautioned me about
buying a used mattress after she had read an article about the link
between used/well worn crib mattresses and SIDs. Maya
I bought a 100% cotton futon for my daughter at
Discount Depot in Berkeley. They will make one to fit
your crib, it cost me less than $100. Ecobaby sell an
organic cotton futon that is crib size but it costs
about $400 plus shipping. Foam mattresses should be
avoided (by both babies and adults) because of the off
gassing of chemicals which you inhale while sleeping.
Mary
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