How to choose an organic mattress for your baby? Baby’s arrival is approaching, and you are starting to prepare for the birth by arranging his future room.
Like any parent, you want to make it a cozy little nest because your child will spend much of his baby’s life there: decoration, childcare accessories, toys, and stuffed animals; you don’t skimp on the means.
The bed is, of course, one of the essentials. Knowing that babies sleep up to 18 hours a day, most parents have a crucial question: which baby mattress to choose?
Recognized for being the best bedding for babies, in terms of quality and optimal comfort, but also for the absence of impact on children’s health, the organic mattress is an increasingly popular model with families.
Let’s find out together how to choose the model of organic mattress that is comfortable and suitable for baby’s sleep.
Also, read Does baby need an organic mattress?
Let’s go.
How To Choose Organic Crib Mattress
Organic certification guarantees of a natural mattress for baby’s comfort
Wanting to choose an organic baby mattress without dealing with the certification or the organic Label would make no sense. For what? Because it is the guarantee of buying a truly organic and healthy mattress!
First, you should know that an organic mattress is not necessarily an ecological bedding, and vice versa.
Indeed, an organic mattress is made from organic natural materials from organic farming and is subject to strict specifications.
However, this does not mean that its production meets all the criteria for an eco-label.
The presence of a label or certification allows you to make your choice in an informed manner and complete transparency as to the composition of the mattress.
The CertiPUR label certifies that the foam used is made without heavy metals, carcinogenic dyes, and plasticizers, thus reducing volatile organic compounds (VOC) emissions.
A mattress that is certainly healthier than a classic foam mattress, this certification does not give the baby mattress an organic character because the foam used (polyurethane, polyether, or viscoelastic) is a synthetic material derived from petroleum products.
It is, therefore, anything but organic.
The Oeko-Tek Standard 100 label guarantees the absence of toxic products for health and the environment, not the mattress’s biological and natural quality.
The Global Organic Latex Standard (GOLS) label, specific to latex mattresses, ensures that all materials and manufacturing processes meet strict organic standards.
This Label, therefore, only concerns natural latex mattresses and not synthetic latex.
The organic baby mattress, a guaranteed 100% natural model
Even if organic does not necessarily mean ecological, an organic certification assures the mattress is made from organic raw materials. Thus, choosing a label means choosing a healthy filling for a baby’s health.
There Are Several Natural Materials For The Filling Of The Bedding:
The organic wool mattress, usually sheep’s wool, has a thermoregulating and insulating quality providing warmth and soft comfort, which we do not recommend for babies who need firm comfort;
Organic cotton mattresses are increasingly used for children’s bedding because they provide comfort and density. However, cotton faults absorbing moisture;
the organic coconut fiber mattress is a very airy model for optimal sleeping ventilation, hypoallergenic and anti-mite, which makes it a very good choice for a baby, provided it is coupled with a foam (usually latex) for softening its hardness;
the organic mattress in natural latex (100% latex or associated with another organic raw material) offers ideal comfort for a baby and implacable sanitary quality (bed ventilation, anti-mite, antibacterial, and thermoregulatory quality).
Finally, let’s talk about ticking, which is also important. The ticking is the outer fabric envelope that covers the mattress.
The ticking can be directly integrated into the mattress or as a removable cover. It contributes to the comfort of the baby’s bed by ensuring the body’s reception.
The ticking must therefore be soft enough to make the mattress comfortable.
What Is An Organic Baby Mattress?
It can be made of several materials, but we recommend choosing an organic product that is sufficiently breathable and thermoregulatory (such as organic cotton microfiber) so your child does not get too hot.
Finally, for a question of hygiene, I prefer a ticking in the form of a removable cover to wash it. If not, you can add an organic cover on the mattress, a mattress protector, or a mattress pad, preferably in Tencel or bamboo fiber.
The density of the organic baby mattress guarantees of quality sleep
At this reading stage, you know almost everything you need to choose the right organic mattress for your child.
The last important point to provide your baby with the ideal comfort and, above all, essential for his development concerns the density of the bedding.
A baby has specific needs (development of his skeleton and, more particularly, of his spine, neck flexibility, cranial box fragility, etc.), especially since he spends much of his day in bed.
That’s why he needs the best possible support. Thus, the organic baby mattress must therefore be dense and firm.
Generally, a density between 20 and 22 kg/m³ for a foam-filling mattress and 55 kg/m³ for a latex mattress is a good compromise.
Note that the density is not dependent on the thickness of the bed.
The idea that the thicker the mattress, the better, is accepted. The correct thickness of a baby mattress is between 10 and 13 cm.
Let’s end with a last piece of advice that responds more to the order of practicality than comfort but contributes to it: the choice of the size of the organic mattress.
There Are Commonly Two Sizes To Choose From For A Baby Mattress, Namely:
60 X 120 cm for a child from 0 to 5 years old;
70 X 140 cm for a child from 0 to 7 years old.
As you can see, choosing a larger baby mattress allows you to use it longer despite your child’s growth.
Still, the organic baby mattress must be the same size as the bed and the box spring, so there is no space between the sides of the bedding and the bed bars, thus avoiding any risk of an accident.
Conclusion
Now that you know how to choose an organic mattress for your baby, always keep in mind that thus, choosing an organic baby mattress is based, above all, on the choice of the Label and the materials used for filling the bedding.
The density of the mattress, inherent in the filling and the ticking, must be firm and dense. Finally, the bed must be easy to clean (removable cover), ideally with a reversible and breathable side to evacuate the humidity in the bedding.
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