There are so many mattresses that claim to provide cooling to hot sleepers, but do they actually work?
There are a few factors that can affect how well a mattress performs as a cooling mattress. The most important thing is the type of mattress.
Another factor that can affect how well a mattress works as a cooling mattress is the person using it. If you are overweight or have a lot of body heat, finding a cooling mattress will be a challenge.
A lot of people believe that a cooling mattress will help them sleep better and reduce the number of times they wake up during the night. This is because a hot sleeper is likely to sweat more and their body will produce more heat while they are sleeping.
A cooling mattress will attempt to reduce this heat by transferring your body’s heat to the mattress.
Gel Memory Foam & Its Problems
Memory foam is the most common and economical mattress material used in making manufacturing mattresses. But it comes with a big drawback of trapping body heat and raising your body temperature in a few hours of night sleep.
Most brands are now using gel-infused memory foam now to counter this effect. But the most important question is
Does gel memory foam cooling mattresses work?
The answer is yes but only for the initial few hours of sleep.
The mattress needs to have a material that can conduct heat away from the body easily. The gel used does help in that. As it starts receiving the body heat from the sleeper, it dissipates heat away but eventually warms up to the same temperature as the sleeper.
The power to dissipate heat reduces eventually. Also, the amount of gel-infused is way less to make a considerable difference over a period of time.
The mattress cover and the other layers between the sleeper and gel foam further reduces the desired effect. When the sleeper gets into the bed, he may feel cooler to some extent. But as the number of hours passes while sleeping its effects diminish.
There are some brands that include charcoal, green tea, graphite, and other extracts for further enhancing the ability of cooling mattresses but the quantity is negligible for any marked improvements.
Additionally, there aren’t any researches or studies that scientifically prove the cooling effect.
In our reviews, we do rate the mattress on its cooling abilities. These ratings are practical ratings on the real-life sleeping experience on them but these cannot be termed scientific or quantifiable studies.
What to Look for in a Cooling Mattress?
These modifications are not completely useless and are not as effective as advertising, which is a bitter truth. However based on our experience in reviewing hundreds of mattresses. There are some things to keep in mind while buying a cooling mattress.
- Always look for material with breathability between mattress top layers and the mattress protector.
- An organic cotton mattress cover is recommended.
- Opt for a latex comfort layer as it is more breathable than memory foam.
- Wear loose and cotton sleepwear.
- Hybrid mattresses with coils are better for hot sleepers.
- Set the thermostat settings between 60-67 Fahrenheit and should notch cooler than what you prefer.
