Hi Kristen,
The “best” suggestion I can make would be to follow the steps in the mattress shopping tutorial which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly how and why to avoid the worst ones.
Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability, durability, and value.
I don’t make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or materials because the first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more accurate than your own careful testing (using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
I can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer any specific questions you may have along the way that I am able to help with, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress is the best match for you based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
While it’s not possible to find memory foam that doesn’t include “chemicals” … I would keep in mind that not all chemicals are harmful either in general terms or for a specific person. Even water and salt are “chemicals” for example (see here) and the individual constituents of a chemical can be harmful even if the chemical combination itself isn’t.
I certainly wouldn’t make the assumptions you are making no because it would depend on the specific chemicals that you are hoping to avoid exposure to and the amount of exposure that would be harmful to you out of the thousands of chemicals that you are exposed to in some amount every day. Since most people that are concerned with “chemicals” are really concerned with “safety” … there is more information in post #2 here and the more detailed posts and information it links to about safe, natural, organic, “chemical free”, and “green” mattresses and mattress materials that can help you sort through some of the marketing information and terminology that you will encounter in the industry and can help you differentiate between them and answer “how safe is safe enough for me” or “how organic is organic enough for me” so you can decide on the types of materials you are most comfortable having in your mattress. These types of issues are complex and are generally specific to each person and their individual sensitivities, circumstances, criteria, beliefs, and lifestyle choices.
The only way to know whether any specific material contains substances that may be harmful to you (memory foam or otherwise) would be based on lab testing and certifications that include the chemicals you are hoping to avoid. There is more about some of the different certifications that may be helpful in post #2 here. There are hundreds of different types of memory foam (and other types of foam as well) and it’s possible that you may be sensitive to some of them and not to others.
There are also hundreds if not thousands of different types of memory foam mattresses and while some of them may be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP … others may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on. The same would be true about any type of mattress or combination of materials. The choice of materials or the type of mattress that is “best” for you in terms of PPP depends on the specific design of the mattress … not on the types of materials or which mattress category it belongs in. The choice of materials is more of a preference choice than a “better/worse” choice.
I would also be very cautious about brand shopping because you are buying a specific mattress not the brand and all manufacturers have access to the same or similar components and materials. Most of the more heavily advertised and most commonly available brands that you would recognize are the ones I would avoid anyway (see the guidelines here) and many of the better manufacturers are smaller and are only available locally or regionally (or online). The name of the manufacturer on the label also won’t tell you anything about whether a specific mattress would be a suitable choice for you in terms of PPP or whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links in the design that would affect the durability and useful life of the mattress. There is more about the risks of brand shopping in post #5 here and post #12 here. Outside of careful testing for PPP (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) or a more detailed conversation with a manufacturer or retailer about whether a mattress would be suitable for you if you can’t test a mattress in person … I would focus much more on the type and quality/durability of the materials inside a mattress (which are important to know anyway) than I would on the name of the manufacturer on the label.
Phoenix