HELP! Down to the “FINALSITS...”

Talk To The Experts MFC Canada
1

Hi. I read a lot of the articles here. Really informative site. Thanks for doing this.
There’s just such a vast amount of variety, selection and confusion out there. Truly overwhelming.
Anyway, I’m in need of serious help. I live overseas and in my country, there are ZERO options for natural, organic and healthy sleeping products. I am currently making a healthy lifestyle change including diet and changing as many daily products to natural alternatives. First up is out with the old bed and to get something new with no harmful chemicals, flame retardants etc. but everything is only online because I’m over here far away and there is little to no health-conscious community here - so it’s just so much more difficult. And if I order I can NOT afford any mistakes because shipping, import customs etc. is very high and there would be no way to return, so therefore I am very wary to do as much research beforehand in order to make the PERFECT decision!
Anyway, I decided to try to go for a Dunlop latex 3-layer which I understand is the best bet for someone looking for flexible comfort options in a natural/organic alternative to conventional mattresses (unless someone here can recommend something else that I haven’t heard of??). After a little research I coincidentally found this company -DIY NATURAL BEDDING - and they seem to be totally honest and believing personally/ideologically as well in their products much beyond the norm. Decent prices and exceptionally fantastic customer service.

  1. Are you familiar with them at all? If yes, what is your opinion?

At the moment, I’m planning on ordering 3 layers (“slabs”/toppers etc.) of their 3" thick “natural/organic” Dunlop latex along with an organic cotton ticking as a DIY kit. (Queen size just for me—I’m 6’ 0" tall, 170 lbs).
My biggest issue is the latex - because it’s tricky to understand and believe what it’s all about. Reminding you that I am EXTREMELY stubborn to get the most natural/organic option out there. They claim their product is GOLS certified ORGANIC Dunlop Latex from the Arpico group in Sri Lanka. I just want to be 1000% sure with what I’m getting and that it’s what I truly want and need.

  1. in your opinion, is this truly the best option out there for the healthiest latex mattress for the home?

  2. I also found a site www.latexmattressfactory.com which is having a crazy sale right now, offering the same 3 latex “toppers” for what comes out to 50% cheaper!!! (about $500.00 LESS) than the DIY Natural Bedding company AND they offer free shipping (DIY is another $250 for shipping) BUT…they say their latex is N-A-T-U-R-A-L but NOT Organic and from the Latex Green company, NOT Arpico. Sorry to say, but I’m honestly much more interested at the moment in saving a whopping 50% and hundreds of dollars off the cost than feeling good about having a possibly worthless certification sticker and worrying about things like unrealistically saving the planet — you know, whether the rubber trees in Asia, from which the latex was extracted, will be turned into a chair in another 50 years vs. just being chopped down and burned, how it was shipped to the port or how much the workers were paid. (sorry about the insensitivity). What is right!!!

See DIY’s article here: Our Manufacturer Memberships :: The Mattress Underground

Also a good read:

so if you can say with 100% confidence that both company’s products are EXACTLY the same and that the health benefits of both company’s products are EXACTLY the same-then obviously I would go with the cheaper option. I just need an expert’s opinion.

Thanks so much.

JK

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Hi JK5779,

The main difference between certified organic dunlop latex and so called “natural dunlop latex”:

“Natural latex” foam rubber can be blended with numerous performance robbing materials, so it’s important to ensure the purest possible latex is being used. Materials such as fillers and synthetic latex aka “styrene butadiene rubber” (SBR) which are two petroleum based chemicals, and each listed as VOC’s.

The only way to guarantee a latex rubber is free of these performance robbing additives is through GOLS (Global Organic Latex Standard) certification.

Under the GOLS content standard all latex rubber must:
contain at least 95% organic latex content
does not contain any synthetic latex
In addition to the purity and performance standards GOLS standards also includes many other important health and social guidelines.

Some of the other important parameters included in the certification include:
VOC and harmful substance testing
forest stewardship practises
waste and pollution management
water management regulations
renewable energy requirements
living wage guidelines for workers
child labour is prohibited

Those are good options, but you’ll also find some other onesHERE

You will save some money with this retailer, however you will not meet your 1st criteria which was “Reminding you that I am EXTREMELY stubborn to get the most natural/organic option out there”

No, they are not exactly the same. One is offering you certified organic dunlop latex and the other “natural latex”. As for the covers, one is offering certified GOTS organic cotton, while the other is labelled “organic cotton knit”. It’s important to note that cotton can be labelled as “Organic” even if it only contains 10% organic cotton! The remaining 90% can be polyester or other synthetic materials. When in doubt ask to see the actual GOTS organic cotton certificate.

So now you have to decide if you want to save money, or if you want to the get the most natural/organic option out there. Remember that the lifespan of a latex mattress is at least 20 years with proper care. So if you do the math, you’ll save approximately .07 cents per night by buying the non certified mattress.

Good luck with your purchase and let us know what you decided to buy in the end