This is a very long post about whether latex allergies can be caused by latex mattresses. I think the info will be useful to the forum. I also have some questions (mentioned at the end of the post) for the forum.
I am looking into getting a latex mattress but do have concerns about latex allergies. I do not have a latex sensitivity but would rather not acquire one. After considering the duration of exposure, I decided to do some investigating. I acquired the following articles from peer reviewed scientific journals about latex allergies and mattresses.
Below is a summary of what I found.
Many latex mattress companies claim the proteins have been washed out of their latex mattresses. Studies have confirmed that most proteins in latex extract are not present in mattresses and thus must have been washed out or denatured in the processing. However, some proteins were still present in all 4 natural latex mattresses that were tested. The amount of protein varied greatly. Two had more protein per gram than gloves (a known cause of latex allergies). Two had less. Unfortunately the processing method used when manufacturing the mattresses or even whether they were Dunlop or Talalay mattresses was not specified.
Not all proteins cause allergies. Although we know that proteins are present in latex mattresses, are any of them actually allergens? The studies found that the serum of only 3 out of 21 latex sensitive humans showed an immune response when mixed with the proteins in the mattresses that were tested. All 21 serums reacted with unprocessed latex extract. Thus most allergens (not just most proteins) had been removed or denatured during processing; otherwise all the serums would have reacted to the mattresses. It is important to note that, one of the reactive serums reacted to all 4 natural latex mattresses. Thus some latex allergens were still present in all the mattresses tested.
The reduced number of allergens in mattresses would probably reduce the chance of sensitization to latex and may also mean that even some people with latex allergies would not have a sensitivity to latex mattresses. Nevertheless there are still some latex allergens in latex mattresses. The question is do people actually become latex sensitized from latex mattresses in real world conditions. After all extreme extraction methods (freezing, crushing, and solvents) were used to obtain the results above and the extract was directly mixed with serum from the blood of latex sensitive people. This is very different than lying on a latex mattress where the allergens are bound up in a latex matrix, there are layers of fabric between you and the mattress, and no allergens are being injected into your bloodstream.
Clearly it is possible to get latex allergies from real world exposure to latex without the extreme conditions in the studies. After all tens of millions of people have latex allergies. However, most of these people (medical workers, workers in the latex industry, people who have had multiple surgeries – especially at young ages) have had very unusual types of exposure to latex. For instance, latex gloves used by medical workers cause allergies primarily because the latex proteins attach to the powder in the gloves and become airborne and inhaled when the gloves are removed. This bypasses the protection of the skin. Also, people working in the latex industry are exposed to the raw latex extract which contains far more allergens than latex products. Furthermore manufacturing puts the latex through mechanical and thermal processes that could cause the allergens to become airborne. Having surgeries involve contact with surgical gloves inside the body. This bypasses all the body’s defenses against allergens, vastly increasing the potential for an allergic response. These are all unusual methods of contact with latex. They do not seem applicable to a latex mattress where the latex itself is rarely touched. Thus the question still remains, is it possible to get allergies from mattresses simply by sleeping on one for a long time.
To my knowledge there has only been one study that looked into whether latex mattresses in real world conditions actually cause latex allergies in humans (not just serum in test tubes). At the age of 3 years, having slept on a latex mattress did not affect whether a child developed a latex allergy. 3 years is not a huge period of time and very young children are different than adults so I do not know how applicable this study is to an adult sleeping on a latex mattress for 20 years. However, it should be noted that nearly 7% of the children did develop latex allergies. The number was simply the same for the ones who slept on latex mattresses as is was for the ones that did not. Thus the children were quite capable of developing latex allergies from other sources, but not from mattresses. Also, generally speaking, the younger you are the easier it is to get sensitized to anything because the immune system is still developing. Thus the study may apply to the general population.
It is also important to consider that the fact is that we are all exposed to allergens every day. They are in the air we breathe and what we eat and drink. Latex is common in day to day life (household gloves, erasers, elastic in underwear, pacifiers) and these items also contain latex allergens. If simple exposure caused allergies in most people, then everyone would have latex allergies. Obviously if lots of people who slept on latex mattresses became sensitized to latex proteins as a result, modern medicine would be aware of it.
Nevertheless, there is a risk that a small percentage of people who sleep on latex mattresses could develop a latex sensitivity from it. A small percentage would not be obvious and would not attract attention. The only way we would know about it was from studies or individuals who it happened to posting their experience on the web. I was unable to find any studies, except for the study on young children mentioned above, that attempted to correlate sleeping on a latex mattress with latex allergies. I heard that the FDA has a list of products that have been reported to cause latex allergies. I was unable to find any such list on the FDA’s website. By searching the FDA’s website, I was also unable to find any mention of mattresses causing latex allergies. By searching the web, I was unable to find any report of a person becoming latex sensitive from a latex mattress. By looking on the American Latex Allergy Association’s website I was able to find only one report of a person (Molly) having a sensitivity to a latex mattress. However, this person was latex sensitive before purchasing the latex mattress. This is interesting in that it suggests that latex allergens are able to escape from the latex mattress and interact with a person’s immune system. However, I am very hesitant to draw conclusions from one example. It could be that the person became exposed to another allergen (new bedding or pet) or a chemical (paint or a chemical used in the processing of the mattress) at the same time they bought the mattress. This other substance could have caused the problem rather than the latex allergens. I would really need more examples to draw conclusions with much confidence.
From all the above my best conclusion is that sleeping on a latex mattress does not cause sensitization to latex. I am uncertain whether people with latex sensitivities can sleep on one, but would urge caution.
My questions for the forum are:
Does anyone know if the FDA does actually keep a list of products that have been reported to cause latex allergies and if so where this list can be found?
Does anyone know of any real world reports of anyone actually becoming sensitized to latex from sleeping on a latex mattress?
Does anyone know of any real world reports (other than the report mentioned above) of anyone who is already sensitized to latex having an allergic reaction of any sort from sleeping on a latex mattress?
Does anyone have any other info about latex allergies that would be a useful addition to this post?
I had an acute upper respiratory infection that began the same week. This didn’t seem out of the ordinary as many others in our household shared similar symptoms. Fast-forward about four weeks and I’m continuing to have (what I believe is) allergic rhinitis. Here’s another link:
I’ll do some more reading. Can a Type IV allergy lead to a more serious Type I? I certainly wouldn’t want to sensitize myself toward a more severe allergic response.