Recommendations for a non-toxic latex mattress

Hi needqualsleepz,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum! :slight_smile:

There is more about the many variables that can affect the sleeping temperature of a mattress or sleeping system in post #2 here that can help you choose the types of materials and components that are most likely to keep you in a comfortable temperature range. It’s not really possible to quantify the sleeping temperature of a mattress for any particular person with any real accuracy because there are so many variables involved including the type of mattress protector and the sheets and bedding that you use (which in many cases can have just as significant an effect on sleeping temperature as the type of foam in a mattress) and on where you are in the “oven to iceberg” range and because there is no standardized testing for temperature regulation with different combinations of materials.

In very general terms, the materials, layers, and components of a sleeping system that are closer to your skin will have a bigger effect on airflow, moisture transport, and temperature regulation than materials, layers, and components that are further away from your skin and softer mattresses or foam toppers will tend to be more “insulating” and for some people can sleep warmer than firmer versions of the same material. Latex (which you’re considering) tends to be a very breathable material, with Talalay more breathable than Dunlop.

Most people that are looking for an “organic” mattress or materials are usually concerned more with “safety” than whether the materials have an actual organic certification and they usually aren’t aware that an organic certification isn’t the same thing as a safety certification.

There is more information about the three different levels of organic certifications in post #2 here and some of the benefits of an organic certification in post #3 here.

There is more about the different types of organic and safety certifications such as Oeko-tex, Eco-Institut, Greenguard Gold, C2C, and CertiPUR-US in post #2 here and more about some of the differences between organic and safety certifications in post #2 here and there are also some comments in post #42 here that can help you decide whether an organic certification is important to you for environmental, social, or personal reasons or whether a “safety” certification is enough.

“Toxic” is a term for poisonous substances produced within living cells or organisms, although the term is often used in the mattress industry (and often part of some “fear-mongering” campaigns), but I understand your point in your post title. Most people that are looking for “non-toxic” (toxicity is dose-dependent) mattresses or materials are usually concerned most with “safety”, as I mentioned above. Most of the latex you would be likely to come across would be offered with some sort of a safety certification, so I personally wouldn’t have a concern with choosing either Talalay or Dunlop latex, and would consider either a “safer” material.

The SleepEZ (a site member here, which means that I think highly of them) has options for either Dunlop or Talalay (can be had as blended Talalay, natural Talalay, natural Dunlop or GOLS organic certified Dunlop), and it is a component system (layers are not glued together). The ZenHaven uses good quality natural Talalay latex, and the layers are glued together into a mattress that has a different firmness on each side (it can be flipped). This is not a configurable item.

Regarding “more natural”, you can see my links posted earlier about safety certifications. Both Dunlop and Talalay latex can be made in synthetic, blended (synthetic and natural) or natural versions, and all can meet safety certifications like the ones I listed above. All latex foam (including 100% natural Dunlop and Talalay and organic latex) uses a small amount of chemicals to manufacture the latex (see post #18 here) but the manufacturers don’t release the specifics of their compounding formula which is a closely guarded secret.

Regarding more adhesives used in Talalay, I’m not sure if your referring to the layers being glued together in the ZenHaven, or the glue seams in the larger sizes of Talalay. “Latex based” adhesives are basically water based adhesives (like latex paints) that incorporate various types of elastomers (including but not limited to natural or synthetic latex) in different quantities as opposed to adhesives that use solvents (rather than water) and which often have higher levels of VOC’s. There is some good information about different types of adhesives here and some information about some different types of latex adhesives here.

If you’re continuing to look online, you may wish to use the experience and expertise of the members listed in post #21 here who are all very experienced and knowledgeable and specialize in providing the type of help and guidance on the phone that can help you make good choices. There are a wide range of latex and memory foam and other options included in the choices there and I believe that all of them compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, and transparency.

I hope that information is helpful.

Phoenix