Sleep experts recognize the importance of providing their customers with cool sleeping environments, which is why mattress makers have developed various cooling techniques into their mattresses.
As one example, some brands utilize peg-like or egg crate foam surfaces that allow for increased airflow and heat distribution, as well as infusing their foams with cooling materials like Celliant or Outlast.
1. Airflow
If your mattress traps too much heat, it can prevent sleep. A fan or air conditioning will help, but to get maximum rest you also require a cooling mattress with breathable designs that dissipate rather than absorb heat.
Foams such as memory foam and polyfoam can absorb heat effectively while remaining breathable when designed properly. At a recent trade show, one mattress producer demonstrated this fact by forcing air through solid pieces of memory foam, polyfoam, and natural latex foam; they found that natural latex was most breathable of them all.
Mattress toppers are an effective way to enhance sleep comfort. Their materials and weave can have an immediate impact on how it feels in bed; lightweight cotton, for instance, provides breathability and softness; Tencel Lyocell Bamboo are natural fibers which feel breathable but still manage moisture absorption effectively.
Molecule 2 AirTEC hybrid mattresses provide an effective solution for hot sleepers. Their upper layers feature breathable foams and gel, while its innerspring support layer features coils to promote airflow.
2. Ventilation
Mattresses without sufficient ventilation can trap body heat, leading to an uncomfortable night’s rest. That is why mattresses made of breathable components – like cotton, natural wool or buckwheat – are best for hot sleepers. By allowing hot air to escape through ventilation channels in these materials, hot sleepers are kept cooler throughout their sleep experience.
Traditional innerspring mattresses with coils provide ample airflow, making them an excellent option for hot sleepers. Hybrid mattresses with pocketed coils also allow airflow through foam or gel layers of the mattress, making it an excellent choice.
Higher-density foams like memory foam and polyfoam have the tendency to trap heat, but manufacturers can mitigate this effect with cooling technology such as gel infusions or open cell designs that push air away from sleepers and keep their bodies cooler.
All-latex mattresses, as well as natural latex toppers featuring pincore holes to increase breathability, tend to conform less closely to a sleeper’s body, preventing heat build-up around it, while simultaneously maintaining an ambient temperature compared to lower density foams.
3. Convolutions
Mattress core structures play a pivotal role in both support and cooling, with many brands creating core designs to promote airflow and dissipation of heat. Luxisleep’s Morphiis mattresses feature egg crate surfaces which feature peg-like foam surfaces to create air channels around their mattress that create multiple points for heat distribution, leading to cooler sleeping environments overall.
Other brands use perforated core structures to improve breathability. Zenhaven and Novosbed’s mattresses feature keyhole-shaped cuts in their perforated foam, increasing surface areas for heat transfer thereby making their beds feel cooler.
Microencapsulated phase change materials have long been utilized as an effective technology that stores and releases latent heat to lower mattress surface temperature and help you sleep through the night comfortably. A comfortable sleeping surface ensures you find restful slumber.
4. Microcoils
The top cooling mattresses use breathable designs and cooling technologies to combat heat buildup. Memory foam and polyfoam mattresses tend to trap heat due to their close conforming qualities; thus limiting air dissipation. To address this problem, manufacturers add convolutions on top of layers, creating air channels to distribute and disperse body heat more effectively.
Many hybrid mattresses feature micro coil layers in their comfort systems, sandwiched between sleep-inducing layers of bio-based gel memory foam and five-zone latex foam. Micro coils offer more compact and lightweight feel compared to traditional innerspring coils while being less bouncy – an ideal combination for hybrid mattresses.
Microcoils don’t perform quite as well at motion isolation than pocketed coils do, but they still provide ample contouring and support to help mitigate motion transfer between partners. Manufacturers frequently coat these coils with Celliant threads which convert body heat into infrared energy to regulate your temperature as you sleep.
5. Phase Change Materials
Relying on innovative materials to increase heat distribution has become a top priority for many manufacturers, and one such technique is using phase change materials (PCM). PCMs are waxes with different freezing and melting points that store or release heat energy without altering temperature levels.
Mattresses that incorporate Phase Change Material (PCM) feature a layer of it on top of their foam, which stores heat energy. As soon as your bed becomes hot, the PCM releases this energy to help cool it down.
Other cooling mattresses feature core structures designed to optimize airflow and breatheability, such as honeycomb or egg crate designs that create additional surface area to aid with air circulation and reduce heat accumulation.
Memory foam infused with cooling gel may also help keep sleep cool at night; its technology draws heat away from your skin to keep you comfortable throughout the night, which may be especially helpful for those experiencing sweaty and sticky sleeping conditions. Many brands now also offer hybrid beds combining breathable coils with gel memory foam for the best of both worlds.
6. Covers
Maintaining a cool sleeping surface requires using materials with breathability from mattress covers to foam layers, such as natural cotton, TENCEL(r), and bamboo rayon regenerated from bamboo’s cellulose to craft mattresses with soft yet cooling fabrics. Many mattress makers utilize natural cotton, TENCEL(r), and bamboo rayon as options to craft mattresses that provide comfortable yet cooling fabrics for sleeping on.
Foams can also be made breathable to help distribute heat more evenly throughout their material. Some companies employ ventilation grids woven into covers that align with perforations in the foam for better sleep surface cooling; latex foams often contain pinholes created naturally during manufacturing as another way to regulate temperatures for optimal rest.
Other quick and simple fixes to help sleep cool include taking steps such as shedding bed clothes and placing cold packs on pulse points on your body (wrists, neck, elbows, behind knees and ankles). Furthermore, an air fan aimed directly at your mattress or room can boost airflow and help cool your environment; in addition, remembering that heat rises can help lower temperatures if removing the boxspring can also be effective at cooling down sleeping spaces; adding lightweight yet breathable mattress pads like natural cotton or wool will also help your mattress sleep cool!
7. Contour Cutting
One of the main culprits behind poor sleep is overheating. While products like cooling sheets and pajamas may help, an effective solution for overheating would be a cool-sleeping mattress.
No matter if it’s traditional memory foam or gel memory foam mattresses, their material plays a huge role in how cool they keep the bed. Standard non-viscoelastic poly foams absorb body heat and hold on to it while quality viscoelastic memory foams allow airflow for air cooling purposes and create a cool surface.
Material choices used in your mattress’s support and comfort layers also have a direct bearing on how cool you sleep. Open-cell foams promote airflow directly below your sleeping surface, dispersing heat efficiently while maintaining ideal core temperatures.
Cooling gel materials infused into memory foam mattresses can help you sleep cooler without compromising its popular soft hug and pressure relief properties. However, keep in mind that latex mattresses off-gas for three to four days and may emit strong odors during this process.
8. Cooling Gels
Overheating is one of the leading causes of sleep disruptions. Excess heat causes your body to produce sweat, which then triggers sleep-wake signals that prevent restful restful restful restful restful restful restful restful sleep and can result in serious health complications over time.
Good news is there are various simple strategies available to create a relaxing and conducive sleep environment. One such method involves turning off lights prior to sleeping to reduce core body temperature and support healthy circadian rhythm. Also taking a hot shower or bath before bedtime may prove helpful in keeping cool temperatures at bay.
Mattress manufacturers have also introduced cooling mattresses made of special foams and materials designed to help people rest easier at night. One of the most popular cooling technologies available today is gel memory foam, containing gel beads that absorb and distribute body heat more evenly – it appears in many of the best mattresses on the market including Leesa, Loom & Leaf, and Spindle mattresses.
Other mattresses contain minerals that naturally help regulate sleeping temperatures, like copper or silver. Beautyrest’s Sleepy Planet Smart Mattress line utilizes these natural minerals in their mattresses to ensure you experience a more restful night’s rest.
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