Childhood is the time of extreme and essential physical and mental changes, most of which occur when your child sleeps. It goes without saying that sleep is vital to your child’s overall health. Having the right mattress ensures a good night’s sleep. It can help encourage deep sleep cycles, which are necessary for good health. It also helps to support your child’s posture during sleep to ensure bone strength. Since there are so many mattress options out there, we’ve created a guide to help you make an informed decision.

What Is The Best Mattress For A Child?

There’s no single pick when it comes to deciding what mattress is best for a child. Your choice will depend on a number of things, including how firm it is, your child’s needs or personal habits, and so on. For instance, a child who wets the bed will need a waterproof mattress, while a child with allergies will need an organic mattress.

Deciding On Style

There are several types of children’s mattresses, including memory foam, open-sprung, pocket-sprung, and latex foam –each offering different benefits to different kind of sleepers. Latex foam mattresses are breathable, making them great for kids who prefer cooler temperatures while sleeping. Memory foam mattresses are extremely dense and body-forming, keeping your child’s spine in proper alignment to support their growth. As for sprung mattresses, the higher the spring counts the more support they offer. Generally, kids need proper support during sleep. So, choose a mattress that’s firm enough to provide support, but still soft enough for them to stay in comfortably throughout their sleep.

Does The Type Of Bed Frame Matter?

There are a lot of things to consider when choosing a bed frame. For starters, what mattress size do you need? Bed frames aren’t one-size-fits-all, meaning they need to match the size of your bedding so as to properly support the mattress. You’ll also need to consider the height and bulkiness of the bed, style, and whether to go for a platform bed or a box spring. Given how fast children grow, the type of bed frame doesn’t really matter. In fact, why spend money on something they’ll outgrow sooner rather than later. A solid platform underneath your mattress is all you need to provide support.

Comparing Costs

Price is the number one determinate in any purchase, and buying a mattress is no exception. Children’s mattresses come at varying prices. The most expensive ones are latex and pocket-sprung mattresses. The overall price can, however, be affected by a number of factors. For instance, the price of pocket-sprung mattresses is determined by the overall number of springs. As for latex foam mattresses, it all depends on whether the latex is synthetic or natural. Memory foam mattresses are in the middle of the price range, while futon and innerspring mattress are the cheapest.

Other Things to Take Into Account

Knowing the drawbacks of each type of mattress will also help you decide whether it’s the most ideal option for your child. For starters, memory foam mattresses occasionally experience off-gassing, which describes the process of the foam releasing gases. This can be resolved by simply ventilating the room for 3-4 days to get rid of the fumes. If your kid has allergies, consider a mattress made of hypoallergenic properties like natural latex, pure wool, silk, or cotton. You can also buy hypoallergenic mattress protectors for sprung mattresses, and mattress protectors to help protect the mattress if your child wets the bed.