The ultimate guide to buying the best baby mattress

So you got yourself a little bundle of joy. It is such a special time. Babies are magical. They’re cute, they’re cuddly, they smell great (most of the time).

You have one job now; keep that baby safe. This should be relatively easy at first because babies don’t do a whole lot of anything, plus your hormones are genetically engineered to put your baby’s health and safety above absolutely everything.

If you’re lucky, your baby will be in bed for eight hours or more a night. So you’ll want to make sure you have the best possible mattress. That is easier said than done.

There is lots of conflicting information on the internet about what is best for your baby when it comes to sleeping. To help you, we’ve pulled together the ultimate guide to buying the best baby mattress.

Decide what type of mattress you want to buy

Perhaps you didn’t know there were so many types of mattresses. Well, there are. The main ones are foam and innerspring.

There are pros and cons to all types of mattresses. Foam mattresses are known to be hot, sometimes harbour germs that grow in trapped fluids excreted from the body (not ideal if you have a baby), have a funny smell, are not great for people with limited mobility (like babies), and can be expensive.

Innerspring mattresses tend to be heavy and can harbour dust mites.

The trick here is to do your research.

Choose mattresses made from natural materials

Babies get sick. Babies poop and pee. Babies sweat when they are hot. The last thing you want is a mattress that soaks up liquids and, eventually, turns them into mould. Mould is not good for anyone, but it is especially bad for babies.

Buying a mattress made from natural materials can help counteract this problem. Look for the following:

• Wool – Wool dissipates moisture efficiently, insulates the body and is breathable. In cold months, wool encloses warm air to keep you snug. In summer, when you are more likely to sweat, layers of wool allow moisture to disperse.
• Horsehair – horsehair is great for ventilation. It’s hollow, which means it dries almost immediately. Sleeping on horsehair is like sleeping on millions of tiny, individual springs.
• Cotton – cotton used to be the number one filling used for mattresses, but, though it is marketed as a luxury product, foam is cheaper. Cotton has three major benefits, resilience, being natural, and the capability to breath.

Humans evolved with the help of natural materials. Now, in this time of over industrialisation, it’s time to go back to our roots!

Look for environmentally friendly companies

Did you know that the number one strain you can put on this planet is to have a child? Your biggest contribution to CO2 emissions is absolutely your little bundle of joy. Little bundles turn into big bundles. They buy cars and burn energy. But you can limit the impact your baby has on the environment, by taking care to purchase items from companies who care about their environmental impact.

When mattress buying, there are some simple signs to look out for.

• Look for companies who’ll recycle old mattresses. Mattresses take 80 to 120 years to decompose. In the UK, we throw away seven million mattresses a year.
• Look for companies who make their mattresses from natural materials, so no nasty chemicals or toxins.
• Look for companies who boast about an environmentally friendly ethos.
• Avoid buying cheap mattresses from the internet. They’ve most likely come from abroad, racking up a big carbon footprint in the process.
• Avoid companies that offer 100-day sleep trials. They cannot accept back and sell old mattresses, so they toss a lot of their returned stock into landfill, where it rots for over a century.

Look for mattresses with money-back guarantees and long lifespans

If a company is absolutely sure about the quality of their mattresses, they’ll offer you a lifetime guarantee over a long period of time. Look for mattresses likely to last ten years or more.

We know you won’t need your baby mattress this long, but companies that make these types of promises tend to put quality above everything else.

Read the reviews

All hail the internet. Reviews are the absolute best way to find out whether or not a mattress worked for someone else, so if you’re looking for advice and support when buying a mattress for your baby, search online for positive reviews of companies you’re considering buying with.

Ely mattresses are made from all-natural materials and come with a ten-year guarantee. We sell cot beds for babies in two separate sizes. We never use foam and our mattresses are naturally resistant to fires. They’re also super absorptive and extremely comfortable. To shop our baby mattresses, click here.