Bed Pillow Review - How to choose a supportive pillow.

We are always asked by our customers, "How do you select a pillow -what's the difference?". There are several things to keep in mind in choosing the pillow best for you.

First, sleep position should be considered. For example, if you sleep on your side, a higher loft may be needed. That goes for a back sleeper as well. For the side sleeper, the pillow should be as high as the distance between the side of your head and the tip of your shoulder - while laying on your side on your mattress. Since the shoulder sinks into the mattress a bit.You want your pillow to cushion your head, but most importantly, it must support your head to take stress off your neck. Think about it -the average head weighs 8-12 pounds! If your neck is not kept in alignment with your spine, then your neck will be affected. A stomach sleeper should use a flatter pillow, again so as not to stress their neck.

Composition materials for bed pillows will also affect your sleep. There are contoured visco -memory foam- pillows that have a static shape. This style has been popular for several years and does provide good support. The visco pillow is anti-microbial and dust mite resistant. The dense nature of the visco foam, however, if you sleep hot or tend to sweat, then this may not be your best choice.

Another popular pillow is filled with a down or a down and feather mix. These look pretty when they fluffed up on a freshly made bed, but that's as far as it goes. These pillows attract dustmites, fungi and other invaders.Down/ feather pillows also are not supportive. When that 8-12 pound noggin rests on a pile of feathers, it only takes seconds before it bottoms out.

A more resilient pillow, and one that is more supportive is one of synthetic down polyester fiber - slick fiber, gel fiber, etc. These have more support than the natural down pillow, and it is easily laundered to keep down the dust mite population. These are made for the position of the sleeper by several brands.




Finally, A latex pillow will give you the best support -latex has been proven to reduce 33% pore pressure points than any other sleep surface. Natural latex is supportive, dust mite resistant, and does not support mold growth. The latex used in pillows is processed in a way that washes out the plant proteins that cause allergic reactions in cheap latex products -like gloves. Latex pillows come in basic rectangular shapes, crowned in the middle with a knife edge. They are also contour cut, similar to the memory foam visco pillows.

Boxed Pillow design

Latex core bits with polyester gel fiber clusters

 Our favorite pillow is the "Oodles Pillow"-  a blend of latex core bits and polyester gel fiber clusters - called a "floating latex" pillow. This pillow adapts to every style of sleeper, providing proper head and neck support. The boxed-edge adds comfort and additional support in the design. Latex cores are the little strand-like pieces of latex that are left-over from the processing of latex mattresses and other products. When blended with the synthetic down gel fibers, the sleeper enjoys a cool sleep surface, all year 'round.

Finally, you should replace your pillow every 2-3 years. Most people are surprised to learn this, but find that when they do get a new pillow, their night-time stuffy nose has stopped. Yes, a proper pillow will support your head and neck, relieve allergies from dust mutes and promote a restful sleep.

What's new at MDM- Million Dollar Mattress for 2012?

We have enjoyed a great year of growth and enjoyed meeting and educating many new people here at the store.
There have been many memorable things happen and people we helped in 2011.

One of our customers is well known in Milford. You can hear his friendly "Hello, Ma'am!" from across the Market Basket parking lot! This hard-working man went down to the national-brand-mattress-store and bought what he could afford -an inexpensive "S" brand sleep set. After 2 weeks, the mattress failed, flattening out and cratering in, in the middle of the mattress. The service department sent someone over to look at his mattress complaint eventually, and agreed that the mattress was defective. At this point, our customer expected the big store to at least replace it, but they told him that they weren't going to do anything for him. I think they have a policy that if they sell something off the floor, no warranty applies....and that's just not right!

We were able to help him out with our new "re-tread your bed" system, which continues to be the perfect solution for that newer mattress that isn't quite dead yet. The re-tread kit is more than a mattress pad --you get 2" of upholstery grade soy-foam and a state-of-the-art protector. Jim came back into the store after he had been sleeping on it for a few days, and was very thankful that we were able to help him. It was our pleasure. People like Jim- who have given their ALL for the community, deserve a break.

Another customer had just bought a new King size bed from us. The problem was that it wouldn't go around the turns in the hallway. His neighbor solved the problem when he drove over in his bucket-loader! We put the mattress in the bucket, and he boosted it up to the 2nd floor balcony. We easily brought it in through the bedroom door . Stop by the show and we'll show you the picture.

Besides the "re-tread" system, we have developed the ultimate sleep system that is the most adaptable to any sleep style, and has many price points. Come in and we'll show you the "Duplex Mattress System" . It's as easy as 1-2-3 !

 For 2012, we are focusing on more education opportunities for our community, continued product development, and additional compatible products for the showroom. We will be blogging more to help people learn about mattress construction, materials, and how to get the best mattress value for their hard-earned money. A custom, Million Dollar Mattress from MDM will continue to be the mattress that helps you sleep like a million bucks, without spending a million bucks.

MDM -Million Dollar Mattress: Latex Mattress Facts -8 reasons to buy from MDM

MDM -Million Dollar Mattress: Latex Mattress Facts -8 reasons to buy from MDM: With so many mattress choices, why consider a Latex mattress? Latex has been proven to relieve 35% more pressure points than any other slee...

What is the difference between "pure latex" and "natural latex"?

There are quite a few differences in Latex - a rubber that is derived from the Hevea Brasiliensis rubber tree. Natural latex is made from the milky sap from this tree and is converted to latex foam rubber, used in upholstery and mattress manufacturing. There are 2 methods of producing the foamed product, Dunlop and Talalay process methods. We will discuss these at a later date.

The Latex International's flagship product, Talatech Latex, is a blend of 30% natural rubber and 70% synthetic rubber (Styrene Butadiene Rubber or SBR). This product is often called Natural Latex or Pure Latex because it is partially  natural, and it is pure -or all- latex. This product has enabled the mattress industry to offer a latex bed, without the higher cost of 100% natural latex.

This product is an excellent blend of nature and technology and has characteristics that   perform  as well as 100% natural latex, but the question we often get is: Is this mattress all 100% natural latex?

We are proud to answer "yes" to that question. If we had mattresses on the showroom floor that were made from the blended Talatech latex, we could not truthfully answer that in the affirmative.

Sales people are taught to say the that the blended talalay latex is "pure latex" or "natural latex". If you put them on the spot with "Is this 100% all natural latex?", they would not know how to address that since they don't know.

In short, if you want the pressure point relief that comes from latex, and you really want an all natural mattress, consider the sales pitch, labeling, and certificates that are available from any reputable mattress maker. Unless it is documented as 100% natural latex -the most expensive of them all-then it isn't.

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Your Pillow May Be Making You Sick!

Is your bed pillow more than 2 years old? If you have night-time allergies or wake up with a crick in your neck, your pillow may be the cause!

As your comfy pillow gets older, it can be a breeding ground for dust mites -a major cause of itchy eyes, wheasing, coughing and asthma. Believe it or not, up to 30% of the weight of your old pillow may be dust mites....GROSS! We had one customer who's husband kept having asthma attacks at night. She never thought it was the pillows since she kept an inside cover on, and washed them every other week. She decided to try one of our "Side Sleeper" pillows for him and he hasn't had a nighttime attack since.

A proper pillow will also give your neck the best support which is necessary for restful sleep. Think about it. If the spine in your neck is not supported correctly, nerves can become pinched. These pinched nerves can cause you to wake up during the night and your arm is tingly. Sometimes, only a couple of fingers are asleep and you don't realize that your neck is the cause.

We sell position-specific pillows for back sleepers, side sleepers and stomach sleepers. We also have natural latex and latex bits blended with Dacron. We do not recommend the use of memory foam (visco) in pillows because it builds up too much heat under the head and it does not conform well to supporting the head correctly -I don't care that the famous brand ads say.

Try a new, supportive pillow. It's an inexpensive investment to improve your health.

Latex Mattress Facts -8 reasons to buy from MDM

With so many mattress choices, why consider a Latex mattress?

• Latex has been proven to relieve 35% more pressure points than any other sleep surface. Period.
• Natural latex is a product of the forest and is made from the sap of the hevea brasiliensis rubber tree. It takes the sap of 60 trees to make one 6" queen mattress!
• Latex mattresses resists mold growth, repels dust mites and is non-allergenic.
• Our latex is not blended with synthetic latex, but is all natural for the purest mattress available.
• Our American processed latex is from Latex International in Connecticut.
• Latex mattresses have been proven to never need turning or flipping, and will last up to 20 years.
• When you order from MDM-Million Dollar Mattress, you are buying from master upholsterers and not just sales people. We know our mattresses from the inside out!
• Every Million Dollar Mattress is made in New England from American materials -no imported Chinese foam with added chemicals to cheapen the product.