woman lounging on tempurpedic memory foam mattress

Memory foam mattresses revolutionized the bedding scene when they burst onto the market in the early 1990s. The mattresses captured the attention of consumers with their unique combination of support and comfort. However, from these early days, memory foam mattresses have built up a reputation for heat retention. Was this drawback justified, and do modern memory foam mattresses exhibit the same issue? In this article, we'll explore why the drawback existed and what's been done to fix it.

What is a Memory Foam Mattress?

Let's start at the beginning. Memory foam mattresses contour to the body alleviating pressure points and supporting proper spinal alignment. This extra support is all thanks to the actual foam used to make these mattresses. Specifically, the foam responds to body heat, and does so depending on how you apply pressure to the surface. For example, if you apply pressure quickly, the foam tends to respond slowly, and vice-versa. 

Memory foam mattress devotees say this sleep system delivers a more comfortable night's sleep.

Early Days: Heat Retention

In the early days of memory foam mattresses, a common complaint was their tendency to trap body heat. What makes the foam special is how dense it is. This allows it to tightly contour to the body in a way that less dense foam simply can't. However, this density comes at the cost of decreased circulation within the mattress. Without air circulating, heat builds up. Throughout the night, sleepers found their body heat transferred to the mattress, creating a toasty - too toasty for some - sleeping environment. Thus, some early memory foam fans found themselves between a rock and a hard spot: sleep hot with memory foam or revert to a traditional innerspring mattress.

Innovation and Advancements

Mattress makers love to innovate. Over the years, manufacturers recognized the issue of heat retention and worked to solve the problem. This resulted in several game-changing advancements to memory foam technology that allowed for better heat dissipation.

One of the first was the invention of open-cell memory foam. Unlike the original memory foam, open-cell foam contains air pockets within the foam structure. These pockets allow air to move more freely, and in turn, dissipate the heat that would otherwise build up. This increase in breathability came with a significant increase in comfort for those sensitive to heat at night.

Manufacturers still wanted to improve the heat problem further, however. The next innovation was the introduction of gel-infused memory foam. Special gel beads or particles added to the foam actively absorb and disperse the heat, acting as a cooling agent in their own right.

Today's Cool-as-a-Cucumber Comfort

Today’s memory foam mattresses retain the benefits of tightly contouring the body but have shed the drawback of extra heat. In fact, today, it's a moot point. Heat dissipation among memory foam and traditional innerspring mattress is fundamentally the same.

Shop Memory Foam Mattresses at Star Furniture

While it's true that early memory foam mattresses earned their reputation for storing heat and forcing a tradeoff of comfort, those days are long gone. Several generations of improvements ensure that when you shop memory foam mattresses, you won't have to choose between being supported and being cool.

At Star, we carry the latest and greatest in memory foam mattress technology. Shop trusted brands, such as Tempur-Pedic and Serta, to find a comfortable mattress that stays cool throughout the night. Talk to our experts about your needs to find a mattress that fits your sleep style so you can rest easy for years to come!

If you enjoyed this blog, read this one about how to choose the right type of mattress.