Good quality sleep is vital for growing children. A right mattress provides the comfort necessary for sound sleep. A poor mattress, on the other hand, will negatively affect your child’s sleep. Poor sleep affects a child’s growth, development, and health. Note, buying a mattress for your child requires several considerations than selecting one for adults.
One of the major factors to consider is children’s growth. Kids can significantly increase their weight or height as they approach teenage years and consequently outgrow their mattresses. Therefore, parents should go for less expensive mattresses. Additionally, you can check for mattress companies that offer coupons. To understand more of coupon types, SleepDelivered.com’s list of mattress coupons can shed some light. Besides, there are other important factors to consider, including bed thickness and material. Luckily most manufacturers have beds specially designed for children. Here are essential considerations when buying a mattress for kids.
- Support
Support is one of the most important considerations. Support means the ability of the mattress to maintain a flat and even surface that promotes spinal alignment. Parents should ensure they select a mattress that provides adequate support. Growing children require optimal support, especially around their spine. Mattresses that are too soft or firm are unsupportive. Similarly, mattresses that sag in the middle also make your kids take sleeping positions that do not align with the spine.
- Mattress Size/Cost
When selecting a child mattress, you should know that they will grow significantly before they require a replacement. You should, therefore, go for considerably larger mattress sizes to ensure that your kid does not outgrow the mattress. While ideal mattress thickness varies from one kid to another, typically, children’s mattresses should be 12 inches or shorter.
- Firmness
Mattresses come in varying firmness. Mattress firmness ranges from very soft to very firm. The ideal firmness of your kid’s mattress depends significantly on the child’s weight. Soft to medium mattresses are suitable for children who weigh less than 130 pounds. Medium to firm mattress is an excellent choice for heavier children.
- Childs Age
Girls and Boys experience a growth surge between the age of 8 to 13 and 10 to 15, respectively. If your kids are in this age bracket or near the age where growth spurts are expected, you would want to buy a longer mattress. Similarly, a parent can choose a mattress that matches the current size of the kid and replace it when growth spurts are evident.
- Allergy
Most mattresses produce an off-gassing odor when new. However, foam, latex, and hybrid models may produce the smell for several weeks or days. Others may even produce the odor indefinitely which might cause some problems if your child is allergic to smell. A natural or organic sleep surface is suitable for allergic kids. The good news is that most manufacturers use antimicrobial and allergen resistant materials.
- Sleep position
Kids who sleep on their backs have much more freedom when it comes to choosing the firmness and type of a mattress. Relatively soft mattress is suitable for children who sleep on their side while stomach sleepers require soft to the medium mattress. However, stomach sleeping style is discouraged because some foam mattress models do not allow the spine to align properly.
- Material
Mattress material is yet another consideration. Each mattress design comes with its advantages and disadvantages. Latex and natural material are ideal for kids who have sensitive skin. If you want an inexpensive mattress, a foam mattress may be your ideal choice. Innerspring mattresses provide great durability.
- Durability
Durability is an important factor because children will grow significantly during mattress lifespan. Parents will want to choose cheaper models that are less durable such as memory foam instead of expensive mattresses such as airbed or latex. However, you should avoid mattresses that are prone to sagging.
