Organic Mattresses and Your Ecological Footprint
What comes to mind when you hear the word, “organic”?
Perhaps chemical-free food comes to mind.
A boost towards a sustainable future?
A fresh, biodiverse meadow!
Although mattresses aren’t one of those initial mental images, they’re moving to the forefront — and for good reason.
The list of toxins used in the production of non-organic mattresses is astonishing.
As society becomes more conscious of the chemical-based items they surround themselves with, industrial synthesized mattresses become increasingly concerning.
In this article, you will learn the environmental benefits of buying an organic mattress and how to reduce your ecological footprint. You’ll also learn how to tell the difference between true organic and “so-called organic,” in order to keep you, your family and the environment healthy and thriving.
What’s So Awful About a Non-Organic Mattresses?
There are three major concerns with buying a non-organic mattress:
1. Inability to biodegrade
2. Effects of supporting non-sustainable forestry
3. Long-term impacts of pesticides and herbicides on our environment
As John Reganold, a professor at Washington State University said, “If I had to put it in one sentence, organic agriculture has been able to provide jobs, be profitable, benefit the soil and environment and support social interactions between farmers and consumers.”
In order to come to a proper conclusion as to why an organic mattress is the better choice environmentally, let’s look at these areas in more depth.
Benefits of Biodegradable Materials
Many people don’t know what their mattresses or their children’s mattresses are made of. When you take a closer look, however, and pair it with newfound knowledge, you’ll see how far your ecological footprint goes.
Chances are, your current non-organic mattress is made of a combination of synthetic materials.
Synthetic materials such as foam and fibres aren’t able to break down, and the materials that do break down (wood, cardboard) are usually sealed or varnished with harmful chemicals and retardants. Once they’ve degraded within the landfills (or wherever they end up) more often than not, these materials leak into our soils and waterways.
When buying an organic mattress, you’re giving the environment a leg-up. Organic mattresses are made from all-natural materials so they are able to biodegrade and when they do, they don’t leave a negative ecological footprint on our Earth. What goes around, comes around!
Benefits of Supporting Sustainable Forests
When you think of your first childhood memory of the forest, what details do you remember? Do any feelings or smells come to mind?
At the rate in which forests and jungles are being destroyed, chances are our children will be growing up to face a very different world.
Two of the many materials needed for the construction of a well-build mattress are wood and rubber.
Although it seems tedious to be particular on where every part of your mattress comes from, tree production has a huge impact on our environment — and every choice counts.
During large-scale timber and logging productions, ecosystems are destroyed over a wide area. Although, over time, these ecosystems grow back, continual harvesting and monoculture practices decreases these ecosystem’s chances of full renewal.
When choosing a sustainable and organic mattress, you’re not only contributing to less deforestation and habitat destruction, but you’re also supporting the practice of diverse agro-forestry.
Agroforestry systems help sustain biodiversity, which in turn helps combat climate change, helps restore degraded areas and provides food for the surrounding communities.
Who knew simply choosing an eco-friendly mattress could do all that!
Benefits of Choosing NOT to Support the Use of Chemical Fertilizers
Pesticides and Herbicides are a hot topic these days.
They are paired with this idea of being frowned upon, an invisible looming threat.
“What’s wrong with a little bug spray, though?” many ask.
In 2007, it was estimated that 1 billion tonnes of pesticides were being used annually in the US. That’s 1 billion tonnes of highly toxic chemicals being released into the environment in a number of ways.
How do all these toxins escape?
The majority of mattresses include some form of cotton in the manufacturing process — usually for the outer casing. Cotton is one of the most pesticide-intensive crops there are, accounting for 16% of the pesticides and 6.8% of herbicides globally. When these chemicals experience runoff from crops, they end up in misplaced areas which become vulnerable to the harsh effects of these chemicals.
These areas usually can’t afford to be in vulnerable situations — especially under such brutally imposed conditions.
By choosing an organic mattress, you’re significantly reducing your ecological footprint in terms of global pollution, poverty and food production.
Although it sounds drastic, your consumer purchases are far-reaching. This being said, knowledge is power and your ecological footprint choices can change the world.
How does buying a mattress have this great of an impact?
Let’s break the contamination routes up into the top three most significant:
1. Soil
When pesticides and herbicides continually enter the soil, they end up severely damaging the healthy bacteria and organisms that keep the soil fertile. Along with overtilling and monoculture practices, this ultimately leads to degradation and therefore the inability for the land to produce a sufficient amount of crops.
Once the land is degraded, farmers tend to move lands, abandoning the lifeless soil behind them. Over the past 5 decades, this issue has become significantly worse and in many cases has led to migration, drought and in certain areas, poverty.
By choosing an eco-friendly mattress, you’re supporting farmers practice sustainable agriculture. These practices will continue replenishing our Earth and individual communities with healthy and plentiful food for generations to come.
This not only helps you lessen your ecological footprint, but encourages this mindset worldwide.
2. Surface Water
Pesticides and Herbicides can contaminate surface water by either crop runoff or inadequate storage and distribution of agrochemicals.
When these chemicals enter water ecosystems, they can seriously disrupt the growth, health and reproduction of certain fish and organisms. These organisms are vital to aquatic life, and therefore necessary for our species.
By deciding to switch out your current mattress for an eco-friendly mattress that’s certified organic, you’re able to lessen your ecological footprint by ensuring water ecosystems have a fighting chance.
3. Groundwater
When the land is sprayed continuously with chemicals, they leach into the deep soil and travel to underground aquifers, contaminating our water supply. Leaching has also been found to occur when these chemicals have been disposed of improperly at unregistered landfills.
Why are we only hearing about this now?
According to the Pesticide Safety Education Program at Cornell University, “One reason is that use of synthetic organic compounds has greatly increased within the past 40 years, and some of these gradually have made their way into groundwater. Another reason for the recent discoveries of organic contaminants in groundwater is that the laboratory capability to detect these chemicals has greatly improved within the past decade.”
There are many different types of pesticides, some of which involve many different types of compounds.
Pesticides are also relatively new in terms of research, so it’s difficult to determine the long-term effects of consuming these chemicals. However, it has been proven that certain components, such as aldicarb, can be highly toxic, even at low concentrations.
Choosing an eco-friendly mattress is a start to creating a safer environment on all fronts.
So now you have all this information, what do you do with it?
I know, it’s a lot to digest.
However, now we’ve gone through all the muck, all we have left is the easy part.
Choosing who to buy your organic mattress from is almost as important in making the switch.
Many companies aren’t honest about their promises. In order to feel confident about your ecological footprint, it’s vital you choose a company that supports and provides certified organic and sustainable brands.
At *company name* that’s what we do.
As environmentalists and experts in the business, we’ll ensure you and your family stay healthy, while sustaining a thriving environment.
Visit our *About us* page to learn more about our eco-friendly mattress mission and pledge. Browse through our list *here* to choose the organic mattress that’s right for you.
Get started on lessening your ecological footprint today while helping you and your family sleep better, in more ways than one.
