If you haven't purchased a mattress in the last ten years, then it's probably time to start shopping. However, you may be surprised that most mattresses today are one-sided. Prior to the new millennium, mattresses were manufactured with two upholstered sides. When one side of your mattress was worn down or stained, you had to struggle to flip the heavy mattress onto its other side. Today, mattress makers are manufacturing one-sided mattresses that are still comfortable and durable without the high maintenance.
Simmons was the first mattress company to unveil the no-flip technology back in the year 2000. Spring Air followed with the "Never Turn" mattress, then Sealy and Serta jumped on the bandwagon soon thereafter. By 2007 (when fire safety regulations were instituted), nearly all mattress manufacturers were making one-sided mattresses.
Natural Latex Mattress
Today, skeptics argue that one-sided mattresses have a decreased life expectancy as opposed to their two-sided predecessors. In theory, that statement seems like it would be true; in actuality, one-sided mattresses are manufactured with modern foams such as latex and visco elastic memory foam that are made to more withstand the test of time.
Some of today's higher quality mattresses include either memory foam or latex foam. Memory foam is comprised of certain chemicals, including polyurethane, that make it denser. Memory foam is sensitive to temperature and weight. Latex foam can be natural or manmade. Natural latex is extracted from rubber trees whereas synthetic latex is made by polymerizing a monomer that has been emulsified with surfactants. Both types of latex have the same basic properties. Latex mattresses offer good motion separation and a nice balance between softness and support.
Some manufacturers like Serta suggest that you rotate one-sided mattresses from end to end every two weeks for the first two months and once every three months after that. Rotating the mattress will prevent uneven wear on the mattress, especially in cases where only one person sleeps on the bedding. Simply rotating a mattress is far less strenuous than flipping it.
One-sided mattresses save you from the risk a back injury. Hoisting something as awkward and heavy as a mattress can cause strains to previous back conditions or it can case new injury. Your mattress should help with your back pain, not make it worse!
One-sided mattresses offer the same comfort and durability as two-sided mattress but with little maintenance and less risk for injury. Don't think you're being slighted simply because there's only one sleeping surface. The materials in the no-flip design are far superior to the cheap foams and fibers in older mattresses.
What are you waiting for? Stop causing yourself more pain by flipping that worn-out, fifteen year-old mattress in an effort to find the comfort you experienced years ago. Start shopping for a new mattress with the newest technological advances that the bedding industry has to offer. Most good quality mattresses come with a ten year manufacturer's warranty. Your mattress will be replaced at no cost to you if for some reason it fails within the warranty period. It's about time you bought a mattress that worked for you - not you work for it!