Firmness levels of an orthopedic mattress

Choose a mattress on your doctor's advice, taking your weight and any spinal problems into account. If you have none, you can happily settle on a softer model. If you weigh more than 100 kg, specialists suggest sleeping on a firm bed. For people up to 90 kg, a medium-firm orthopedic mattress is the better bet.

Which firmness level to choose

The firmness of an orthopedic mattress is determined by what it is made of. There is no blanket answer to whether spring or springless is better. Medium firmness is more typical of spring models. Does a bed have to be firm? It all depends on your state of health, your body measurements and your personal preference. Here is what to choose from:

1. Springless — single-block models made from one material, or several layers of filling that differ in firmness. Springless mattresses are generally considered the firmest of all. They can be latex, coir or a combination of the two.
2. Spring — either with springs rigidly tied to one another or with an independent unit. Bonnell spring units are used in economy models. They are best treated as a guest bed, since their orthopedic performance is weak. Independent spring configurations spread the load from your body evenly across the surface.

Worth knowing. The more small springs are used (a multipacket unit), the more responsive the mattress and the better its orthopedic properties — and the quality is several times higher than in standard models.

The main advantages of orthopedic mattresses

The materials used in today's mattresses have a number of strengths:

• durability and resistance to wear;
• non-toxic and hypoallergenic;
• affordable price;
• orthopedic support.

The firmness of an orthopedic mattress matters most when you have problems with your spine. In that case you need to talk to a doctor first, because different parts of the spine call for different degrees of firmness.