A mattress is a large pad for supporting the reclining body, used as a bed or as
part of a bed. Mattresses may consist of a quilted or similarly fastened case, usually of heavy cloth, that contains hair, straw, cotton, foam rubber, etc., or a framework of metal springs. Mattresses may also be filled with air or water.
The word mattress derives from the Arabic matrah, which means "something thrown down" or "place where something is thrown down" and hence "mat, cushion". During the Crusades Europeans adopted the Arabic method of sleeping on cushions on the floor, and the word materas eventually descended into Middle English through the Romance languages.
Mattresses are usually placed on top of a bed base which may be solid, as in the case of a platform bed, or elastic, e.g. with an upholstered wood and wire box spring or a slatted foundation. Popular in Europe, a divan incorporates both mattress and foundation in a single upholstered, footed unit. Divans have at least one innerspring layer as well as cushioning materials. They may be supplied with a secondary mattress and/or a removable "topper."
Early mattresses contained a variety of natural materials including straw, feathers or horse hair. In the first half of the 20th century, a typical mattress sold in North America had an innerspring core and cotton batting or fiberfill. Modern mattresses usually contain either an inner spring core or materials such as latex, viscoelastic or other flexible polyurethane foams. Other fill components include insulator pads over the coils that prevent the bed's upholstery layers from cupping down into the innerspring, as well as polyester fiberfill in the bed's top upholstery layers. In 1899 James Marshall introduced the first individually wrapped pocketed spring coil mattress now commonly known as Marshall coils. Mattresses may also be filled with air or water, or a variety of natural fibers, such as in futons. Kapok is a common mattress material in Southeast Asia, and coir in South Asia.
In North America the typical mattress sold today is an innerspring; however there is increasing interest in all-foam beds and so-called hybrid beds, which include both an innerspring and high-end foams such as visco-elastic or latex in the comfort layers. In Europe, polyurethane foam cores and latex cores have long been popular and make up a much larger proportion of the mattresses sold.
Companies often specialize in a particular type of mattress, such as innerspring, latex, and airbed, although as latex and airbeds have become more popular, they have become more common.
Mattresses which are mostly the same are often sold under different brand names; two of the largest brands, Serta and Simmons, became owned by the same company after a private equity buyout. Simmons, founded in the late 1800s, was bought and sold multiple times and faced bankruptcy after a major decline in the bedding industry in the 2000s. The International Sleep Products Association was originally founded in 1915 and releases a report on U.S. mattress sales. Another association, Specialty Sleep Association, represents companies such as Innomax and Boyd Specialty focused on latex, waterbeds, and airbeds. However, Select Comfort, which produces airbeds (a specialty bed), is a member of the ISPA.
In 2012, Sealy Corporation, founded in 1881, was purchased by Tempur-Pedic, which had introduced a latex brand into the United States in 1992.
Another large company, Spring Air, went bankrupt in 2009 and was purchased by one of is former executives.
Comfortaire, founded in 1981, was the first to specialize in airbeds. It was later bought by Select Comfort.
Adjustable beds have become a trend and are more compatible with certain types of mattresses such as latex or memory foam. These are particularly popular in Europe, and for one business accounted for 25% of beds in Sweden in 2010 and 70% of beds in the Netherlands.
The word mattress derives from the Arabic matrah, which means "something thrown down" or "place where something is thrown down" and hence "mat, cushion". During the Crusades Europeans adopted the Arabic method of sleeping on cushions on the floor, and the word materas eventually descended into Middle English through the Romance languages.
Mattresses are usually placed on top of a bed base which may be solid, as in the case of a platform bed, or elastic, e.g. with an upholstered wood and wire box spring or a slatted foundation. Popular in Europe, a divan incorporates both mattress and foundation in a single upholstered, footed unit. Divans have at least one innerspring layer as well as cushioning materials. They may be supplied with a secondary mattress and/or a removable "topper."
Early mattresses contained a variety of natural materials including straw, feathers or horse hair. In the first half of the 20th century, a typical mattress sold in North America had an innerspring core and cotton batting or fiberfill. Modern mattresses usually contain either an inner spring core or materials such as latex, viscoelastic or other flexible polyurethane foams. Other fill components include insulator pads over the coils that prevent the bed's upholstery layers from cupping down into the innerspring, as well as polyester fiberfill in the bed's top upholstery layers. In 1899 James Marshall introduced the first individually wrapped pocketed spring coil mattress now commonly known as Marshall coils. Mattresses may also be filled with air or water, or a variety of natural fibers, such as in futons. Kapok is a common mattress material in Southeast Asia, and coir in South Asia.
In North America the typical mattress sold today is an innerspring; however there is increasing interest in all-foam beds and so-called hybrid beds, which include both an innerspring and high-end foams such as visco-elastic or latex in the comfort layers. In Europe, polyurethane foam cores and latex cores have long been popular and make up a much larger proportion of the mattresses sold.
Companies often specialize in a particular type of mattress, such as innerspring, latex, and airbed, although as latex and airbeds have become more popular, they have become more common.
Mattresses which are mostly the same are often sold under different brand names; two of the largest brands, Serta and Simmons, became owned by the same company after a private equity buyout. Simmons, founded in the late 1800s, was bought and sold multiple times and faced bankruptcy after a major decline in the bedding industry in the 2000s. The International Sleep Products Association was originally founded in 1915 and releases a report on U.S. mattress sales. Another association, Specialty Sleep Association, represents companies such as Innomax and Boyd Specialty focused on latex, waterbeds, and airbeds. However, Select Comfort, which produces airbeds (a specialty bed), is a member of the ISPA.
In 2012, Sealy Corporation, founded in 1881, was purchased by Tempur-Pedic, which had introduced a latex brand into the United States in 1992.
Another large company, Spring Air, went bankrupt in 2009 and was purchased by one of is former executives.
Comfortaire, founded in 1981, was the first to specialize in airbeds. It was later bought by Select Comfort.
Adjustable beds have become a trend and are more compatible with certain types of mattresses such as latex or memory foam. These are particularly popular in Europe, and for one business accounted for 25% of beds in Sweden in 2010 and 70% of beds in the Netherlands.
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