We spend a third of our life in sleep. Or at least trying to sleep soundly and deeply. But many people do not succeed. They toss and turn, only nod off briefly or wake up far too early in the morning.
Doctors know that permanent insomnia makes people sick. Sleep deprivation leads to physical and mental exhaustion, weakens the immune system, the ability to perform and the joy of life.
No wonder that a real sleep industry has developed in the meantime. Pharmaceutical manufacturers advertise calming agents, course organisers swear by relaxation techniques, furniture manufacturers swear by good, solid beds.
But many people plagued by sleep disorders seek their salvation above all in the part that comes closest to them at night – the mattress.
They are prepared to spend a lot of money on a good mattress. More than 1000 Euros are not uncommon. Buying a mattress is a science in itself. Cold foam or latex?
Do I need seven lying zones or is five enough? In order to find the right underlay, you have to lie down on a test bed, feel, touch and press. Real work.
The trade association of the mattress industry provides purchasing assistance: When trying out a test lying position, you should consciously pay attention to the pressure that can be felt in the areas where your body rests on the mattress.
If a hand can easily be pushed between the back and the mattress and if the hand can touch both the mattress and the back, then the mattress is something for the shortlist, says the association.
If you believe Stiftung Warentest, you can save yourself this trouble. Consumer protection groups have once again tested mattresses that should fit everyone and everything.
On the whole, it works: all 18 models performed at least satisfactorily. Six mattresses did well, including the “Bodyguard” mattress from Bett1.de for 199 euros, but in the soft version (grade: 2.3).
The testers had chosen the sister model, the hard “Bodyguard”, as the test winner in 2015 and awarded the mattress, which also cost 199 euros, the best mattress test result of all time (grade: 1.7). Bett1 still uses this award to this day to promote its products.
Which mattresses the testers recommend
But now the test winner has got competition. Two models have caught up with the bodyguard. Both the cheaper Internet mattress “Emma One” (formerly 299 euros, now 199 euros) and the identical Dunlopillo “Elements” (400 euros) have achieved the grade 1.7.
In the opinion of Stiftung Warentest, they are the only ones in the current test field that are really suitable for every body type – whether small or large, massive or delicate.
Although the other providers in the test also promise this, large, strong people can quickly get into trouble with competing products.
“The other papers struggle with the well-known dilemma,” write the consumer protectors in the “Test” October issue. “On the one hand, the mattress must yield sufficiently in the abdominal and shoulder area when heavy weights are lying on their side, and on the other hand, the large, wide types must not sink too deeply when lying on their backs”.
The other good mattresses “Casper” (overall grade 2.2), “Bodyguard”, Badenia-“Thomas” (overall grade 2.5) and the Snooze Peoject with its “mattress” (overall grade 2.5) weakened in individual areas.
Points were deducted, for example, because sometimes back sleepers and sometimes side sleepers are not sufficiently supported by the mattress, and also for some of the four figure types used by Stiftung Warentest for the random sample.
In general, softer mattresses often fit lighter people better, harder ones for heavier people. Find out more information here: https://www.laweekly.com/best-mattress/.