Purchasing Mattresses for Babies and Young Children
Unfortunately, babies can’t just tell you when their mattresses feel uncomfortable. However, just like older children or adults, babies can experience discomfort from springs and other mattress features. While this may not be easy to figure out, watch as your baby falls asleep and take notes of his or her sleeping habits. Even as your children learn to talk, they may still be unable to tell you that their mattress is causing discomfort. A great deal may depend on the questions that you ask and how aware your child is of what is causing the distress.
Signs of Discomfort in Babies
Just like a child or adult, a baby may try to move out of the way of springs located in the mattress. In some cases, an odd sleeping position may indicate that the baby is trying to avoid springs or other uncomfortable features. Feel around the mattress and try to figure out if this is the case. If the mattress can be turned over, try using the other side and see if that corrects the problem. Don’t automatically try to correct this issue by adding blankets and additional coverings – check with your pediatrician first to make sure that you can do this without increasing the chance of the baby suffocating.
Older Children and Mattress Discomfort
In some cases, you might notice that your children are having a hard time falling asleep or experiencing nightmares and other sleep-related disturbances. This may have to do with springs or other features of the bed causing discomfort to the child. Just like with babies, try putting blankets or foam cushions on top of the mattress. If this doesn’t help, it might be time to buy a new mattress. If at all possible, take your children to the store with you to see what types of mattresses they prefer.
Aside from this, few people realize that mattresses pick up and retain germs. This can cause all kinds of allergies, as well as decrease your child’s resistance to colds and other common ailments. Therefore, it’s important to make sure that your child’s mattress is clean – and stays clean. Even if your child isn’t experiencing discomfort, it’s still a good idea to replace the mattress every three to five years, or at the very least, use a fitted rubber sheet beneath the regular ones.
When to Consult a Pediatrician
If your baby or child seems to wake up tired all the time, it’s important to alert your pediatrician. While this tiredness may come from having to cope with an unruly mattress, it could also stem from health-related issues. Once the pediatrician rules out other causes, you may want to purchase a new mattress and see if that helps.
Just like adults, babies and children can be seriously affected by mattress quality and condition. Unfortunately, babies and even children that are able to talk may not be able to convey this information to you accurately. Therefore, it’s important to watch for signs of discomfort in your children and try to identify whether it’s the mattress that’s causing the problem.