Latex and Memory Foam Pillows: Which is better?

What to Get? Latex or Memory Foam Pillow?

People have been using pillows since the dawn of civilization! There are a bunch of pillow fillings that you can choose from today ranging from wool to feathers but only two types stand tall against the rest; this is latex and memory foam. Today, we will be highlighting the advantages of these pillows and help you decide which pillow to get. As far as we know, memory foam is something that was just recently introduced as something that will go with the shape of our body and provide maximum comfort when sleeping. On the other hand, we’ve got the time-tested latex pillow that has been around for almost seventy years! Are you a latex person or do you swing memory foam all the way?

The Difference between the Two

For starters, latex is either produced naturally or through a synthetic process while memory foam is completely man-made specifically to absorb weight. Since latex pillows have existed for a good number of years it is not hard to believe that memory foam came from the idea of latex pillows. To put things into a simpler perspective we see memory foam as a “better alternative” to latex. But is it? Latex is absolutely easy to touch and it springs back faster compared to the “firm” composition of memory foam.

One of the underlining differences between the two is the obvious price tag range. Memory foam has a lot of choices to choose from making their price range a lot friendlier to people looking for a decent pillow to sleep at. On the other side of the weighing scale, we’ve got the premium high quality (natural) latex pillow that is always part of the “pricier” range due to its natural composition.

When it comes to comfort, both are pretty much alike and both have strong supporters that will defend their type of pillow till the death! But to be honest, latex pillows are on the softer side which enables it to bounce right back while memory foam takes a bit longer to bounce back since it was designed that way.

What is Memory Foam?

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Memory foam is a recent invention that was originally designed to solve space travels issues way back in the 60’s. One of these issues was the comfort of astronauts going into orbit. The foam was called “temper foam” by one of its creator’s maybe because the foam uses body heat in order to shape your body for a more customized comfort.

The most popular type of memory foam in the market is called the “traditional type” which reduces pressure points and contours around your body parts naturally. This easily translates to comfort when sleeping since you will not feel any pressure (better blood circulation) and will result in a well-rested sleep. People also look for memory foam due to the whole reason why people choose Latex! Since memory foam is man-made this eliminates the proliferation of dust mites and provides an anti-microbial sleeping aid promoting a healthier sleeping experience. Some people claim that memory foam “lasts longer” than its competitors but in reality; it all falls down to quality and proper usage.

Memory foam just like any type of foam out there today has a lot of advantages and of course, disadvantages! One of the most common issues that people talk about is the hot feeling when sleeping in memory foam. Since it isn’t made from natural materials, the foam tends to be on the hotter side of things; creating an unwanted experience for people who are not aware of this issue.

There are three types of memory foam on the market today and we have already talked about the most popular one which is called “Traditional Memory foam”. Below are the other types of foams that you can look into if you are getting memory foam.

Air Cool – Manufacturers have taken into context the fact that people have been complaining about the heat than traditional memory foam brings. The reason behind this is that previous models were in fact designed to shape around your body with the use of your heat thus giving away that “heater” sensation when using traditional memory foam. Air Cool memory foam comes with a new technology that disperses heat faster than the traditional counterpart making it noticeably cooler than its predecessor; thus the name Air Cool.
Gel Memory – Is the latest addition to the memory foam category that infuses sports equipment and the traditional memory foam into one softer “gel-like” experience. This type of memory foam is better for people that are suffering from severe posture problems when sleeping.

Compared to traditional mattresses and pillows, memory foam is fairly young and since it’s man-made we would just be seeing a better version of its original traditional form. Depending on the manufacturer and quality of memory foam pillow the price ranges from $20 up to $80.

Do you think you are a memory foam person? Moving forward, we’ve got latex foam which we will be talking about below.

What is Latex Foam?

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Compared to Memory Foam, Latex, on the other hand, is made from the sap of rubber trees. This makes the product 100% natural and expensive at the same time. The rubber tree provides a lot of products in the world that we live in today ranging from automotive parts to synthetic human body parts. Along with this technological resource, came the idea of creating the most sought-after foam of the modern world. There are two types of latex foam that you will be able to purchase today in the market. This is known as Dunlop and Talalay manufacturing processes.

Dunlop – This process was mastered in the early 20^th century where latex is poured into molds making one solid entity. After being poured it will be vulcanized with sulfur and allowed to settle and dry. Due to primitive technology, latex foams would before have uneven density since the process was not perfected yet. Today, latex foams are created and molded with the best technology and improved knowledge producing minimal or non-existent unevenness.
Talalay – The more expensive version of latex is called Talalay and the process involves whipping the latex for aeration before pouring into the mold. The process gives more air to the latex and creates something really soft. It is usually referred to as one of the soft latex foam pillows.

In the world of mattresses and pillows, Dunlop and Talalay are some of the names that you will always hear when shopping for the best in the business. Both of these processes churn out a different range of densities and from soft to firm. Pillows may come in pure Dunlop or Talalay but mattresses today that provide the “ultimate” sleeping experience combine both Dunlop (as a base) and Talalay (top layer) due to their combined firm and soft nature.

Aside from the 100% latex foam that people have grown to love over the past years, it is natural that synthetically made latex would be introduced in the market to cater people that cannot afford the real thing; especially in the mattress section of latex. The downside of choosing synthetic latex is that it degrades far quickly than regular “pure” latex foam. Blended latex is also a common form that we see in markets today providing around 70% synthetic material and 30% natural latex. This is a more feasible option since you will be getting the illusion of almost the same comfort for a much lesser cost but still isn’t as awesome as the pure latex. Last but not the least is the cheaper “comfort layer” latex mattresses are mattresses that only provide a thin layer of pure latex partnered with a lesser quality base.

Latex pillows sell around $30 for cheaper ones and sell up to more than $100 depending on the manufacturer and size.

Conclusion

Choosing between memory foam and latex can be a daunting task! This is easily an understatement that a lot of people would easily contest due to the fact that it is really hard to choose between these two. What you should always keep in mind is that nothing compares to the comfort that you will be feeling when you sleep if you do enough research and actual physical checking to compare both of these products. It doesn’t matter if a John Doe from New York says that latex is better compared to memory foam because it’s made of natural materials. What matters is what you think! And by providing these insights that we’ve mentioned above we hope that you will be able to decide between the two most amazing pillow fillers to date!