Ergovea and the Environment

At Ergovea we try our to the best of our ability to uphold our responsibility to protect the planet. We’ve invested in a roll pack machine and all our mattresses are compression packed. This brings our carbon footprint down one third from traditional mattress shipping methods.

Rubber trees are one of the best filtration systems that nature has to offer and for one hectare of rubber trees pulls out 250,000 metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere. Our rubber supplier also employs 30,000 local Sri Lankan citizens. They own their own plantations and in addition, 10%-15% of the rubber is provided straight from the citizens of the community through a co-op system based on their traditional beliefs. They are a publicly traded company under European Union this verifies that they are held accountable for employment pay and treatment requirements.

We are made and sourced in the United States and do our part to support American manufacturing. All the mattresses are GOLS (Global Organic Latex Standard) certified, the fabric is certified organic cotton (BCI Certified), and Oekeotec certified our fabrics as toxic free. We use chemically safe fire retardant solution through our silica which is Oekeotec certified. Each of our components are individually certified and our finished product is also certified to prove that we are using only chemically safe and certified raw materials.

Sleeping with Pets: Good or Bad?

So you sleep with your dog in your bed but your neighbor keeps theirs in a dog bed near their back door? Who is to say what’s right and what’s wrong, it’s a personal choice. However having the positives and negatives laid out before you make a choice is important. Today we are sharing the upside and downside of sleeping with pets.

The downside of sharing your bed with pets

Sleeping with your pets isn’t always the best idea. Insomnia and difficulty staying asleep at night can be caused by keeping pets being in the bed. Animals move, make noise, and take up space during the night. Even if you aren’t waking up at every little movement, your circadian rhythm is probably getting out of sync and you are most likely not hitting the deepest level sleep. Not getting enough sleep can produce a multitude of health issues and hinder productivity and attentiveness.

Animals can also carry sicknesses that their owners could catch if they are in constant contact. So sleeping with your pets can easily spread sickness throughout the family if you are always allowing your pets to sleep with you. According to a 2011 study there may even be a possibility of attracting zoonotic diseases by allowing your pets on your bed. Having Fido on the bed when you have bad allergies and/or asthma could worsen your symptoms and hinders your body from getting proper relief to recover from the day.

The upside of sharing your bed with pets

Over half of dog and cat owners sleep with their beloved pets besides them, so if you can’t bring yourself to kick the little rascals off the bed at night you are not alone. The Mayo Clinic surveyed 150 patients at its Center for Sleep Medicine in Arizona and learned that 74 individuals who lived with pets, over than half allowed their pets to sleep with them. 41 percent (of the 56 percent that allowed their pets to sleep with them) stated that their pet did not hinder their sleep or their pet improve sleep by giving the owner(s) warmth, contentment, or relaxation. Animals can bring us comfort, happiness, security, raise our oxytocin levels, and lower our stress levels. Individuals who didn’t have a partner or slept alone most nights stated that having a pet in their bed gave them a sense of companionship and love at night. Dogs and cats are the perfect cuddle partner!

The Cavallo

Our firm support layer paired with our unique extra firm built in topper, this product is perfect for those sleepers that desire a firm sleeping surface. The “hardest” mattress in our line, this mattress is built for those who feel most comfortable with a hard sleeping surface. The Cavallo is a great support for a neutral-spine position this means that you will be more likely to have less back and neck alignment issues. With a firmer mattress your back is in alignment which will help you inhale more oxygen and wake up more energized. The reduced pressure on your circulation system will also allow for better blood flow.

If you love sleeping on a firm surface, this is the mattress for you! All natural rubber provides excellent support, is quiet, self-ventilating, anti-fungal, long-lasting and durable.

Made with stretch certified organic cotton and is 100% wool free & animal free.

2” Pressure Relief Layer- Extra Firm All Natural Rubber +  6” Support Core - Firm All Natural Rubber = 8” Gloriously Firm Mattress.

Mental Health Break

As a country and culture we are focused on work, work, and more work. Our physical health is consistently is thrown on the back burner, but even more abandoned is our mental health. Being on the verge of or having a mental health breakdown shouldn’t be our first sign to slow down.

MORE FRUSTRATED THAN USUAL

Working every day with the same coworkers can be tiring and difficult, it can also cause conflicts between relationships. However, make sure you are aware of any mood changes, irritable behavior, or long grumpy spells. This may be a sign that you are too stressed out and are in need of a break. Taking a break will let frustration die down and break the cycle of passive-aggressive interactions.

MORE MESSY THAN NORMAL

When rushing to make deadlines, get to meetings, pick up the kids from school, and get dinner on the table it is inevitable that you will miss the details. If your work, at home and at the office, is more sloppy than usual (punctuation, grammar, calculations, etc.) you may be in need of a mental health day. The need for a break is quadrupled if your boss is getting on your case, you are never catching up on work, and feeling like you can’t get on top of things. If stress is hindering your work and life performance, working harder won’t fix the situation. Taking a few days for yourself will allow you to regroup and destress before getting back behind the wheel.

SHOWING PHYSICAL SIGNS OF STRESS

Gaining weight? Daily headaches? Breaking out? Waking up drooling on your desk? These symptoms, together or separate, can hint at chronic stress. The hormones that are related to stress can manifest these annoying symptoms. So no, your body doesn’t hate you. It is trying warn you. It is screaming to you, “SLOW DOWN!”  

Now, next time you are having foggy brain, constant anxiety, or extreme insomnia try to slow down, take a break, and listen to your body. Don’t just binge watch Netflix to solve your stress problems. Have a few active rest days at home and do things that are calming to you. Whether that is taking a hike, baking cookies, gardening, or reading a good mystery novel- do what you enjoy.

Three Plants to Cleanse Your Home

With the creation of modern cleansers, plastics, furniture, flooring, glue, paint, and other household materials there is an abundance of toxic chemicals lurking about. Though you can take strides to remove these products from your home, your main asset is sitting right outside your window! Plants have always been the key to purifying the Earth and cleansing our air, that is why we love putting them in our home! They can help purify the air, remove toxic chemicals, including formaldehyde, and produce a cleaner atmosphere for your family. To most effectively purify the air in your home then add at least two plants per 100 square feet or a 10x10 room space. The studies of indoor plant purification has been on the pioneered by environmental scientist Dr. Bill Wolverton. He has conducted the famous NASA Clean Air Study, to read more on his top plant picks then check out, “How to Grow Fresh Air: 50 House Plants that Purify Your Home or Office”.

Our Top Three Purifying House Plants

Dracaena Plant- 

With over 40 species of Dracaena plants it is easy to find one that perfect fit for your home. The Dracaena plants have long, wide leaves that are sometimes sprinkled with stripes of white, yellow, or red on the edge of the long leaves. If you are a pet owner you may want to find a different plant. The Dracaena are toxic to cats and dogs.

Best care: house in a room with high ceilings, place in moderate sunlight, and water occasionally. 

What it does: removes pollutants such as benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, and xylene

Boston Fern- 

These household classics produce soft, feathery, and delicate fronds. Boston ferns flourish in indoor hanging baskets, however they require constant watering, moisture, and humidity. They are easy to grow in cool environments with lots of moisture and indirect light. 

Best care: Check the plants soil daily and keep soil moist, and douse in water once per month.

What it does: The Boston Fern helps removes formaldehyde, found in glues, cabinetry, plywood, and furniture, from the home and also eliminates xylene.

Snake Plant-

Also known by its humorous name - mother-in-law's tongue. This plant carries sharp, tall, vertical leaves that are often bordered with cream or yellow stripes. During the night it absorbs carbon dioxide and releases oxygen unlike most other plants.

Best Care: The Snake Plant thrives best in low light, dryer conditions, and occasional watering. 

What it does: It lowers carbon dioxide in the environment and rids the atmosphere of formaldehyde and benzene. It is great for a boost of energizing oxygen.

Messy Bed, Healthy Bed.

The great debate- to make your bed, or to not make your bed in the morning. We are here to set the record straight. While learning the discipline of making your bed in the morning is important and beneficial to productivity and responsibility, it isn’t always the healthiest option. 

Just as we suggest to set your pillow in the sun (to kill bacteria, mites, mildew, and deodorize the pillow), keeping your bed open and unmade in the morning can kill off bacteria an mites. 

When you make your bed at sunrise you are wrapping the sheets around potentially millions of dust mites on your bed. This traps the mites in your bedding and mattress to feed off your dead skin cells and sweat.  

If you are unconcerned about dust mites, because they live everywhere anyways, it is still wise to not make your bed immediately in the morning. After a night of sleep humans can sweat and breathe out at least 200 milliliters per eight hours of sleep. This moisture can get trapped in your mattress, bedding, and sheets. Tightly wrapping your sheets and duvet around the moisture can harbor mold, mildew, and unwanted odor. Keeping your bed unmade and open will expose possible mites to light and fresh air (to dehydrate and die). An unmade bed will also allow moisture from the night to evaporate and dry.

So, next time you consider making your bed right after waking up go and grab yourself a cup of coffee or get ready for the day. Let your bed take an hour or so breather. 

"I Can't Afford a Natural Mattress."

In our ideal world everyone would sleep on the perfect natural and organic mattress that is catered specifically to their needs. However, that's not always possible. With the economy ever changing and financial situations being unpredictable, investing in a mattress isn't always the most viable purchase.

So you know that natural sleep is important but you still have the question, "I can’t afford a natural mattress, what can I do?"

A pillow is a great first step. At least your face and immediate breathing space is non-toxic, natural, and organic. Finding your perfect pillow can improve your sleep and release tension from your head and neck. Next, surround yourself with natural fiber sheets and bedding. Making a small investment in your bedding will allow you to sleep cool, comfortable, and in a non-toxic environment (with natural bedding there is a barrier from the toxins in old, non-natural mattresses).

If you can swing it the best investment you can make is in an organic topper. This is a bit more expensive but typically more affordable than an entire new mattress. An organic topper will improve your overall quality of sleep and allow you to be sleeping on healthy materials rather than toxic mattress fillers.

Our Story of Simplicity and Purity

When you are looking for a new mattress, there are so many different models and options and decisions to make, and every manufacturer is telling you something different. It’s overwhelming, isn’t it?  

When you research other organic mattresses, you see tons of statistics, are bombarded by certifications and symbols promising to be the most pure mattress you will ever sleep on, and it seems like they are forgetting the most important part of mattresses: making a mattress that is comfortable to sleep on.

With a combined 40 years in the mattress business, learning the ins-and-outs of conventional mattresses and the highly-specialized organic mattress market, it was an easy transition for Brandy Alvis and Andy Freedman: create a mattress that meets the needs of the consumer first, and everything else will fall in to place.

What makes Eco Bedroom Solutions different is that from the outset, our goal was to create a quality latex rubber line that accentuates all of the sleep benefits of latex rubber, with a commitment to using high-quality materials.  The first test market was in the San Francisco Bay area, and after many months of testing, (and making tweaks based on consumer feedback), we started expanding across the country.

This commitment to quality is what lead us down the organic path in the first place, and translated into a very natural and organic story for our mattresses and bedding.  It is important to us that each and every component used in the manufacture of our natural mattresses has a third-party certification, a simple way to prove its quality. By focusing on the quality of the products we use, including making sure everything has a third-party certification, the “naturalness” of our products comes as a byproduct of our initial focus on comfort and quality. And this philosophy extends past our mattresses, and is incorporated into every product we make, from mattresses, to toppers and pillows, to organic bedding. 

Organic mattresses are made using the same techniques as their non-organic counterparts, but without the harmful chemicals associated with conventional mattresses. We knew that after sourcing the best natural materials available, it was of utmost importance that the craftsmanship used in our mattresses needed to be the highest quality available, and made right here in the USA. So that’s what we did.

Simplicity is a big part of what we do. We kept the focus on quality, and purity followed by default.

Beginners Guide to Unplugging

It sounds idealistic and impossible- to put down our phones, stop checking social media, and take time with no screens or electronics. As a society we are glued to our electronics. We plan, communicate, research, connect, and veg out on our phones. However, getting too attached can be harmful and add stress into your life. Going a screen free day can be really beneficial to your rest and sleep. Check out three of our beginners unplugged tips for when you are stressed out or inspired to rest.

How to Easily Unplug

1. Airplane Mode: If your work or lifestyle prevents you from going totally unplugged then schedule times to unplug. Pick several hours of your day to keep your phone on airplane mode. Knowing your phone will be silent and you will be uninterrupted can help you chill out and relax.

2. Social Media: Ahhh a social media detox sounds so nice and it’s easier than expected! Instead of deleting all your apps and losing lots of information, download an app that blocks social media applications. You can set the hours that your apps will be blocked to keep you accountable. This is also useful if you have a difficulty staying focused on work or homework. Try Offtime (for iOS and Android), ClearLock (for Android) or BreakFree (for iOS and Android) to steer clear from your apps. ColdTurkey for Windows is great for your desktop or laptop!

3. Screen Free Zones: Just like using an app to block media use on your phone, create screen free zones and times at your home. Banning phones and screens from your bedroom or dining room table will promote bonding and conversation in your home. It will be a big transition but will eventually encourage more rest, reading, community, and even creativity.

Stay tuned for more in our series of unplugging. We have lots of new ideas coming your way!

Beyond Sleep: Organic School Supplies

We love organic anything! It’s the bread and butter to our products and our lifestyle. However, what may have never crossed your mind is organic school supplies. As kids, teenagers, and college students head back to school their long list of supplies seems overwhelming and unsustainable. We are showing you organic and eco-friendly options for your back to school shopping!

Backpacks and Lunch Bags

Textiles, like traditional mattresses and clothing,  often contain harsh chemicals, pesticides, phthalates, lead, and vinyl. When using a product daily and in close contact with you or your kids it is smart to find an organic or non-toxic option.

EcoGear’s Ecozoo Organic Backpack is perfect for your little ones!  They are available cute animal designs: Panda, Pig, Elephant, and Puppy. Ecozoo is made with organic cotton, recycled plastic, and sustainable wood components. They are great for young children just entering school!

Fjällräven's Kånken Kid is the childrens version of their classic backpack. Great for big and little kids alike, this backpack is made under humane conditions and with environmentally friendly textiles. “Vinylon F is the name of the hard-wearing fabric that has contributed to Kånken's popularity over the years. While being a synthetic material – it is made of a fibre called polyvinyl alcohol – it has certain properties that are otherwise mostly found in natural materials.” The Swedish brand, Fjällräven, which means arctic fox, is a supporter of SEFALO and their efforts to preserve the arctic fox and its habitats.

Graduating out of children's backpacks Fjällräven has large backpacks perfect for high school and college students. The company has just improved its classic backpack by making a version made entirely from recycled plastic bottles. Each Re-Kånken backpack contains 11 bottles, which are converted into a yarn that is used for the fabric, lining, and webbing. SpinDye, the process of converting plastic to textile uses, according to Ecouterre, “far less water, chemicals, and energy than conventional dyeing techniques.”

If you opt for a more simple design the Rucksack 101 or Backpack 202 by InconnuLAB is perfect for you. “InconnuLAB is an Italian slow fashion brand founded in 2013 by Nora Dzsida. In our Trieste based home-studio we create unconventional bags by hand, eco-consciously, using only waste materials. Minimizing the impact on the environment is at the heart of the ethically made InconnuLAB products”. Made entirely from high-quality Italian material leftovers, such as leather and canvas, no two of these packs are the same. The canvas (a natural biodegradable fabric) is Water/Oil Repellent, Resistant to mold, stains, salt and U.V. fading. This lightweight bag is designed for everyday use. The bag can fit laptops, books, personal items, clothes.

You can also buy beautiful  lunchbox, lunch bag, and lunch totes organic! Fluf is a Canadian company that offers organic cotton lunch bags. They have snack packs, zippable totes, and open tote style bags. Fluf's reusable packs are the best replacement for disposable plastic bags. Made with certified organic cotton and a tested food-safe, water-resistant lining (free of BPA, phthalates and lead), Fluf snack packs are healthy, safe, and stinkin' cute!

Along with a healthy lunch you have to keep hydrated. Klean Kanteen produces 100% recyclable, high-quality, food-grade, stainless steel water bottles and insulated mugs that are BPA free and sustainable. Klean Kanteen raises awareness to kick single-use habits and choose healthy, sustainable products that are better for you and the Earth.

School Supplies

Paper products consume a large amount of trees and natural resources, so opt for recycled products. Here are a few organic, sustainable, or eco-friendly options. The popular Decomposition Book by Michael Roger contains 100% post-consumer-waste recycled pages; and soy ink printing, which contains fewer VOCs (volatile organic compounds) than regular, petroleum-based ink and is also easier to recycle.

Tree-Free Journals are made with recycled materials and banana or hemp fibers. It is a truly environmentally-conscious paper purchase.

Your writing tools also don’t go unnoticed! TreeSmart creates pencils and colored pencils from rolled-up recycled newspaper, which reduces wood consumption and keeps paper waste from landfills, and latex-free and smudge proof erasers. Meanwhile, Pilot’s B2P pens are made with 86% total recycled content and 83% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.

The Ultimate Green Store is stocked with eco-friendly miscellaneous products for school. They sell recycled paper clips, recycled rubber erasers, coccoina non-toxic glue sticks, biodegradable non-toxic ice packs, and eco-friendly laptop sleeves.