The industry is flooding the market with all sorts of memory foam products, including many mattresses that have some sort of gel additive designed, in theory, to reduce heat. As I have posted previously, I, the hottest man on the planet, sleep on a Tempur-Pedic® and sleep cooler than at any time during my time on the S-brand mattress before.

I sold Tempur-Pedic for a decade. It was my number 1 selling brand, least returned, and NEVER during that time did one come back for heat. You can see a related post here: Tempur-Pedic Sleeps Hot.

So, if there is not a problem with heat, why are so many manufacturers jumping on the cool bandwagon? And I might add, it seems to be at the expense of more important features like support, proper alignment, durability etc. Let’s face it, if you are not aligned properly, or experiencing poor support, you will experience higher blood pressure, anxiety and a higher core temperature. This will not be offset by any temperature gimmick in the mattress. Alignment, durability and support are key. Heat is a bit down the list in importance.

But let’s assume that memory foam mattresses do sleep warmer than regular mattresses. I have heard this claim about Tempur-Pedic for years. Generally after asking follow-up questions, it is almost always a case of hearsay. Rarely has the individual actually spent quality time on a true, Tempur-Pedic.

One of the latest fads to address heat is to infuse, or merge gel with memory foam. Gel is probably best known as shoe inserts, providing additional comfort. The concept is that the gel will help transfer heat away from your body giving you a cooler night of sleep. If the gel is not at the top of the mattress, I would not think it would be very effective, but I digress.

Manufacturers have also tried all sorts of fabrics and substrates designed to wick away moisture and/or regulate body temperature. Some are more effective than others.

After testing the theory on a couple of different foam samples with a heat source and a Thermo gun, I was shocked to see the difference. There was as much as 7 degree variance between some of the top gel memory foams and Tempur® material. And even 2 minutes after the heat source was removed, Tempur-Pedic outperformed the alternatives. You can see info on Tempur-Pedic’s own sleep study here.

By no means am I saying that any gel memory foam product is inferior. On the contrary, almost any mattress may be the right solution. Just don’t make the decision to buy based on some claim of temperature differences. My personal experience, and decades of evidence shows that this may not be the case. But if the alignment, comfort, support and price are all better on the gel memory foam product, by all means buy it. Just make sure that you have a trial period in case it does not perform as advertised.

And of course my obligatory mattress disclaimer:

BTW – I do not work for Tempur-Pedic or own any stock in the company. However, you may see Tempur-Pedic ads on this site – along with many other manufacturers. These are served by Google and I have no control over which ads appear at any given time.

PLEASE NOTE: The Tempur-Pedic that I sleep on, or any Tempur-Pedic mattress, may not be the right mattress for you. I do believe that Tempur-Pedic makes some of the best mattresses on the market today. But please do not buy a mattress based on someone else’s experience. You need to try each mattress and determine which one will be the best support and comfort for YOUR BODY.

Happy Mattress shopping!!