Sleep News

The five-to-seven year mattress replacement message crafted by the industry-funded Better Sleep Council

(BSC) keeps getting new traction in major media across the U.S.

In January, the Washington Post featured a major piece on buying mattresses and pillows, and while not all of the recommendations were in line the BSC’s consumer messages, Sleep Savvy gives this advice four stars out of five: “Gradual changes over time cause mattressesto become less comfortable and less supportive. The National Sleep Foundation says a good mattress lasts nine to 10 years, but a recent study by Oklahoma State University showed that most people who buy a new bed every five years sleep better and experience less back pain.”

The big daily paper also passed along a recommendation from Consumer Reports – one that was provided to CR by the BSC – encouraging consumers to buy a new mattress “if you wake up tired or achy, you tend to sleep better at hotels than at home, your mattress looks saggy or lumpy, you’re over age 40, or your mattress is five to seven years old.”

The Doctors: Your mattress is your most important furniture investment!

Did you know that your mattress may be the single most important piece of furniture in your home? You spend nearly a third of your life on it, and sleeping on the wrong one could cause serious health problems.” That was the message from The Doctors, a nationally syndicated weekday talk show about health issues. The segment, which aired in early February, offered tips on shopping for the right mattress, recommending that consumers lie on a bed for 15 minutes to test it out in the store.

Want a few more numbers to help wake up your customers to the importance of investing in a top-quality sleep set? If you sleep seven hours each night, you’re spending…

• 49 hours in bed every week (about as much as you spend at work plus your commute) 
• 210+ hours in bed every month (more than a week’s vacation) 
• 2,555 hours in bed in a year (about 3.5 months out of 12)