Olympics 2012 Organic Mattress Offers

In celebration of the London Olympics 2012, buyOrganics has some great offers in store on organic mattresses, organic futons, and organic baby mattresses available for a ltd time only. This is the best time ever to invest in a healthy bedroom and a healthy nights sleep!! Check out our special offers for this momentous occasion right now!

10 Tips to Keep Your Bedroom in Optimal Condition

We spend approximately a third of our lives in our bedrooms, some even more than this so it’s not surprising that the state of this most precious space has a significant impact on your life. Your bedroom should be healthy, green as in environmentally so, and psychologically beneficial to your life. So we’ve put together a few pointers on how to really achieve a healthy bedroom. 1. Check for mould. Any dampness on the walls, windows or floors can lead to mould, even slight growth of different fungi that can trigger allergies such as wheezing, sneezing, eye complaints etc. Clean up any mould areas using a powerful cleaner such as bleach and ensure that the cause of dampness is removed. You may need to invest in a dehumidifier. 2. Get rid of dust mites. Mostly every bedroom has dust mites if you haven’t taken precautions to keep them out. Dust mites excrete a protein in their faeces that can trigger allergies such as sneezing and a runny nose, so it’s not very nice. In addition to this, the starling truth is that over a period of ten years your mattress will double in weight due to dust mite faeces, so you are literally just sleeping in bug poo! The ideal solution is to use hypoallergenic encasements on your mattresses. Natural solutions such as an organic wool mattress under sheet and over sheet are a good choice. Alternatively, you can use an organic cotton one that can be washed weekly on a 60 degrees wash. Wool naturally keeps dust mites out due to its high lanolin content, you can then air the wool in the sun to clean naturally, and washing cotton at 60 degrees kills dust mites also. Wash sheets weekly at 60 degrees and keep humidity low in rooms even through the winter. Use a HEPA filter hoover and clean with microfiber cloths that trap dust instead of launching it into the air. Keep humidity low in your bed, by folding the covers back every morning and leaving your bed to air. 3. Get Rid Of Light At Night. According to Samuel L. Krachman, D.O., director of the Sleep Disorders Center at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. "Light interferes with the production of Melatonin, (a hormone that controls your sleep wake cycle and is secreted at night in response to darkness), therefore making it harder to fall into a deep, restful sleep." Two new studies suggest that exposure to light at night could affect not only your snooze quality but also your blood pressure, glucose levels, ability to regulate body temperature -- even cancer risk. 4. Reduce Sleep Disruptions. It’s not always possible to do this if you have to frequently get up to go to the loo, see to young children or have a snoring partner! Help snoring partners by encouraging them to get a special mouth guard from the dentist, this keeps their jaw aligned as they sleep thereby reducing snoring. Keep toilet visits brief and quick, try not to turn on lights but use night lights in the bathroom to keep you still in a restful state. 5. De Clutter. Things that don’t belong in the bedroom are things like cell phones and laptops. The rest of it is personal and certain things will trigger stress responses in you. I can deal with a little mess, but not a lot, my husband can’t deal with anything that’s not neatly folded or stacked nicely! 6. Get Rid Of Toxic Bedding. Memory Foam pillows and mattresses are the worst offender as they are made of a petroleum-based synthetic foam which can emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can cause headaches, nausea, eye and throat irritation and may even contribute to asthma. A better choice would be natural latex pillows and mattresses made from rubber trees also sometimes known as organic mattresses 7. Cut Your Exposure to EMF’s. Or otherwise known as Electromagnetic Fields! Avoid metal in your bed or mattress and move TV’s cordless phone bases, mobile phones, electric alarm clocks etc. out of your room. Some studies have linked EMF exposure to cancer. 8. Change the mood of your bedroom. If you’re a couple, then loose family pictures from the bedside table and replace with pictures of you as a couple. Switch cosy night clothes for sexier ones, and ensure you have locks on the door if you have kids. Dimmable lights and Soy candles which are VOC free in a safe place are all good ideas to re-light the passion! 9. Shoes Belong Outside. Don’t bring shoes in your bedroom; leave them in the porch as they carry germs and bacteria. 10. Loose The Decorative Pillows. Decorative pillows and soft toys can harbour dust mites, so go for a simple look instead. Otherwise air and wash them regularly at high temperatures. (Original article featured in the huffington post)

Is your Partner Fed Up Of You Being Crabby In The Morning?

If you’re anything like me, the morning always comes too soon! There are those like my husband who jump out of bed in the morning full of energy ready to go for a mile long run, and there are people like me who just can’t open their eyes!! I am after all, an Organic Pillow lover and so I love my bed! It can be quite disconcerting if you are up and ready and your partner just won’t budge! “What a waste of the day” he thinks! “Let me sleep” she thinks!! Disputes like this can lead to very irritated weekends. According to sleep researcher and Sleep for Success CEO James B. Mass, sleep cycles are genetically determined, and women are more likely than men to be larks. Although this is not the case in my house, James says "You can't blame a person, it's not environmental," "owls," function better at night, have a body temperature that doesn't begin to rise until later in the morning. In my quest to try and become a morning person is there anything I can do? James says “Yes, but it's not easy”. It helps to be exposed to daylight immediately after getting up. Take a 15-minute walk, or get an FDA-approved light for indoor use, he suggested. “Walk I say!!! I can barely drink my tea, without drooling!” As long as you and your partner remain in different time zones, the best you can do is learn to understand and respect each other's nature. "It's important to work this out because it's how your day starts and you don't want to be irritated every single morning," said Suzanne Berman, a psychotherapist in private practice in Fair Lawn, N.J., who has worked with couples for more than 25 years. She offered the following tips for couples: • Communicate with each other: Don't expect your partner to guess what you need or what you're feeling about your morning dynamics. • Make each other your priority: "If your behaviour is continuously irritating the other person, the statement you're making is that you don't care about their needs," Berman said. This might mean not being able to make that morning phone call while your husband is still sleeping, for instance, but it's important to realize that seemingly-small acts build up over time and can cause resentment and create distance between partners. • Learn to Compromise: If you want the alarm set for 6:40 a.m. so you can sleep as long as possible, but he wants it at 6 a.m. to have extra time to wake up, try setting it for 6:20. "The couple needs to work something out so that both people feel their needs in the morning are being respected," she said. • Have realistic expectations: "If your husband isn't going to make it to the breakfast table, maybe you need to stop making his breakfast," Berman suggested. And stop trying to have that deep conversation in the morning. "Don't keep pushing your own agenda. That won't get you anywhere; you’re wanting something your partner can't give you." • Except Reality: "People are who they are, with their habits and routines," Berman said. The notion that 'If you loved me, you'd change,' is fantasy. Instead, tune into what your partner is telling you about themselves, and take that seriously. • Accept Each Other As You Are: Accept that you are two separate individuals: "You're a couple, but you're not the same person," Berman said. "It's hard for couples to accept this, especially women. I can happily say that me and mine have overcome these morning issues and we understand each other’s morning routine now (most of the time ;) !)

Enhancing Your Memory While You Sleep

Organic Futon lovers will be interested to learn that researchers at the North western University have found evidence that existing memories may be reactivated and enhanced whilst you sleep. The study concentrates mainly on the learning of a musical instrument but has implications for a vast amount of other experiences that we have every day. The study took 2 groups of participants and taught them how to play 2 different musical tunes. The participants then took a 90-minute nap. During this time, researchers played one of the tunes that had been practiced as they slept. Using electroencephalography (EEG) methods to record the brain's electrical activity, the researchers ensured the soft musical ‘cues’ were played to participants during ‘slow-wave sleep’ (a stage of sleep previously linked to cementing memories). These are also known as Delta waves. When the participants woke up and resumed their instrument practice, researchers noted fewer errors were made when volunteers practised the melody they had heard while sleeping. This may be good news for people who love to listen to positive affirmations as they get their healthy sleep!!

Simple Techniques to Switch off Your Stress Autopilot!

Organic futon lovers will be well aware of the need to weave peace and wellbeing into their lifestyle in order to achieve optimal health, but more often than not, our busy lifestyles result in us travelling on autopilot, speeding up and never putting on the brakes on until our engine burns out. A fascinating article I read today by M.D Gayatri Devi highlighted the importance of applying the brakes now and agin in order to give our body a rest. She suggests that by activating our Vagus nerve, we do just that, they are like the brakes of our body that we forget to use. So her top tips are: • Uni-task instead of multi-tasking, take the dog out for a walk and leave your phone at home for example • Meditate every day • Get a good nights sleep • Touch activates the vagus nerve, so hugging is good for you! For more information on leading a calmer life, read her book A Calm Brain available at Amazon books

Space Saving Organic Beds

When space is tight, a bed can take up a whole lot of room, making a bedroom feel swamped and un-useable in the day for other activities. Although we in the UK are traditionally used to having a bed as a fixture in a room and are not used to putting it away during the day, this may just be the ideal solution to create space for work and play. Being able to put your bed away, would allow a bedroom to be a play room in the day or study room in the day, alternatively it could even be used as your lounge in the day, making your small living space really multi-functional. The Japanese are used to living this way and traditionally sleep on thin rolled up mats called futons. In the west futons are thicker, and made with a lot of alternative synthetic fabrics, but at BuyOrganics we have kept the purity of the fabrics introduced in Asia and use pure organic fabrics such as thick organic deshi cotton, organic wool, coir and natural latex to create a super comfy organic futon that has all the comfort of a traditional bed yet can still be stored away at night. An organic bed in the form of a futon is the perfect healthy solution for kids and adults, in fact the whole family.

The Health Benefits of an Organic Futon

Organic Futons are a much healthier choice than conventional futons due to the use of all natural and organic materials within the fillings and cover. Fillings used in conventional futons may include polyester cotton, synthetic petrochemical based foams, cotton linter pulp or noil, which are weaker, less superior and less healthy fabrics than the organic deshi cotton, organic wool, natural coir and natural latex used in BuyOrganics Shanti Futons. The high grades of organic fibres and natural plant based foams that are used in our Shanti Futons are highly resilient and provide a greater level of ergonomic support to the body. This ensures optimal comfort whilst you sleep as your spine is kept aligned and the muscles kept relaxed giving you rejuvenating rest without aches and pains. In addition, they have natural qualities which keep the organic futon healthier over time. • Organic Wool - keeps dust mites at bay, is naturally fire resistant and keeps you cool in the summer and warm in the winter • Organic Cotton- Is clean and allergy free, breathable and skin friendly, it contains no bleaches, or toxic residues • Natural latex – Pure 100% rubber foam from the Rubber tree, naturally anti-bacterial and anti-microbial. Breathable and non-toxic • Organic Coir – Made naturally from coconuts and fixed with natural latex milk, creates excellent air flow and breathability, creating stability naturally within the futon • Wild Grown Kapok – 100% vegetable fibre that provides warmth and softness Conventional futons also use conventionally grown or GM crops of cotton that have been treated with pesticides, herbicides and mixed with artificial fibres such as polyester or nylon. They are then treated with formaldehydes, VOC’s and fire retardant chemicals amongst other things. Our Shanti Futons only use completely clean organic cotton, and organic wool as a natural flame retardant thereby meeting UK fire safety standards naturally. Our covers are made of organic cotton also, so the whole futon, is chemical and toxin free whilst still ensuring optimal comfort. Many people choose to sleep on an organic futon because they like sleeping on a Japanese style pad rather than a pocket sprung mattress. This is a very good choice as we are exposed to electromagnetic stress throughout the day, from TV’s computers, mobile phones, and telephone poles, metal in our bed keeps this stress directed at us as we sleep and interferes with our quality of sleep. An organic futon is neutral and has a higher yin quality due to the natural fibres ensuring a better more relaxing sleep. Last but not least BuyOrganics Shanti Futons, do not off gas any nasty smells or chemicals as conventional futons do, meaning no headaches, no having to open windows and no health safety fears!