Your mattress and fire safety – what you need to know

Curious what we do to make our mattresses fire retardant? At Natura fire safety and health are part and parcel of each other – and we’ve done our research to ensure our mattresses are as safe as possible for you, the people who work in our factories and the planet.

Fire safety for your Natura mattress

Boric acid is a favoured ingredient for naturally fire-retarding mattresses and bedding, but everyone pairs fire protective components differently. At Natura World we combine the natural fire retardant qualities of wool with a prepared cotton barrier to protect you from fire as naturally as possible.

The cotton barrier is created by treating cotton with boric acid and binding it with vegetable oil. This treated fabric is then rolled into bales, cured for several weeks then shipped to us. The cotton barrier is placed inside the mattress beneath a Natura-generous helping of wool, the mattress ticking, your protector and/or bed sheets.

Boric acid: what is it?

Boric acid is a naturally occurring component found in minerals, plants and even seawater. We eat it in nearly every kind of fruit we consume, use it on our skin and find it in many of the products we have in our homes.

Humans have used boric acid for millennia in a wide variety of ways – from medicinal (it’s naturally antiseptic, anti-fungal and antibacterial) insecticidal, industrial and as a preservative. Most recently in the bedding and mattress industry – as a fire retardant.

Boric acid: the bottom line

Like any substance that can be ingested, inhaled or absorbed, boric acid should be used with care and consideration to ensure safety.

• The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) classifies boric acid as a non-carcinogenic substance.
• Common table salt and boric acid have approximately the same degree of toxicity (iron however, is more toxic than boric acid – so be careful with mama’s iron pills!)
• A 180 lb adult would have to eat an entire queen size Natura mattress to ingest the amount of Boric Acid considered harmful by the EPA

The NPIC (National Pesticide Information Center) reports:
“Two siblings, one 24 days old and the other 14 months, were inadvertently fed boric acid in their formula. The total amounts ingested were 2.6 g and 1.95 g, respectively. Symptoms included irritability, diarrhea, and localized redness in the groin area. Neither child developed severe toxicity and both were asymptomatic one month after the incident.”

We believe in the importance of fire safety as naturally as possible. In our organic mattresses, organic wool provides a federally compliant fire retardant all on its own. In all our other mattresses, we use boric acid to improve the mattress’s fire retardency.

Still have questions? Visit the EPA or the NPIC for more research and information.

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