Green, organic, natural, and chemical-free are all descriptors used to signal a healthier kind of mattress—and that can lead to some confusion if finding a mattress made from natural materials is one of your goals.

Add to that list the myriad foams being sold: latex foam, polyurethane foam, memory foam, gel foam, bio-foam, soy foam—even green tea-enhanced foam. The good news is there are more mattress alternatives than ever. But shoppers are now tasked with separating the facts from the marketing. Below are a couple of tips to help you find the mattress that’s right for you:

• Find out the ingredients: Remember reading the side of the cereal box? Same exercise. Ask the retailer what materials are used in the mattress.* They should be able to tell you more than just the branded names for materials. Tracking down specifics can be tricky. Technological advances and proprietary branding are often less than transparent. But often an earnest inquiry can help give you a sense of a mattress’ material profile. Online research can also help you play detective.
• Show and tell: If you can, get your hands on a cutaway—a slice of the mattress that shows all the internal construction and materials. It means you can see, touch, and even smell it. And you can ask, “what is this?”
• Make sure there is a reasonable return policy: Ultimately, a mattress is good for you when you actually sleep in it and love it. Knowing the return policy before you buy will help you avoid ending up with a mattress that’s not right for you.

*We engineer mattresses using a very straightforward mix of materials. Ingredients: organic cotton, merino wool, steel coils, and natural latex.