Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this mattress cover because it was advertised as containing "no phthalates, vinyl or PVC's". I thought that meant that it would not contain toxic chemicals that would off-gas while I sleep. I have minor chemical sensitivity. When I received it in the mail it had a strong chemical smell to it which immediately made my throat hurt and eyes burn. So I looked on the package and saw that the waterproof layer is made from polyurethane. Then I did some research. Evidently polyurethane used to waterproof mattress pads is toxic and can off-gas for a long time. The main allergies I suffer from are chemical sensitivity. I was hoping for an affordable mattress pad that might protect me from the off-gassing from the relatively new mattress I'm sleeping on, as well as protect the mattress from spills, but I guess this isn't the right product for that. If you are looking for something non-toxic, or have any chemical sensitivities, do not buy this product. Vinyl off-gassing is some of the worst, so it's great that this product doesn't have any vinyl, but it's definitely not a great product to use if you are concerned about chemical off-gassing. I've been told that food-grade polyethylene is the best (non-off-gassing) waterproofing product for mattress pads, but I haven't found a mattress pad made with polyethylene that is affordable yet. btw, "polylaminate" is also found as the waterproof layer in many mattress pads, but it is not necessarily non-toxic either. It can be made of different types of plastic and is often made out of polyurethane. There's one nontoxic waterproof mattress pad I've found. But it's expensive ($140 for queen size) it's the Organic Mattress Protector Pad by Naturepedic. I also found a mattress cover that is essentially a big plastic mattress bag made of polyethylene that will prevent you from breathing in the off-gassing from your mattress and will protect against spills. However, you are essentially sleeping on a plastic bag, so you will need some other mattress pad on top of it. to find one go to: [...] It seems, in general, that mattresses are general toxic to sleep on, and mattress covers can often add to that toxicity. And there isn't an easy fix to protect yourself or your family short of buying a very expensive latex mattress or specific kinds of organic mattresses. There is some useful information at this link if you are interested in learning more. Go to: [...] and look up the posting "prevent-toxic-off-gassing-when-you-cant-afford-to-buy-an-organic-mattress" And if anyone does happen to find a more affordable polyethylene-based waterproof mattress protector that's not a plastic bag, please let me know! Cheers!