Latex is a Rubber, Not a Foam

What makes Latex such a unique material is that it is a technically a rubber, not a foam. In fact, when Latex Beds were a significant share of the market they had brands that you would recognize only because they are names of rubber tires today. Goodyear, for example. Pirelli Latex Mattresses were common in Europe until recently.

As history goes, the very first use of rubber was to make Latex in 1600BC. Of course, it didn’t make it to bedding until the 1920s.

Many of the benefits of Latex are a result of the fact that it is simply rubber. Durability being most significant and better than foam. Think of products you know that are made from rubber. How different would they be if they were made from foam. How resilient would tires be if they were made out of foam? How resilient would your sneaker tread be if they were made out of foam? How resilient would a racket ball be if they were made out of foam?

Technically, here is what makes rubber different than foam.

Rubber materials share elastic behaviors not found in polyurethane foam.

Rubber are polymers having unique properties of elongation and elastic recovery after vulcanization. The key is thermosetting.

Rubber material, unlike poly, has the ability to be stretched significantly without breaking and to retract to its original shape and size. This unique stretching behavior of rubber has everything to do with the MOLECULES and the BONDS that make it up. When stretched, these bonds UNCOIL. When the strain is relieved, they RECOIL. This gives rubber ELASTIC qualities which makes it resilient. When vulcanized, natural rubber double bonds become single bonds and are FLEXIBLE and COIL AROUND each other. Natural Latex Rubber has a stereoregular configuration-molecules repeat to form the chain- which is why it has HIGH STRENGTH upon elongation