Mattresses these days are polyurethane foam unless they are latex.  Poly foam is unregulated.  Neither OSHA or any other government agency cares what goes into Poly Foam.  Mattresses are difficult to ship because of size and weight.  Therefore traditionally U.S.A. manufacturers are local to the retail stores.  Recently with the advent of "Vacuum packed" mattresses from China, this has changed.  The Chinese have gotten into the mattress business in a big way.  Americans are constantly wanting lower cost on their products and that is where China fills the void.  The U.S.A. is a dumping ground for China!  The problem is that low cost produces terrible poly foam.  There are no telling what additives are going into the foam that someone be in direct contact with for 8 hours every day for years.  (Talk about potential for medical problems).

Also poly foam compresses over time.  Imagine that you take a mattress and place a weight of say 50 lbs. on top of it for 2 or 3 months.  When you return the impression will remain.  That is because poly foam compresses.  In these vacuum formed packages these mattresses are likely sitting in warehouses and shipping containers for 3 to 6 months before the consumer releases the vacuum and they expand.  During that time the poly foam has compressed and really does not regain it's integrity.

Then there is the environmental consideration.  American mattress manufacturers have the option of using Bioflex (soybean based) poly foam.  This product is green and biodegradable.  The Chinese poly foam will ultimately contaminate land fills in the U.S.A. forever.

Americans should realize that they do not want these Chinese vacuum packed poly foam mattresses!  Buy from a local dealer that uses Bioflex "Green" poly foam!