Supporting Our Local Economy

by Jerry Hocek

Welcome to the first installment of streetview. It contains mostly stories about health-related products and services I’ve had direct experience with, as well as anything I feel may be of interest to our readers. I perform all literary stunts without the use of nets, safety cables and sometimes spell checkers. This tends to leave the reader in a state of bewilderment…you will get used to it.

Sweet Natural Latex Dreams

In a world where text and email can easily be over-utilized, sometimes you just have to sit down and have an actual conversation with someone. I did just that with Dave Spittal last month, owner of Healthy Choice Organic Mattress. You can sometimes catch Dave on Monday at his Ridgewood store on Wilsey Square, across the street from Whole Foods. If you drop in to say hello, make sure you try out one or more of his natural latex memory foam mattresses. You may just buy one before you make it out of the store. That’s what I did, and I never looked back. Once I settled into Violet, the model with the softest top layer, I was quickly seduced by its magical, memory foam goodness.

Spittal’s mattresses are guaranteed to last for 25 years and will completely decompose in a landfill, where it’s recommended to replace conventional mattresses every eight years—and those do not fully decompose, ever. At my age, the Healthy Choice mattress will be the last I’ll need unless I purchase a second home.

In an era where most everything in manufactured in China, Healthy Choice mattresses are made right here in good old Connecticut, USA, from materials that are for the most part also sourced stateside. Let’s go full-steam ahead and blow the lid off the entire mattress industry. Today, most mattresses are made overseas (mostly China), and they are toxic. Your typical innerspring mattresses are made from petroleum-based materials that off-gas for years, as well as contain toxic flame retardants. Whether you buy them at a discount bedding store in Paterson or at the most well-known national mattress chain, you’re literally sleeping on a bed of toxins every night. I don’t know about you, but I no longer wish to spend a third of my life doing that. Off-gassing (also known as outgassing) refers to the release of airborne particulates or chemicals—dubbed volatile organic compounds (VOCs)—from common household products.

Not long ago, I worked at the world’s largest market research firm within the industrial space. I sold research to many chemical companies whose marketing departments’ main objective is to find new applications for their chemicals, no matter who or what these chemicals may adversely impact. It’s big business. The DuPonts and the Dow Chemicals of the world are worth billions.

While companies have no qualms about selling you products that may negatively impact your health and out- source production of them overseas to save a buck on payroll, Spittal is doing just the opposite. In my eyes, he’s a pioneer and visionary. Aside from that, I like the guy. I could see myself sitting in a bar with him, knocking back a few beers, as we trade stories of our glory days. Dave Spittal runs an ad in our magazine. Visit HCMattress.com.

Salt Away Your Allergies and Respiratory Issues

Tired of drugs and inhalers? Now there’s a much safer and more effective way to treat seasonal allergies, asthma, bronchitis, skin conditions and more. Last month, I dropped in to see Oksana and Sergiu at Salt Breeze, in Fair Lawn, to check out the beautiful, new space they opened in April.

If you haven’t yet heard about salt therapy, you soon will. Doctors in Europe have been prescribing salt therapy for all sorts of health issues since the 1800s, and this practice is now poised to take America by storm. Check out Brielle Bleeker’s salt therapy article this month and visit SaltBreezeNJ.com for more info. Soon after their grand opening, I had a couple sessions there for some sinus issues, and I’m very happy that I did.