What do you get up to in your sleep? Apart from a few rather weird dreams, most of which you probably don’t wish to make known to anyone else, and an occasional wriggle about, probably not much.

Certainly it’s unlikely that you can earn a million pounds in your sleep. But one man is just about to do exactly that.

Lee Haldwin, from London, has a very strange ability to draw in his sleep. We’re not talking here about a few random squiggles, the odd wiggly line or a rough approximation of a circle. We’re talking about works of art that are estimated at around £1 million. (http://bit.ly/WH59I2)

From the age of 4 Lee has doodled in his sleep, being totally unaware of what he is doing. Of course sleepwalking isn’t new, and many people have been reported as being capable of making a cup of tea or going for a walk whilst entirely unconscious. In Lee’s case he is able to get up, grab a pencil and paper, and create amazing pieces of art, before heading back to bed, all whilst still completely fast asleep.

The ironic thing is that when he is awake Lee is, as he freely admits himself, a pretty lousy artist. Yet the images he has created in his sleep have aroused a huge amount of interest, and he has already sold several pieces for six figure sums to people such as Derren Brown and Donald Trump.

Sometimes very detailed portraits, sometimes abstract in nature, Lee is hoping that his drawings will raise a million pounds, of which he will be donating half to the Missing Person charity.

For those people who have denied that it is possible Lee has been checked, analysed, tested and tested again by many teams of researchers, and his ability has been independently verified. Around two or three times a week Lee will wake up in the morning, and will find works of art left around the house that he has created during the night.

Wouldn’t it be nice to wake up each day and find that during our sleep we have created something beyond our conscious ability, and which could raise so much money?

Unfortunately Lee pays for his ability in chronic headaches afterwards, but nonetheless, it is an extraordinary ability.

This just goes to show two things though.

Firstly, we still don’t have much idea just how the brain works, and what it is capable of achieving, and secondly, that the time we spend in bed, sleeping, is not simply wasted by our brains and bodies.

Sleep is perhaps more important than being awake, since so much is achieved by our minds and bodies. On a physical level it is while we are asleep that our bodies carry out most of the repair work necessary, healing, mending, fixing, growing, replacing and cleaning. Whilst our muscles need to rest, this is just one small part of why our bodies need sleep to remain fit, healthy and in good condition.

But it is our brain which benefits most from sleep. Indeed, without sleep our brain ceases to be able to function properly after a very short while, and eventually a lack of sleep can result in complete breakdown of cognitive ability.

Why, we don’t know, but we do know that whilst we are asleep parts of our brain light up like a fireworks show, and a very great deal of work goes on.

Have you ever gone to sleep puzzling over something, only to wake up with the answer to a question or problem straight away?

Most of us have had this experience, and it is known that our subconscious goes over problems encountered in the day, rehearsing things coming up, repeating things we achieved, or failed to achieve, helping us to think creatively and perform better the next day. Some people believe that it is this practising, rehearsing and consolidating which results in our dreams.

All of which underlines the huge importance of sleep. You might not make a million pounds with it, but without it you’ll struggle to even count a single pound coin. Make sure you get to bed at a reasonable time, you organise yourself a decent routine, you switch off bright screens at least half an hour before bed, cut out caffeine and alcohol right before you go to sleep, and of course, make sure you have a decent mattress.

If you find yourself tossing and turning trying to get to sleep it’s very probably your lumpy mattress, or the pressure of the springs pushing against you. Switch to a memory foam mattress, and whilst we can’t guarantee you a million pounds, we think you will find yourself feeling a good deal brighter the next day.

Snoring can be a real problem, both for the person snoring and anyone who happens to be lucky enough to share their bed. Or live in the same house. Or street. In fact it’s easy to joke about snoring, but if you have ever had to put up with someone who does snore at night it is very far from being a laughing matter, and has been known to damage relationships very seriously.

Fortunately there are things that can be done to help reduce snoring, or eliminate it, and memory foam mattresses are one solution which has worked for many people. But why does simply changing your mattress have such a significant effect?

Snoring most frequently occurs because of the muscles at the back of the mouth and top of the throat relaxing, causing a partial obstruction to the air flow. It is this relaxed tissue flapping about which causes the sound of the snore.

The thing is though that the soft tissues can only usually relax in this way if the sleeper is lying on their back. Gravity tends to mean that when lying on their back a person’s soft tissues will fall against the back of the throat; when lying on their side the tissues don’t fall flat, and snoring either doesn’t happen at all, or it’s only very slight. This is why many people sleeping with a scorer, or at least lying awake next to a snorer, use a cold foot or sharp knee to encourage the other person to roll over.

But how can a memory foam mattress help? Very simply a memory foam mattress or mattress topper can help to encourage a person to sleep to their side, or in a comfortable position which does not result in them snoring.

It may well be that, full of good intentions, a person who snores goes to sleep lying on their side. In fact the majority of people do. But during the night people often tend to move about, turn over, and end up lying on their back. A memory foam mattress reduces the subconscious need to move about and roll over, meaning that if you start the night lying on your side, you’ll probably stay like that for the majority of the night.

In a normal sprung mattress your body detects the uneven pressure of each metal spring pushing up against it. To counter this pressure your brain sends signals to your body to get it to shift about and move into a different position. Because a memory foam mattress doesn’t have any springs, and doesn’t push against your body in an uneven way your brain doesn’t need to send any signals to your body. This is why people tend to stay in one position for most of the night with a memory foam mattress, meaning that not only do they get a great night’s sleep, but so does their partner sleeping with them. And indeed, the street.

For anyone who suffers from hayfever, pet allergies, dust allergies or asthma, trying to sleep at night can be a nightmare. You may feel wheezy while trying to get to sleep, you may wake up in the night sneezing, coughing, eyes running or nose congested, or you may wake up the next morning feeling as though your head has been replaced with an out of date marshmallow.

You may not realise it, but your mattress and pillows may well have a lot to answer for, and you may find that many of your symptoms go away just by making a simple switch to a memory foam mattress or memory foam pillows.

One of the biggest allergens in the home is the dust mite. For many people who suffer from asthma, or hayfever symptoms, it could actually be the bed which is causing, or at least exacerbating, the symptoms. The fact that you spend around a third of your life in bed, pushed up against the very thing causing the problem, means it’s really something that should be addressed.

The average mattress is home to several million dust mites, and they’re busy little blighters, breeding at a fantastic rate of knots. They love beds, because 90% of the dust in your home is dead skin, which dust mites really find delicious. Of course your bed is full of this – since you spend so long in it, aren’t wearing as much clothing to trap it, and roll about so that you helpfully shed a bit more.

But it’s not the dust mites that are the cause of your problems. At least not directly. It’s actually their droppings. Each dust mite has about ten poos a night, and if you multiply this by the few million mites in your mattress and pillow, that adds up to a billion new droppings each night. Yes, they’re only small, but if you’ve had your pillow for two years then around 10% of its weight is just dust mite faeces. Sweet dreams.

This faeces contains a protein which can trigger the asthmatic or allergy symptoms which cause people so many problems. Obviously washing your sheets at a high temperature is important, as is vacuuming your mattress regularly, but perhaps a better option is to go for one of the hypoallergenic memory foam mattresses or pillows.

Memory foam and latex mattresses are available in many different styles, with several offering a hypoallergenic covering which prevents dust mites from entering the inside of the mattress. Not only that, but the material actively repels dust mites, making your bed seem rather less appealing than a gourmet restaurant with a nightly eat-all-you-can policy.

When comparing mattresses the most common two types which people look to compare are traditional sprung mattresses and memory foam mattresses. Both are available in a range of styles, and both offer their own benefits and advantages.

As far as sprung mattresses are concerned, their primary benefit is in cost. Sprung mattresses are very often at the bottom end of the market as far as price is concerned, offering affordable solutions which are ideal for anyone who is looking either for budget bedding, or who is looking to fit out a spare bed cheaply for occasional use by guests.

But in terms of comfort, memory foam mattresses are in a league of their own. After all, springs have been around for a pretty long time, but memory foam was only developed in the last few decades by NASA, and only made available to the public in the 1990s.

The main problem with a sprung mattress is, unsurprisingly, the springs. Each spring actively pushes up against your body, applying constant direct pressure. Obviously some parts of your body won’t feel this pressure, such as your lower back, calves and neck, but certain parts will definitely feel this pushing. In particular the shoulders, upper back and hips are all going to feel the springs pushing against them, and this is what prompts you to turn over, roll about and move during the night.

When your body detects this pressure it triggers a response which gets you to move. It’s the body’s way of dealing with the pressure, since this can itself cause problems with circulation if ignored. In fact it is this danger which instigated the research that resulted in the development of memory foam in the first place.

Memory foam responds to heat. As soon as you lie on a memory foam mattress the heat of your body causes the memory foam to mould itself to the contours of your body. Once it has moulded it to your shape it holds that position, supporting every inch of your body equally. So the memory foam isn’t pushing against your hips any more than it is your calves, or your neck. This creates the feeling that you’re almost floating, rather than lying something.

But another benefit of memory foam compared to a spring mattress is in terms of heat retention. During the warm summer months you may feel rather hot at night, and your sprung mattress isn’t helping. Because it is essentially a large air space it tends to trap the warm air, and holds it against you.

By contrast, memory foam draws the excess heat away from your body, which means that it matches your body temperature perfectly thorough the night. With a memory foam mattress you can wake up each morning feeling reached and energised, not feeling stiff or achy, and not feeling hot and sticky. Compared to a sprung mattress, a memory foam’s only drawback is in terms of cost, but with memory foam mattress toppers an affordable alternative, it’s almost certainly best to take them seriously, whether buying your first mattress or a replacement one.

A common assumption when it comes to choosing a memory foam mattress is that they are all made from the same material. However, this assumption is wrong, and it’s important to be aware of the fact that many people not only confuse latex for memory foam, but that memory foam itself comes in a whole range of densities and qualities. Making the right choice is essential for a good night’s sleep.

The first thing to be aware of is that when browsing for memory foam products you’ll often find latex products sold alongside. Latex and memory foam are quite different, but each offers real advantages compared to sprung mattresses. So how do latex and memory foam compare?

Latex mattresses offer two main advantages compared to sprung mattresses. First of all, they offer much greater durability, and secondly, they offer better health benefits for some people.

If you’re looking for a mattress which will last for many years, perhaps a decade or more, then a latex mattress is your answer. They last many more years than sprung mattresses and even memory foam mattresses, making them better value in the long term, despite being more expensive to buy in the first place.

Latex also offers benefits in terms of health, because unlike a sprung mattress they do not offer as attractive a surface for dust mites to breed. In terms of health, some people can be susceptible to the chemicals used in the manufacture of memory foam, which means that latex can be a much better solution.

However, latex doesn’t offer any more support than a sprung mattress, and doesn’t relieve the pressure caused. Memory foam is an entirely different material, reacting to the heat of your body to slowly mould itself around you, offering completely even support without any pressure.

In terms of durability, memory foam can’t compete with latex, but it does offer the unique advantage of offering completely even support to every inch of your body, allowing you to have the best night’s sleep. By moulding to the shape of your body memory foam helps you to sleep in one position for longer, improving the quality of your sleep, and reducing the chance of you snoring.

But even assuming that all memory foam mattresses are alike is wrong. Unfortunately many companies selling absurdly cheap memory foam mattresses are compromising on quality, durability, efficiency and comfort, and in some cases are selling ordinary foam as memory foam. If a deal seems ridiculously good compared to other retailers, then be very wary indeed.

As far as quality memory foam mattresses from reputable retailers are concerned, these are available in a range of densities. The greater the density the firmer the mattress.  Most memory foam mattresses are available at densities ranging from between 3lbs to 5lbs. For most people a happy average of 4lbs is about right, but if you have never tried a memory foam mattress before it may be a good idea to try one or two out to compare how the different densities feel to you personally.

A quick browse online reveals a staggering number of different brands of memory foam mattress. So how do you choose between them, and what does each brand have to offer?

One of the first things to note is that price is not everything, or at least it shouldn’t be when it comes to choosing a good mattress. You will find some retailers selling very cheap mattresses, but whilst they may call them “memory foam mattresses”, they are more than likely “merely foam mattresses”. It is usually best to stick to those brands which are either well known, or which are priced more in line with the average memory foam product.

If budget is an issue then you may want to consider buying a memory foam mattress topper instead of a full mattress. In this way you can still opt for a well known, good quality brand.

Two brands which we stock and recommend are Breasley and Komfi, both very well known. Both of these brands offer a range of densities and styles, although when it comes to density we recommend trying out one or two memory foam mattresses first. Most of the well known brands produce mattresses in the 3-5lbs range, with 4lbs being the most popular.

Swift is a name you’ll also come across on our site, and whilst they do offer several mainstream memory foam mattresses they also produce the Blu Cool mattress range. These offer the same benefits as most memory foam products, but with the added benefit of drawing excess heat away, leaving you feel cool and comfortable. If you’re the sort of person who tends to get quite hot at night then a Swift Blu Cool memory foam mattress could be an ideal answer.

But as well as these brands you’ll also come across unusual ones such as Fun Bag, a manufacturer specialising in bean bag style memory foam products, perfect for the kids or for relaxing in front of the TV or while playing on your favourite console.

Another brand, Concept, offers a very wide range of memory foam mattresses, including several latex and gel mattresses. Latex can be great for people who react to the chemicals in a memory foam mattress, and while they don’t offer quite the same ‘sleeping on a cloud’ comfort, they last a ridiculously long time, so represent excellent value. Comfort also offer a range of different densities too, giving you the chance of getting exactly what you want, and at an affordable price.