development_history


	Development History: Memory foam was originally developed in 1966 by NASA to improve the safety of aircraft cushions. Made from polyurethane with additional chemicals that increase its viscosity level, thereby increasing its density and weight, it is often referred to as “visco-elastic polyurethane foam”. Due to its temperature-sensitive nature, memory foam was named 'temper foam' at the time. It was later commercialized in medical equipments, such as X-ray table pads, and sports equipments, such as football helmet liners. It was never used in the NASA program but was subsequently used medically, for example, by patients who used to lie in bed on hard or very firm mattresses for long periods of time. With the slow rebounds and uniform distribution of memory foam, the pressure over patients’ bony regions decrease, and thus decreases the chances of developing gangrene.