Why an Anti-Microbial Pillow?
(And Why it Matters Even More Than You Thought)
Pop quiz! How often do you wash your pillow case?
A) Weekly, like clockwork
B) Every two weeks
C) Monthly
D) I’m supposed to wash my pillow case?
No judgment here, so be honest. For most of us, it's nowhere near as often as we’d publicly admit. But is washing your pillow case even enough?
Why washing isn’t enough
The truth is, probably not. A study led by Dr. Arthur Tucker, a principal clinical scientist at Barts and the London NHS Trust, found that after only two years of use, up to 33% of a pillow’s weight is made up of dead skin, dust mites (both alive and dead), dust mite poop and numerous kinds of bacteria that passed through the pillow case.
In response to these findings, Gabriel Scientific’s technical director Dr. Duncan Bain said, “If you had to come up with a medium to cultivate bacteria, besides a Petri dish, a pillow is pretty much as good as you can get. It is a wet sponge that absorbs bodily fluids of various kinds providing nutrients. It is kept at the ideal temperature by the warm body lying on top.”
Ew, ew, EW!
So, it seems obvious that washing your pillow case frequently is a pretty important practice. But, to keep your pillow truly clean, you need to do more than wash the pillowcase and outer cover. A truly clean pillow needs to have something keeping things clean on the inside too!
Putting your health and wellness first
That was the inspiration for our antimicrobial ParaPur™ inner shell.
Here’s how Parallel Pillows work: Every Parallel Pillow is covered by a TENCEL™ outer cover, which is a breathable four-way-stretch, zippered shell. Inside this outer shell is an inner shell - and this is where all the ant-germ magic happens. This inner shell not only holds our BluTech Fusion Fill (BFF), the shell is also is made with ParaPur™ silver ion technology.
What is ParaPur ™ technology?
ParaPur is a true antimicrobial technology at its finest, but we aren’t just making things up. It’s in fact amazing, proven science. Our ParaPur™ technology kills 99.89% of microbes in just 59 minutes, and keeps working continuously for the life of your Parallel Pillow.
How does it work?
It all comes down to silver ions. The fibers of the Parallel Pillow’s inner shell are permanently embedded with positively charged, pure silver ions. The silver ions are attracted to the DNA of negatively charged microbes. They disrupt the bacteria and viruses' respiration, cell division and replication processes, wiping them out entirely.
Silver: natural, inert—and amazingly effective!
Why is silver so integral to maintaining an antimicrobial environment? Although completely inert when it comes to interacting with us humans, silver ions have this powerful, safe and natural antimicrobial effect themselves.
The result: bacteria, spores and microbes — all kinds of disgusting germs — don’t live to take up residence. It’s a highly effective self-refreshing barrier that protects you while keeping the Parallel Pillow’s fill germ-free. Without nasty chemicals.
Which makes for an amazing antimicrobial pillow.
Stops dust mites too.
And what about those dust mites? In another study, a population of dust mites were simply placed on silver-treated fabric in an enclosed setting. This showed a 99.9% reduction in the infestation of dust mites within 48 hours after exposure.
Silver is safe and hypoallergenic
Silver has been used to inhibit bacterial and microbial growth since 1300 BC. It’s now safely used in millions of products, including performance sports clothing and healthcare textiles.
And, because the silver ions in the Parallel Pillow are permanently bonded to the inner cover’s fibers, that’s where they stay. So you get reap all the benefits of an antimicrobial pillow, all the time!
Oh, and no need to be concerned about allergies.
A lot of people think they're allergic to silver because they’ve had contact dermatitis reactions to jewelry. But, pure silver is hypoallergenic, so it’s actually nickel or copper mixed into silver objects that causes an allergic reaction — not the silver itself.
Smart science for hygienic, restful sleep
Now you know how we make the Parallel Pillow naturally self-refreshing and anti-stink.
No pesticides or harsh chemicals. No nanotechnology. Just safe, smart science, to keep you sleeping happily and healthily, never losing sleep over the "ick" factor you can’t un-remember. (Sorry.)
Now, HOW long have you had that old pillow? 🤔
Relax! We ship quickly, and offer a 90-night trial period with free returns.
The Parallel Pillow. Soft, sculptable, temperature-neutral, good to the environment — and naturally anti-stink.
When a pillow is this amazing, you want to love it for a long time!
The Word’s Kindest Pillow: Buy One, We Give One.
