Pillows filled with materials other than buckwheat do temporarily compete with them. One of them has recently seen renewed interest thanks to TV advertising, although being far from novel.
I almost ordered one simply to claim I tried one and found it lacking, but ultimately decided against it. But I soon rejected that notion. After reading up on the many types of plastics and the pollutants they release, I concluded that it wasn't worth risking my health by using a plastic-filled cushion.
My initial reservation about using plastic beads as pillow stuffing was based on my preference for the natural, hypoallergenic properties of buckwheat hulls.
The cooling properties of buckwheat hulls in the summer and their warming abilities in the winter are also worth thinking about. Plastic bead fillings don't seem to have such properties, as far as I know.
Given that I haven't seen any claims to the contrary in the advertising for these plastic bead-filled pillows, I have to assume that no means are being provided to adjust the volume of filling to provide individual comfort adjustment, which is arguably the most valuable and unique advantage inherent in quality buckwheat hull pillows.
Finally, buckwheat hulls' most significant and distinctive benefit as a pillow filling is that their minute ridges allow them to bind gently to one another. The pliability of buckwheat hulls may be attributed to this phenomenon. This is why they have been used for the last 3,000 years as the ideal pillow stuffing. That's how long they've been used as a standard pillow stuffing in Asia. The West is gradually coming to recognize its supremacy in this function. Yes, it's better to be late than never.
Pillows made from Oxford Homeware hulls may serve a dual purpose because of their adaptability. For starters, it makes it possible for the pillows to take the precise contour of your head and neck as you sleep. Second, this conformed shape is given some cohesiveness, which accounts for the soft support it gives anywhere the body touches the cushion.
I bring up and perhaps should emphasize, the softness of this support because it is sturdy enough to alleviate muscle stresses and tensions, which has a wide range of advantages in terms of neck, back, and jaw pains, not to mention headaches, sleeping difficulties, etc., but is also easily able to change its conformation in response to a shift in sleeping position. The unusual degree of adaptability seen in these buckwheat hulls has not been duplicated by current science.
It's worth reiterating that this degree of adaptability may be fine-tuned to each person's tastes and needs thanks to the fact that the amount of hulls in high-quality buckwheat hull pillows is adjustable. This benefit is crucial.
