How To Keep A Baby Warm At Night in Winter
Even for adults it can be difficult to regulate our temperatures at night, especially in winter. So when it comes to keeping a baby’s temperature regulated at night without them being able to communicate effectively, it can cause considerable amounts of worry for parents and caregivers. Restless nights for parents and caregivers aren’t uncommon as a result, as this worry often leads to them getting up and checking that their baby is ok multiple times during the night.
At Matchstick Monkey, we have some top tips on how you can keep your baby warm at night during the winter.
Use a room thermometer
As temperatures plummet outside, adults often switch on the central heating when bedtime approaches. However, if there is a baby in the house, you have to be careful that the baby’s nursery or the parents’ bedroom does not get too hot.
A top tip on keeping your baby’s temperature regulated is to check the room temperature. A simple investment in a room thermometer is a game changer for any parent with a baby. This can offer you peace of mind and reassurance when you’re trying to gauge if the room is a suitable temperature; particularly as all bodies naturally differ in temperature, so even if you think it's cold in your home, your baby might be too warm.
What is the optimum room temperature for a sleeping baby?
It is advised by Babycentre that the optimum room temperature for a sleeping baby is between 18° to 20°C. This is important to know and bear in mind as by keeping the room that your baby sleeps in at a temperature of no higher than 20°C, you can help to prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
Bedding to keep your baby’s temperature at a healthy level
It is easy to think that a baby should be wrapped up warm all the time, but we have to be careful with this generalisation. Often bedding may seem light or thin to us but when it’s placed on a little one, it will be a lot thicker and bigger to them due to their little frames. With this in mind and during winter in particular, it’s worth giving thought to how many layers your baby might need at night or how thick their bedding should be.
Swaddling your baby with a breathable material such as the Matchstick Monkey 100% cotton swaddle can help to keep your baby cosy without them overheating. The material is breathable and appropriate for babies in their first year. Swaddles are the perfect solution all-year round, especially if you do not feel comfortable with putting your baby in sleeping bags with thicker togs.
How to check a baby’s body temperature by touch?
If you do need an extra bit of reassurance that your baby’s body temperature is normal, you can do this by feeling your baby’s chest or the nape of their neck. These areas are better for accurately checking your baby’s temperature over your baby’s hands and feet, as their hands and feet are normally much cooler.
If your baby’s skin feels sweaty or hot to touch, you can strip off some layers or perhaps replace their blanket or swaddle with a lightweight muslin such as the Matchstick Monkey Muslin, to make them feel more comfortable. Once you have done this, you can check how their body temperature feels again in 15 minutes to see if they have cooled down.
We hope these tips help you and your baby sleep comfortably all night through!
Check out more of our parenting blogs!
At Matchstick Monkey, we have a couple of blogs posts on how to get your baby to sleep through the night: