Too hot or not too hot? What’s the best room temperature for babies?

There are lots of guidelines on room temperature for babies and what clothing and bedding they need to have at night.  I have a basic cardboard room thermometer which tells me we have cold rooms in winter and a really hot nursery in summer.

The Lullaby Trust shares that the optimum room temperature for babies is between 16 to 20C. Babies shouldn’t wear hats indoors, or be under a duvet or quilt to avoid them overheating.

Our baby went against these guidelines as ours really did like to be warm (and he’s just the same now he’s years older).

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A baby who loves the warmth

We got N home from hospital and despaired. We then spent the first evening and night trying to stop him crying. He wouldn’t settle in either his carrycot downstairs or his moses basket upstairs. The OH ended up sleeping downstairs with him for the few hours between the last two feeds.

Being January and a cold winter, the next day we had a fire blazing in the living room and a sheet and 2 baby blankets on him with him sleeping peacefully, we realised hadn’t been warm enough so cue a further blanket once he was back sleeping in his moses basket* at night.

Even in a bedroom of 24 degrees, N would wear a long sleeve sleepsuit and a 1.5 tog sleep bag. Warm works best for our baby and helps him sleep for longer. But it took a few attempts to work this out. Keeping him that toasty did worry me that he would be too hot, but he never felt it in himself when I checked his skin.

Now, age 8, he still likes to be wrapped up. He’s a warm child (he’s not worn a jumper for school or at home or out and about since the previous winter, the only time at the moment is when they’re playing tennis outside early evenings. He’ll sit at home in t shirt, but then huddle under a thick blanket when noone else needs one.

I always blame the fact that he was born in the winter of a really cold year, so was used to being in a very warm living room with a wood burning fire blasting out.

How to keep the room temperature comfortable for babies

• Layers – stick with a vest or sleepsuit for babies, or both if the room is really cold
• You don’t need to keep heating on in winter overnight – just add a baby blanket for when the heating is off.
• Use appropriate baby bedding for the season – check tog ratings of baby sleeping bags, and add or remove baby blankets as necessary.
• Avoid duvets or quilts until they’re at least a year old
• In hot weather, try a fan blowing into the room as well as opening windows.

What kind of temperature was the room your baby slept in? Are they a cold or warmer child?