Dress Your Baby for Winter Weather

It is recommended to maintain your room temperature between 20 i 22%, during the cold days, and between 15 i 18% during the cold nights (if you find it difficult to estimate the temperature in the room, install a thermometer close to the place where your baby spends the most of its time, for example, above the bed - but always make sure the thermometer is out of the baby's scope). If indoor temperature is higher than these recommended values, dry and overheated air could damage the lining of the nose and make your baby more susceptible to cold-causing microbes. Similarly, overheated air will dry out the baby's skin and cause itching.

You can use a bottle of hot water or a heating element to warm your baby's bed before you put it to sleep (just be careful not to overheat the sheet). You can also use flannel sheets, which are great for cold winter nights and very pleasant to the touch. Cover your child in layers, so that it feels both comfortable and warm. If your child rejects blankets, try putting him or her into a sleeping bag - these are especially practical for babies and children under one year of age. Babies will release the excess heat from the body through their heads - therefore, consult your pediatrician about whether your baby should wear a night-cap or not.

Keep in mind that the children's room is cooler at night than during the daytime, and that child's metabolism slows down during the sleep. Always be ready to use extra blankets. However, you should definitely try to avoid one of the most common mistakes, which is dressing your baby too warm for the bed. If the child wakes up during the night in sweat, remove one or two layers of blankets.

Just as there are persons who are feeling cold in the summer, there are those who are feeling hot during the cold winter days. If you are one of those people, your inner thermostat will not be reliable determinant of what a child is supposed to wear. If this is the case, you should ask someone with an proper sense of comfort for a help (your significant other, your mother, or any other person of trust). Also, if you feel like your child is warmer and colder than you, accept that as true and dress the child in accordance with this fact.