Tips to help your child sleep well in hot weather & summer time.
Here are my top tips for keeping your little one comfortably cool during the summer season;
Use a room thermometer - these are particularly useful in infant and early childhood to ensure an optimum room temperature. The HSE recommend a room temperature range from 16 - 20 degrees Celsius.
Dressing your little one appropriately is important, remembering the temperature is likely to drop during the early hours of the morning. During hot weather a vest, nappy and a 1 tog sleeping bag may be sufficient.
I recommend keeping the curtains/blinds in your little one’s bedroom closed during the day (with windows and doors open) to prevent the room heating up prior to nap and bedtime.
It can be useful to turn on a fan in your child's bedroom in advance them coming into the room, so it is comfortably cool, remembering to switch it off before nap/bedtime.
Cotton is a natural fibre and allows air to circulate so it’s worth considering a cotton fitted sheet for your little ones cot/bed.
For any car journeys, I recommend using sunshades on windows and trying to make your journey in the coolest part of the day. Never leave your child alone in the car to finish their nap in their car seat. I always recommend moving your little one indoors even if sleeping to a supervised and safe sleep safe sleep environment upon finishing your car journey.
Finally, please do not cover your child stroller with a blanket etc. This can be very dangerous. There are sun shades/parasols designed to allow your little one to be in the shade with suitable ventilation.
I hope you find these tips useful. Remember to follow my social media channels for more sleep tips and advice.