Babies Body Temperature
During the extreme weather months, summer and winter, we often wonder how we are supposed to tell if our baby needs extra clothes or needs to take some off. Since your baby can not talk to you and tell you if they are hot or cold, it is hard to know what way to dress your baby.
A newborn baby is unable to regulate their body temperature and will often need to be wearing warm clothes no matter what the temp is outside. Inside, in air conditioning they can get too warm. Older babies will normally not need any extra layers on while inside the house, but when going outside the house an extra layer on very cold days won’t hurt your baby. Since a big part of the surface area on your baby is on their head, this is where they can lose the most heat. When you go out you should put a hat on your baby’s head to help him keep warm.
When it comes to layering, you don’t necessarily need a lot of layers. Get an onesie and warm outfit while inside, a jacket or warm baby jumpsuit, which many times comes with a hat attached when you run out of the house. Even if your baby is not wearing shoes, make sure to have him in socks and take an extra pair of socks with you just in case your baby gets wiggly during a diaper change.
During the summer months, an older baby can overheat easily. Unlike when they get cold and get fussy, when a baby gets hot he will probably just fall asleep, and you may not know that he is too warm. Dress you baby in light material, onesies and little jumpers that are not too tight. Let him have room to move and not be too bundled up. In the summer, if you are warm your baby is probably warm too. Don’t dress your baby in something you wouldn’t want to be in.
Every baby has his own level of comfort that you will eventually learn. He will also develop ways of telling you as he gets older that he is too hot or too cold, sometimes by crying, others by tugging at clothes. Learn to watch your baby’s signs, listen to his cries and you will be able to tell when your baby’s body temperature is too hot or too cold.
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