A baby should sleep in clothing intended for infant sleep in order to stay warm at night, since babies are not supposed to sleep with blankets or bedding apart from tight-fitted bed sheets. For example, babies often sleep in sleep sacks and onesies.
All they need to wear is a onesie underneath their swaddling blanket, if they like to be swaddled. You can also find long-sleeve onesies with built-in mittens, if they tend to scratch themselves. If baby doesn't like to be swaddled, try a sleep sack.
The AAP recommends that your child's room should be kept at a temperature that is comfortable for a lightly clothed adult. A simple onesie in the summer and footed one-piece pajamas or a sleep sack in the winter are safe options.
The simple answer is yes. In fact, many parents choose to dress their babies in onesies bodysuits for as long as possible.
Babies sleep well and safely when they're neither too hot nor too cold. Dress babies in enough clothes to keep them warm without blankets. If you wrap your baby, use cotton or muslin wraps. Safe infant sleeping bags help to keep babies warm overnight.
A cotton sleepsuit should be enough for your baby to sleep in if it's warm; if it's especially hot, a vest may be OK on its own. If the temperature in your baby's room is around the 16 - 20 degree sweet spot, your baby should be fine to sleep in a vest and sleepsuit.
Safe Sleep Guidelines for Your Baby
Anything that could potentially cover their mouth and nose could lead to suffocation for your infant. The American Association of Pediatrics (AAP) has issued safe sleep guidelines. This includes a strong recommendation against having blankets in your baby's crib.
There's no specific answer to this question as it depends on you and your baby. It's a matter of personal preference. Although many stores only stock baby onesies up to size 18-24 months. So, it can become more difficult to find a onesie past this age that will fit your baby comfortably.
It is most common to use a onesie, footie, romper, or two-piece pyjama sets under a baby sleep sack. Usually one layer of clothing under the appropriate TOG of the sleep sack is sufficient!
It is not safe for babies to sleep while wearing hats, hoods, or any type of head covering. Avoid covering your baby's head and face when putting them to sleep, as this can increase the risk of suffocation and overheating.
Myth: It's good to dress babies in fleece
Despite overwhelming presence in most children's stores, fleece is not a great material for babies to wear, especially at night while sleeping. Fleece is a synthetic fabric and it does not help to regulate body temperature.
After ensuring baby can move freely in whatever sleep sack they're wearing, families should next ensure that baby cannot overheat due to wearing a sleep sack. Indeed, babies are at much higher risk of overheating than being too cold.
“As long as baby has on a diaper and is dressed appropriately for the weather, there's no right or wrong outfit.” Some parents go all out dressing baby in a beautiful dress, while others just put baby in a basic onesie.
Baby clothing terminology summary
Onesie or bodysuit – A top with no legs that fastens over the nappy. It may have long or short sleeves. Babygrow (babygro/sleepsuit) – all-in-one outfit with long sleeves and legs, generally covering the feet but some will be footless.
You Can't Spoil a Baby Through Baby Wearing
It's just not possible to spoil an infant by holding them too much, says the AAP. 1 Since baby wearing can reduce crying, that means less stress for everyone.
The basic rules
This makes sense, as a baby should not sleep with a loose sheet or blanket. Generally speaking, a two-piece cotton PJ set or footed onesie plus a muslin swaddle should suffice.
Babies are notoriously messy, and you might need to change their outfits 2-4 times a day just because they spat and got their onesie dirty again. Factor in the outfit needed for their 'outside' time, and you'll quickly come to learn you might need a few outfit changes throughout the day.
The purpose of a onesie is to allow for your baby the comfort of a shirt with the added benefit of not having to worry about the shirt riding up as well as keeping cloth diapers from falling down throughout the day.
“Night one is a euphoric night,” said Jennifer Howting, a registered nurse in paediatrics based in Kingston, Ont. “But babies on night two wake up a lot more—they're more alert and are ready to feed. The second night is when the exhaustion really hits [for parents].” Night two can bring a lot of crying.
In warmer weather, you can dress baby in a sleeveless and legless onesies, or just a nappy and singlet. For cooler weather, a full suit will keep baby warm. If you are using a sleeping bag, select the TOG that matches the temperature of the room.