Having a new baby is a difficult and often frightening time, and every parent wants to do the best they can for their child. There are many things to think about and plan for. Considering the temperature of your baby’s room is very important, and you may have some worries about using air conditioning.
Can the air harm the baby? Will the temperature be too low?
Fortunately these questions are easily answered, and there is plenty that you can do to mitigate adverse effects.
Is Air Conditioning Bad for Babies?
In general, air conditioning is perfectly safe for babies. In fact, it can really help you to manage the room temperatures around your home to create the perfect environment for your little one.
However, like with most things you need to be sensible and take some precautions.
Air conditioning is good for keeping a baby from overheating, which can be very dangerous – apart from making your baby uncomfortable, there is a higher risk of seizures and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDs). However, being too cold can also make a baby very unwell. Babies, especially new-borns, cannot regulate their temperature effectively due to less fatty tissue and the inability to shiver when cold. These factors must be considered when using air conditioning in your baby’s room.
- Always monitor the room temperature carefully.
If your air conditioning has a shut-off feature, you can set the minimum and maximum temperature to maintain a steady level. If you don’t have this feature, manually monitor and change the temperature as needed. Keep the room at a good ambient temperature, not too hot or too cold (general recommendations lie between 20 and 25 degrees Celcius).
Finding the optimum temperature for your baby can also be helped by observing them. Babies cannot regulate their temperature but there are still physical signs of overheating (sweating, red skin, and irritability) and being too cold (cold skin, blue hue, and lethargy). These can be used to gauge the unique temperature needed for your baby to be the most comfortable.
- Make sure your baby and their bed aren’t directly in the line of the air blowing out.
This can lower temperature more rapidly and cause chills. Cloth your baby in light layers to maintain their temperature when the air conditioning is on, and keep an eye on their skin to make sure it’s not being dried out too much. Overly dry skin can cause painful cracks, rashes, and nosebleeds. Air conditioning sucks moisture out of a room, so it’s also important to ensure that your baby isn’t becoming too dehydrated.
Before you remove your baby from the air-conditioned room, turn off the unit and allow them to adjust to the natural temperature. This usually takes 10-15 minutes. Sudden rapid temperature changes can be harmful to a baby.
In conclusion, having air conditioning in your baby’s room will not harm them, as long as you take the necessary precautions, outlined above. In addition, you should always have your air conditioning units regularly inspected and maintained to avoid malfunction. Get in touch with our team to arrange an inspection of your air conditioning. You can also make a judgement on whether air conditioning is to be used at all, depending on the temperature and humidity of the room. In some times of the year you may only need a fan or to draw the curtains to create a comfortable environment.
