Heatwave and Baby Sleep: How to Keep Baby Safe and Cool at Night
During a heatwave, overheating is a real, modifiable SIDS risk factor, not just a comfort issue. What the science says, and how to keep baby cool and safe at night.
A heatwave changes everything about a night’s sleep, and babies feel it more than adults do. Their thermoregulation is still immature, so a hot night is not just uncomfortable for them, it is a genuine, well-documented safety issue. Here is what the science actually says about heat and baby sleep, and the concrete steps that keep baby cool and safe.
What science says: heat as a real SIDS risk factor
Overheating is not just a comfort issue, it is a recognized, modifiable SIDS risk factor. A large case-crossover study spanning 30 years in Montreal found that infant death odds from SIDS were 2.78 times higher on days with a maximum temperature of 29°C or above, compared with days at 20°C.
A separate narrative review of the physiology behind this link explains that hyperthermia can raise SIDS risk both directly, through lethal overheating, and indirectly, by disturbing the autonomic functions that control breathing and heart rate during sleep (Bach & Libert, 2022). The same review points to the head as a major site of heat exchange in babies, which is part of why overheating during sleep deserves specific attention, distinct from daytime heat exposure (Auger et al., 2015).
Why babies overheat more easily than adults
A baby’s thermoregulation system is still immature: they sweat less efficiently than adults and cannot easily signal that they are too hot, which is why overheating can build up unnoticed during a hot night. This is exactly why a heatwave calls for more vigilance than ordinary hot weather.
Excess clothing and bedding are the two biggest contributors to overheating during sleep, more so than the room’s prone position or ambient heat alone. In practice, this means the layers you choose for baby matter just as much on a hot night as the number on the thermostat.
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Ideal room temperature during a heatwave
Pediatric sleep guidance generally targets a room temperature of about 18 to 20°C for baby’s sleep. During a heatwave, that exact target is often out of reach, so the realistic goal becomes keeping the room as cool as ventilation, shade, and airflow allow, while adjusting baby’s clothing and bedding accordingly rather than chasing a precise number.
Closing curtains or blinds during the hottest hours of the day keeps the room from heating up further, and opening windows once it cools down in the evening or early morning helps release the heat that built up. A fan placed to circulate air around the room, never aimed directly at baby, can meaningfully lower how hot the sleep space feels even when the thermometer barely moves.
Signs your baby is overheating at night
The most reliable way to check if baby is too hot is to feel the back of their neck or their chest, since hands and feet are normally cooler and are not a good indicator either way. A baby who is overheating typically shows some combination of sweating or damp hair, flushed cheeks, a hot chest, faster breathing than usual, a fine heat rash, and unusually restless or broken sleep.
If several of these signs appear together, removing a layer, offering a feed or extra fluids, and cooling the room further are the first steps; persistent overheating, lethargy, or refusal to feed warrant a call to your pediatrician rather than waiting it out. Most expert advice agrees that checking your baby’s temperature by touch, at the neck or chest, is more reliable during a heat wave than relying on how warm the room feels to an adult, and that getting too cold is rarely the risk in this context, unlike ordinary winter nights.
How to keep baby cool and safe overnight
The single most effective lever during a heatwave is clothing: dress baby in one light layer, for example a short-sleeve bodysuit or even just a diaper on the hottest nights, and swap loose blankets for a lightweight sleep sack sized to the season. Cotton or muslin bedding breathes better than synthetic fabrics and helps manage the moisture from sweat.
Back sleeping remains the safest position for baby regardless of temperature, so the goal during a heatwave is to adjust clothing, bedding, and room airflow around that unchanged safe-sleep foundation, never to change baby’s sleep position because of the heat. If you breastfeed, expect baby to want to nurse more often during hot weather; breast milk already provides the fluids a young baby needs, and there is generally no need for extra water on top of milk feeds before 6 months.
A cool bath or a damp washcloth on the forehead and the back of the neck before bedtime can help bring baby’s temperature down ahead of sleep, and keeping the sleep space as dark and well-ventilated as safely possible rounds out the basics that matter most on the hottest nights.
Hydration, outings, and travel during a heat wave
Babies and young children dehydrate faster than adults, so during a heat wave, offer extra drinks between feeds: for a breastfed baby, more frequent feeds at the breast are usually enough, while a baby already on solids and over 6 months can be offered small amounts of cool water. Below 6 months, only offer cooled boiled water if your pediatrician specifically advises it; breast milk or formula alone normally covers a young baby’s fluid needs even in extreme heat.
Never leave baby alone in a parked car or a closed-up pram, even for a moment, since the temperature inside can climb dangerously fast in direct sunlight. When you do go out, stay in the shade during the hottest part of the day, have baby wear a hat when out of the pram’s canopy, use a light cover or parasol on the pram rather than sealing it up (which blocks airflow), and keep a fan or air conditioner running indoors when available, alongside closed curtains and blinds during the day, to keep your home cool for naps and for the night ahead.
Heat waves carry real health risks for babies and children, and for children under five in particular, whose thermoregulation is still developing; keeping baby’s sleep environment cool is one of the few levers parents fully control, alongside clothing and hydration.
Repeated heatwaves across a summer make it worth building a simple routine: check on your baby once or twice during the night if the room stays hot, keep children cool during the day so they are not already overheated at bedtime, and remember signs of heat exhaustion, such as unusual tiredness, clamminess, or a lack of the usual wet nappies, warrant medical attention rather than a wait-and-see approach. Dehydration and heat exhaustion escalate faster in babies than in older children, so acting early to protect your baby, rather than waiting for the room to feel cooler outside, is the safer default once your baby is 6 months old and beyond.
Important: Mothair is a wellness tracking device for infants. It is not a medical device under EU Regulation 2017/745 (MDR) and never replaces professional medical care. The information in this article comes from public scientific sources and does not constitute medical advice, consult your pediatrician for any question about your baby’s health or sleep, especially during extreme heat.
FAQ
Is a heatwave really dangerous for baby’s sleep?
Yes. A 30-year case-crossover study in Montreal found that on days with a maximum temperature of 29°C or higher, infants had 2.78 times greater odds of dying from SIDS compared with days at 20°C (Auger et al., 2015). Overheating is a recognized, modifiable SIDS risk factor, not just a comfort issue.
What is the ideal room temperature for baby during a heatwave?
Pediatric guidance generally targets 18 to 20°C for baby’s room. During a heatwave this is often impossible to reach; the priority becomes keeping the room as cool as airflow and shade allow, and dressing baby in one light layer rather than chasing an exact number.
How can I tell if my baby is overheating at night?
Check the back of baby’s neck or chest, not their hands or feet, which are normally cooler. Sweating or damp hair, flushed cheeks, a hot chest, rapid breathing, a fine heat rash, and unusually restless or broken sleep are the main signs of overheating.
Should I still put baby on their back to sleep during a heatwave?
Yes, back sleeping remains the safest position regardless of temperature. During a heatwave, focus on removing excess layers, using a light sleep sack instead of loose blankets, and cooling the room, rather than changing baby’s sleep position.
For more on the broader safe-sleep picture beyond heat, see our guide on SIDS prevention and our science-backed room temperature guide.
Key Takeaways
Overheating during a heatwave is a documented, modifiable SIDS risk factor: odds of SIDS were 2.78 times higher above 29°C than at 20°C in a 30-year study (Auger et al., 2015).
Heat stress can raise SIDS risk both directly and by disturbing the autonomic functions that regulate breathing and heart rate during sleep (Bach & Libert, 2022).
Clothing and bedding, not the room’s exact temperature reading, are the biggest levers parents actually control.
Check the back of baby’s neck or chest, not hands or feet, to judge whether baby is overheating.
Back sleeping stays the safest position regardless of heat; adjust layers and airflow, never baby’s sleep position.
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