Babies at risk of overheating

Babies are being put at an increased risk of cot death by being
kept too warm indoors.

A survey commissioned by the Foundation for the Study of Infant
Deaths (FSID) has revealed that more than half of parents do not
know what the correct room temperature should be for their
baby.

One in five thought it should be hotter than the recommended
temperature band of 16-20°C (61-68°F), potentially
putting their babies at risk of overheating.

When asked to estimate how warm it was in their own home, four
out of 10 parents thought their home was cooler than it actually
was, with only one in five correctly guessing the temperature
within two degrees Celsius. But only a third of families with young
babies have a room thermometer in the room where their baby
sleeps.  

The FSID has linked its survey to a study carried out in the
nineties, which compared the circumstances of 325 babies who died
as cot death with 1,300 who survived.

The mothers of the babies who died were more likely to have
worried about their baby becoming too cold, whereas the mothers of
the babies who survived were more worried about their babies
becoming too hot. 

www.sids.org.uk/fsid