Summer Heat: Tips for Keeping Kids Cool at Bedtime
With a heatwave on the horizon, the days will begin to grow warmer, and inevitably so will the nights. Attempting to sleep in hotter temperatures can become a struggle, especially for young children. That’s why it’s crucial to have a reliable HVAC system in place to ensure your indoor environment remains cool and comfortable, allowing you and your family to rest peacefully during those warm nights.
With this in mind, we teamed up with the experts at TheDozyOwl.co.uk and spoke exclusively to Lisa Lewis, Sleep Consultant, for some expert tips on how to keep children cool at bedtime:
Sunlight and Hydration
Preparation begins during the day!
Children exposed to sunlight from 8am to midday wake fewer times in the night so some time playing outdoors is key.
Outdoor play is tiring so keeping your child well hydrated during the day will also aid their journey into sleep during the night. This doesn’t have to be through drinking water, be creative with fruit, milk and homemade ice lollies.
Stress-free Bedtime Routines
After an adventure-filled day, a calm and stress-free bedtime routine is imperative. Stress causes more anxiety and greater difficulty in getting to sleep, so try to keep this time of night calm and restful for all family members.
A way to calm down would be to incorporate a warm / tepid (not cold) bath before bed. This will not only aid in stress reduction but raises the core body temperature slightly which enables the body to drop its temperature by a degree which we need to fall asleep.
Keeping the Bedroom Cool
Whether you keep your windows open or closed, buying special blackout netting for the bedroom will aid in keeping the room cool and dark for bedtime. The optimal temperature for the bedroom is between 16 – 20 degrees Celsius.
To enhance the performance of your air conditioning system and ensure it maintains the desired temperature, a reputable service provider such as Air Conditioning Sydney can be of great assistance.
Keeping an air conditioning system or a fan on at night-time with some ice in front will help to circulate cool air around the room. You may also want to schedule a preventive maintenance and ac repair with an Air Conditioning Diagnostics company before the summer season start. Homeowners say the AC repair in Clifton NJ is the best. An HVAC professional will take a look at your carrier serial number to figure out the age of your unit and know the measures to take to repair or maintain it.
Clothing and Cool Bedding
Although many adults will prefer to sleep without clothing, light cotton nightwear is better than no bed clothing for children. This will allow the skin to breathe, and draw sweat away from the body at night.
On especially warm nights additional measures can be taken to ensure that the arrival into bed is cooler. Keeping a pillowcase in the freezer for an hour before bedtime is only a short-term fix as your child’s body heat will warm it back up quite quickly.
Alternatively, a sock filled with rice and put in the freezer before bed will cool down their pressure points to provide some relief.