Blanket! Wait until your baby is at least 12 months old before letting them sleep with a blanket. Soft bedding in a baby’s sleeping area – like blankets and pillows – increases the risk of suffocation or sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Have your baby sleep in their crib, bassinet, or play yard with no loose bedding – just a tight-fitting sheet. It’s okay to put a thin, tight-fitting mattress pad under the sheet to protect against diaper leaks, though.
If your baby needs another layer for warmth, use a sleep sack or swaddle.
After 12 months, the likelihood of SIDS decreases significantly. The risk of suffocation also drops because most 12-month-olds can roll over, sit up, or move around if their face gets covered by a blanket or soft toy.
Here are other ways you can keep your baby safe while they sleep:
- Always put your baby on their back to sleep
- Place them on a flat surface without pillows, blankets, or stuffed animals
- Choose a safe crib, bassinet, or play yard. See our articles on the best bassinets, cribs, and play yards for tips on buying safe products.
- Use a firm mattress
- Don’t use crib bumpers
- Don’t co-sleep, but do share a room with your baby for the first 6 to 12 months
- Don’t let your baby sleep in a car seat, stroller, swing, or bouncer. If your baby falls asleep in one of these products, transfer them to a crib, bassinet, or play yard as soon as possible.
- Keep the temperature cool in your baby’s room so they don’t get overheated
- Give your baby a pacifier while they sleep, but don’t attach it to their clothing
Is swaddling safe?
Swaddling requires a blanket (or a sleep sack with wings that wrap around your baby’s arms). But letting your baby sleep with a blanket or any soft object before age 1 isn’t safe. So is swaddling safe?
The short answer is yes – until your baby is showing signs of rolling over. This is usually around 3 or 4 months, but can happen as early as 2 months. Once your baby can roll over, there’s an increased risk they could get tangled in their swaddle and suffocate.
Be sure to tightly swaddle your baby to prevent them from breaking free in their sleep, and make sure your baby sleeps on their back while swaddled.
How to keep your baby warm without a blanket
During the winter months, you may want your baby to have an extra layer to keep warm at night. Even if you’re concerned your little one is cold, it isn’t safe to put a blanket to their bed before they’re a year old.
There are other ways to keep your baby warm without a blanket. Begin by keeping their room between 68 and 72 degrees at night. Babies only need one more layer than you do to keep warm. So, if you’re comfortable in pajamas with a blanket, they’ll be okay with a onesie layered under a sleeper and a sleep sack or swaddle.
If you’re worried about your baby getting cold at night, you can also use sleep sacks made from warmer material, like fleece instead of cotton.
When can babies sleep with a pillow and other soft objects?
Once your baby is 12 months old, it’s okay for them to take a blanket or special toy to bed for comfort. At this age, your little one may be struggling with separation anxiety – so letting them take a lovey to bed may be your saving grace.
It’s still safest to keep their crib relatively empty – so don’t give your child a pillow until they’ve transitioned from the crib to a bed. It isn’t safe to use crib bumpers or sleep positioners like wedges, either. Since any extra items in your child’s crib pose the risk of suffocation, don’t let your baby sleep with stuffed animals before they’re a year old.
It’s safe to let your baby sleep with a pacifier, though – in fact, experts say sleeping with a pacifier can reduce the risk of SIDS. Just don’t attach it to your baby’s clothes or anything else with a string or ribbon (this is a strangulation risk). It isn’t safe to give your baby a pacifier attached to a stuffed toy, either.
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