Nighttime is the time when children are most susceptible to colds because the temperature usually drops deeply, the body is more tired and the resistance is also weaker than during the day. Many parents think that just covering themselves with a thick blanket is enough, but in reality, there are habits that seem harmless but make children susceptible to colds, prolonged coughs, and even fever at night.
To limit the risk of your child catching a cold while sleeping, parents should pay attention to 5 important things:
1. Keep the bedroom temperature stable, avoid drafts
Many families have a habit of opening windows or turning on fans directly to the bed to "ventilate". However, late-night drafts can cause children to get cold in the chest and neck area, easily leading to coughing and stuffy nose.
It is best to keep the room airy but without direct wind blowing into the child, especially near dawn when the temperature drops to the lowest.
2. Don't wear too thick clothes that make children sweat
A common mistake of many parents is wearing too many layers of clothes because they are afraid their children will get cold. But when sleeping, children are easily hot and sweat. Sweat encountering cold will cause the body to lose heat faster, making children prone to flu.
Parents should dress their children warmly enough, prioritizing soft cotton materials that absorb well to avoid stuffiness and cold.
3. Pay attention to keeping your neck, chest and feet warm
Children get cold often starting from areas that easily lose heat such as the neck and feet. If the feet are cold, children are easily startled, do not sleep deeply and may wake up crying.
Parents can let children wear thin socks, use blankets to lightly cover the legs, or wear collared shirts to keep the temperature stable throughout the night.
4. Do not let the air conditioner be too cold or change the temperature continuously
Many families turn on deep air conditioning to make it easier to sleep, but this causes children to have dry nose, stuffy nose and easily get sore throats. In addition, constantly turning on and off air conditioning also causes temperatures to change suddenly, making children's bodies unable to adapt in time.
If using air conditioning, you should keep the temperature stable and moderate, avoid letting air conditioning wind blow directly into the child's face or chest.
5. Absolutely do not let children sleep when their hair is still wet
This is the reason why many children cough, run a nose, or have headaches the next morning. When hair is still wet, the head and neck are easily cold, especially at low temperatures at night.
Parents should dry their hair and blow-dry it gently before putting children in bed, especially for young children and children with weak resistance.
To avoid your child catching a cold at night, the most important thing is to maintain a stable sleeping environment, avoid cold winds and wear appropriate clothes. Just change a few small habits, children will sleep deeper, get less sick and be healthier every day.
