Do Babies Need Night Lights?
When you have a baby in the house, you might have lots of questions running in your mind about his comfort. Setting up his nursery and getting his bedtime essentials right are some of the most important points that you would need clarity on. Does your baby feel comfortable when he sleeps?
Is the ambiance and comfort in the room good enough for him? Are the lights too dim or too bright? Are the night lights distracting him? These are common questions that come up in any parent’s mind. Here, we attempt to give you some clarity about babies’ requirements of night lights.
Do Babies Need Night Lights?
There is no straightforward answer to this question. It de[ends on your baby’s age and the reason why you need it. If your baby is less than one year old, he may wake up once or twice for nursing.
As a parent, you would be curious to look at your baby once every 2 hours or so. So, you feel comfortable when there is a night light in the room. After one year or so, your baby would or would not need a night light based on his habits.
During the first three years, your baby would not know the concept of fear; therefore, he would not be afraid of the dark at all. It would be perfectly fine for him to sleep in a dark room. However, if you had always put a night bulb in his nursery ever since he was a baby, he might show some resistance to sleep in a dark room.
If you do agree to fix night lights in your baby’s room, you have to remember some points. You have to think of ways to make the room look bright without distracting the baby. Keep reading to know about some tips that you should follow while placing night bulbs in your baby’s room.
What to note while placing a night light in your baby’s room?
- Never go for bright lights
Night bulbs should always be dim and of low-wattage. It is highly recommended that you use a 4-7 watt night bulb that comes in a shaded hue so that it doesn’t cause any strain for your baby’s eyes when he wakes up suddenly.
- Opt for soothing colors of night lights
Did you know that the color of the night light plays a huge role in the quality of sleep of your baby? Certain colors like blue are not good while choosing night lights, because it hampers the human body’s production of the sleep-inducing hormone, melatonin.
If you have to place a night light in your baby’s room, you should always opt for soothing shades such as yellow or red. These don’t create any strain on your baby’s eyes.
- Choose the position properly
Where should you place the night light in your baby’s room?
You have to invest considerable time on this question, as it has a direct impact on your baby’s sleep quality. During your baby’s first year, you will need the night light for changing his diapers or nursing him in the middle of the night.
Therefore, it is a prudent decision to place the night light near the tables or drawers that you use. You should ensure that you should never place a night light near your baby’s sleeping area.
You might have decided to buy a soothing night light. However, when you place it near the baby’s bed, it will still disturb him and cause undue strain on his eyes.
- Night lights are not compulsory items in your baby’s room
Until your baby turns three years old, he will not need night lights in his room at all. Even after this, you might want to consider placing a night light in his room, only if he gets scared frequently because of nightmares and dreams involving monsters!
If he continues to sleep uninterrupted in the dark, you don’t have to use night lights at all. Most of the times, it is the parents who fix night lights in their baby’s nursery for their own assurance.
How do you know if the bulb is too bright for your baby?
You have to switch on the night light that you have placed in your baby’s room after you switch off all the lights. Try to keep your head where you intend to make your baby sleep and then close your eyes.
Do you feel the light through your eyelids?
If yes, the night bulb is going to cause disturbance for your baby when he is sleeping. You have to reduce the wattage, or you may have to change the position of the night bulb, in that case.
Do you need any extra features?
While it is not necessary, it would still do you a lot of good when you choose modern night lights for your baby’s room. Today, there are lots of night lights that come with attractive but useful features such as automatic timers, auto-sensors, etc. You can adjust the timers to go off as soon as your baby goes off to sleep.
Types of Night Lights
Gone are the days when night lights came only in the form of plug-in models. Today, you will see lots of types of night lights in the market. You can use choose the one that suits your convenience and budget constraints the best.
Portable night lights that work with the help of batteries are very popular as they can be easily positioned anywhere you want. [easyazon_link identifier=”B072V21X9S” locale=”US” tag=”onlamps-20″]Projection night bulbs[/easyazon_link] that reflect images of stars, cartoon characters and animals can also be considered when your baby grows a bit.
As a baby grows, babies love to see these attractive images on the walls or ceilings of their rooms instead of the boring and mundane lights.
Now that you have a fair idea about placing night lights in your baby’s room, what are you waiting for?
Start your night light shopping right now to prepare your baby’s nursery. Regardless of the color and type of night light you choose, ensure that you put your baby’s comfort first so that his sleeping schedules won’t be disturbed.
