Should Babies Sleep with a Nightlight?

In the beginning, babies sleep a lot. They wake up for a reason, mostly to signalize that they are hungry, need a diaper change, or when they feel some discomfort.

Many young parents are wondering should their baby sleep with a night light. Adults usually prefer full darkness. It is considered better for the overall sleep experience. Is this appropriate for babies, though?

We will answer this and some other questions, providing you with more insight into why babies need a dim light in the room. And if you decide to leave the night light on for your little sunshine, we listed our favorite products for that.

Hatch Baby Night Light and Time-to-Rise

This is not only a good nightlight; it is a sound machine and serves as an alarm clock as well. Of course, in the beginning, you will not use the last feature; however, when the baby grows, you will need it.

The Hatch Baby sound machine can be controlled from your phone. Convenient, with numerous specifications, it is a little pricey but definitely worth it.

Vovoly Rechargeable Nursery Night Light

This is a more cost-effective suggestion for a nightlight. The Vovoly Nursery Night Light is 100% baby safe and features a soft LED light.

You can adjust the brightness by touching the top, double-tap to power it on/off, and hold the logo if you need to switch the color temperature. The soft light could help the baby falling asleep immediately after breastfeeding.

Cute Bunny Portable Silicone Battery Led Nightlight Nursery

A Cute Bunny Nightlight for Baby’s Nursery? Yes, please! These adorable battery powered led night lights are a perfect addition to any nursery. They not only provide the soothing light that babies need to sleep but also add sweet decoration and character to your little one’s room. Available in six different colors:these nightlights will be sure to suit every taste and match every color scheme.

Moredig Night Light Projector

You have a child that is afraid of the dark. You want to make sure he or she can sleep soundly at night, but they are too afraid to turn off the lights and go to bed. What do you do? The Moredig Night Light Projector  lamp might be the perfect solution for your problem!

This is a night light projector with remote control and timer design projection lamp that projects stars on walls or ceilings in any color you like! It also has an automatic shutoff function so it doesn’t waste battery life when there’s no one around.

Loaded with 12 soothing songs, this project is designed to be the perfect nightlight for kids.

See also: Greatest Stuffed Animals for a Baby

5 Reasons to let the baby sleep with a night light

 

1. Babies do have nightmares too
Like every other creature, babies have positive and negative experiences throughout the day. Some of the negative ones cause anxiety and stress for the baby and get into the subconscious. These happenings might cause the baby to dream nightmares.

Sleeping with a soft warm light in the room would reassure the baby in the dark. It will help them to see more detail in their surroundings, thus making them feel safer.

2. Falling asleep easier every time

Even for a grown-up person waking up in complete darkness could be quite distressing. Babies wake up during the night a lot. This will affect your sleep too.

To minimize these situations, maybe you want to consider providing a dim nightlight.

It will add to the room a whole new cozy and safe atmosphere. This can help the baby to fall asleep on theirs own right after waking up.

3. Prevent separation anxiety

There comes a time when you want to put the baby in theirs room instead of your bedroom. That is completely understandable because, as parents, we also need some privacy.

Transitioning to the baby’s room can be hard sometimes if the baby is experiencing separation anxiety.

Good lighting will make the process smoother and will reduce the fear of the unknown. Sleeping alone in a room will be way more comfortable if the baby knows what is going on in the room.

4. Boosts visual development

If you want to increase the baby’s vision skills, you need to provide the baby with a dim light in the nursery. This stated as a fact by the American Optometric Association.

5. Parents can check on the baby

If you just had a newborn, the nightlight will help you see what the baby is doing without distracting the baby or waking them up.

Related: The Best Blackout Curtains for your Nursery

What to consider when buying a night light

 

• Are white and blue light appropriate?

 Blue and white hues in nightlights are common. However, stay away from purchasing them. They will not help the baby sleep better. In fact, they might make them more active and easily irritated.

This is true because they do not allow the baby’s brain to produce melatonin hormone, helping for a deeper sleep. The white and blue lights stimulate the body and prepare your baby for the daytime regime. Instead, choose traditional orange lighting.

• Nighttime feeding and diaper changing

Nightlight should be bright enough to allow you to see the baby when you need to change the baby’s diaper or feed them. However, make sure it is not too bright, so the baby can fall back asleep as soon as you leave them alone.

This part is vital if you are breastfeeding because you do not want to risk the baby’s safety. If you do not see what is going on, the milk can get into the baby’s eyes or nose.

See also: How to Dress Baby Under their Sleep Sack

When a child should stop using a night light?

There is no definite time when the child should stop using the nightlight. If sleep is not compromised to dim light, there should not be a problem. In fact, as we mentioned earlier, proper light at night helps with visual development.

Is night light necessary?

This is entirely up to your child. Some prefer nightlight to feel safer, while to others, it causes distraction and annoyance. If you try a high-quality one, you will know for sure if it works for your baby or not.

Wrap up

Should babies sleep with a night light on? Our team did thorough research, and we are positive it is better for you and the baby to put one in the baby’s room or near the crib.

It is safer since you will see the baby clearly during the night or when breastfeeding. The dim light improves vision and sleep if it’s a warm color, and you stay away from blue and white shades.

See also: How to Dress Baby Under Swaddle

Did you use a night light for your baby?

Tell us what worked for you in the comments!