As a parent, I often worry about my baby’s body temperature when he sleeps. Too cold or too hot will make the baby feel uncomfortable. When it is hot, it is often difficult to keep our children cool and comfortable, and when it is colder, we worry about how to keep our babies warm without overheating.
In order to make the baby sleep more comfortably, I have studied a lot of the baby’s sleeping bags. During the research, I found that the textile industry has developed a rating system, which can help us to determine a more comfortable temperature for our baby. This rating is “TOG”.
What Is TOG Rating?
TOG stands for Thermal Overall Grade. It’s a standard of measurement in the textile industry to indicate how warm a garment is. It can be applied to everything from baby blankets to duvets and comforters. Another way to think about it is, that TOG determines the weight of a garment. TOG ratings help parents pick the best fabrics to keep their babies at a comfortable and safe sleeping temperature.
Why Is TOG Important?
Babies cannot add or reduce clothes according to the ambient temperature, especially at night, making it easy to overheat or catch a cold. Sleep sacks are given a TOG rating, which helps parents determine the right sleep sack based on their specific circumstances. A sleep sack for winter will have a higher TOG rating, while a sleep sack for the summer will have a lower TOG rating.
How To Choose The Right TOG Rating For Your Baby?
TOG rating and temperature go hand-in-hand. TOG ratings are specific to fabrics, not climate, it’s important to note the TOG rating on any given product. Some fabrics may feel soft and thick but have a low TOG rating due to cooler material, while others, the thinner fabric may have a higher TOG rating because the garment may not be as breathable.
Meanwhile, Determining the right TOG sleeping bag for your baby depends on the outside weather and how that impacts the temperature inside, specifically in the room the baby is sleeping in.
Here is a TOG chart to give you an idea of how to choose:
What TOG Sleeping Bag To Use For Babies In Different Seasons?
The lower the TOG rating, the cooler the sleep sack. So in the summer, a TOG 1 sleep sack or lower could be ideal. Again, this depends on the climate as well as the temperature in the baby’s sleep space.
The higher the TOG rating, the warmer the sleep sack. So in the winter, sleep sacks with a TOG rating of 2.5 or higher are ideal. Again, this depends on the climate as well as the temperature in the baby’s sleep space.
Remember, as you are determining the right Sleep Sack or Swaddle TOG rating for your child, you’ll want to keep the following in mind:
• The ideal room temperature for a baby to sleep in is 20°-22°
• Do not dress your baby in more than one layer than you as an adult would wear to be comfortable in that environment
• Check your child’s temperature to make sure that their extremities (hands, feet, and head) are not too hot or too cold to the touch.
•When checking your baby’s temperature, their tummy and chest should feel warm and dry, not sweaty or cold. This is a sign that they are dressed too hot or too cold.
When it comes to what sleep sack is the best for all-around wear, the 0.6 TOG we produced is perfect for both warm and cool climates. Our sleep sacks are lightweight and breathable for year-round use. The lightweight and breathable 1.2 TOG we produced is perfect for both warm and cool climates and can be worn from newborn through toddlerhood.