Baby Sleeping Bag Guide

You may have heard the name Grobag from various new parents. If you’re not familiar with this brand, then allow me to provide some useful information about them. I’ll give a brief overview of the organization behind the Grobag baby sleeping bag and then explain why their name is synonymous with excellent baby bedding products. After reading through this post, you’ll hopefully have a better understanding of what Grobag can do for you as a parent with an infant child.

The idea of using sleeping bags for babies stemmed from Europe. It was very popular (in Holland particularly) because of the better sleep that babies can have as well as the parents. You see, traditionally blankets and sheet covers were used to keep babies warm, but the babies would tend to easily kick them off during their sleep. They then would wake up crying because of the cold air or other reasons. With sleeping bags, babies tend to sleep soundly and longer through the night. The people who started Grobag immediately understood this, being new parents themselves. This was basically how the UK based company was born.

Why is Grobag so popularly considered to have one of the highest safety standards in their sleeping bags? Firstly, they have worked closely with FSID (Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths) to develop sleeping bags for babies with health and safety at the forefront of their minds. FSID focuses on researching into and promoting safe sleeping practices.

The primary safety features of a Grobag baby sleeping bag include a zip-guard and chin-guard. How these work is that once you zip your baby up in the sleeping bag, the head of the zip is tucked away under a cover, which is secured via a snap-on button under the chin. The purpose here is two-fold: firstly, it prevents your baby from accidentally undoing the zip during sleep; and secondly, since the zip is not exposed, the baby won’t somehow hurt himself or herself by fiddling/playing with it.

Safety aside, Grobag baby sleeping bags are available in a wide range of sizes, TOG rating and designs. There are four sizes and are suitable for an age range from birth to 6 years old. Just remember to know your infant’s weight and height to get the right fit. There are three levels of TOGs, which basically measures warmth (higher equates to being warmer) – 0.5 tog is ideal for hot weather and warm rooms (24-27 C); 1.0 tog is suitable for warm weather (21-23 C); and 2.5 tog is ok for all year usage (16-20 C).

Another great feature is that they possess chemical free fire retardant polyester filling. A useful bonus that is bundled with each Grobag baby sleeping bag is a nursery thermometer. This would help a parent regular check if the sleeping bag being has the appropriate level of warmth.

With so many reasons going for a Grobag baby sleeping bag, there is hardly any excuse to not choose it.

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When you go shopping for a sleeping bag for baby, it is vital to choose the one that suits the best. In this post, I want to cover the fundamental factors that should form part of your decision in picking out this essential garment for you baby. The bases for these factors are the baby’s health, safety and comfort. Once these things are taken care of, you can think about the aesthetics of the baby sleeping bag. Once you’ve read through this post, you should have a clearer understanding and hence better equipped to ask the right questions of the sales people behind the sleeping bags.

The first criterion is the size of the sleeping bag. You want one that is not too small and not too big. On one hand, if it is too loose, your baby may kick it off during the night and he or she would end up cold and unprotected, which defeats the purpose to use a baby sleeping bag in the first place (as supposed to a sheet cover). An even more terrifying scenario is that a baby’s head can slip through the neck hole of a sleeping bag that is too loose and suffocate inside – SID related deaths.

On the other hand, a sleeping bag that is too tight would lead to discomfort and restless sleep for both the baby and the entire family. The sleeping bag should be long enough for the baby to move his or her legs around. Baby sleeping bags should have designations indicating the age range, weight and length of the baby for which they are appropriate. So know your baby’s height and weight before going shopping for a sleeping bag. Better yet, bring your baby along.

Another contributing factor to health and comfort is the material from which the baby sleeping bag is made. Firstly, be aware of any allergic reactions that your baby might have to certain cloth materials. Most baby sleeping bags are made from cotton, fleece and quilted materials.

Next, you want to consider the temperature at which your baby would be comfortable. The sleeping bags generally have what is called a TOG rating. It is simply a unit of measurement for the level of warmth that a material provides. The higher the number, the warmer the material. Again, analogous to choosing the right size, you want the appropriate level of warmth for your baby. You don’t want your baby to be too cold and end up catch a cold, but you also don’t want your baby to overheat. You’ll need to regularly check your baby to ensure the material you’re using and the clothing he or she is wearing underneath is the right combination for comfort.

Remember that your baby’s health is important so choosing the right baby bedding should be done carefully.

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