Is It Bad To Sleep In A Hoodie?

It’s usually fairly safe for healthy adults that are fully mobile, unintoxicated adult to wear and sleep in a hoodie, sweatshirt or hooded shirt when it is cold. However, it’s very hazardous for a baby, or toddler to sleep in a hoodie or other hooded item of apparel to the threat of suffocation, overheating, and Sudden Unexpected Infant Death Syndrome. Of course, pants are perfectly safe, if you couldn't help but wonder is it was bad to wear them to bed as well.

The Dangers of Letting Babies Sleep in Hooded Pajamas

This hazard, however, extends if you have an impairment that would otherwise obstruct your ability to free your airways if they were to become restricted.

Similarly, this chance will increase if you’re intoxicated and unable to free yourself if the drawstrings are tangled on a close-by fixture and/or if your face becomes covered by the fabric – even though the level of intoxication would likely have to be pretty intense to hinder your involuntary emergency reflexes.

But what about babies?

It is very dangerous to have your child sleep in a hoodie, a hooded onesie, or a hooded pajama set because the loose cloth of the hood could result in suffocation. Even if you are in the house, it remains a concern.

More specifically, a scientific investigation found that an estimated 30% of sudden unexplained deaths can be attributed to accidental suffocation. And even though hooded clothing items have not been addressed directly in that study, the causes of such suffocation included falling asleep face down and having the face covered – with ‘excess clothing’ being mentioned as an additional risk factor.

Whilst you can also assume that putting the hood down may help to prevent potential suffocation, your child can also put it back up on their own. The hood can also cause overheating – a dangerous aspect in Sudden Unexpected Infant Death Syndrome.

The Risks Associated with Kids Sleeping in A Hoodie

Suffocation

Suffocation is the largest risk associated with toddlers sleeping in hooded clothing. Avera states in their training for Preventing Suffocation and Strangulation in Young Children manual to never put infants to sleep with a hood, bib, or any other object that could get tangled around the neck.

Suffocation will more than likely occur when the hood obstructs or blocks the airways either as a result of your toddler rolling into the extra material or having the hoodie cover the face. Babies generally lack the dexterity to remove such obstructions themselves, and pajamas can restrict mobility even further. And if the clothing item has drawstrings, strangulation and choking also become a risk factors as well.

If your child’s face becomes blanketed by the hoodie, or they roll into a position that obscures breathing, then the exhaled air can come to be trapped and is re-breathed – resulting in high levels of carbon dioxide, much less oxygen, asphyxia, and loss of life. This is any parents worst nightmare.

Overheating

Hooded pajamas, rompers, hoodies and onesies can also additionally create heat stress – which is a precursor to sudden infant death syndrome.

More specifically, severe elevations in temperature can cause heatstroke – something often occurring in cold countries where toddlers are often blanketed in various layers to keep warm. While they may begin to sweat as a result of the outfit or bedding, they do not understand what is going on with their body.

The face is a focal point of eliminating heat, so if the toddler had been lying face down and/or have their face blanketed with a duvet, blankets, or hooded clothing then this may result in heat stress that could lead to death. This is also something to be considered when dressing your child for the day ahead.

Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID)

Allowing your child to sleep in hooded pajamas has been found to lead to SUID as a result of the mixture of suffocation and overheating factors. Sometimes also known as SIDS or ‘cot death’, the NHS warns that infants younger than six months are the most at risk – mainly if they were born prematurely or with a low weight.

However, SUID can be a fear up until your baby is a year old and probably past this point too. SUID is still being studied and the exact cause is unknown, however, regarded chance risk factors can consist of:

• Loose bedding
• Blankets and pillows in toddler beds 
• The baby is napping on their tummy
• Overheating due to clothing, blankets, or the room being too warm
• Mother smoking during pregnancy.
• Young mothers
• Exposure to second-hand smoke

According to research, toddlers susceptible to SUID can also have developmental defects in their intelligence that can intervene with their capacity to regulate their breathing and/or body temperature. If this is the case, putting the child to sleep with a hoodie will pose an even bigger threat of overheating and suffocation.

Many believe that healthy kids will wake up and cry if they feel warm, hot or uncomfortable when they are in bed. Unfortunately, kids susceptible to SUID have been found to lack this reflex in the brain, allowing them to sleep through the entire ordeal. This is one of the more serious health problems faced by kids that many people are not aware of. Especially when it comes to little ones getting hot while in bed.

While SUID is a tricky condition to understand, knowing what can contribute to it, like wearing loose clothing to bed or too many layers, can help prevent your child from the potential health consequences. Based on this, we believe that it is a bad idea to let kids wear a hoodie to bed at night. Don't let a simple choice at bedtime take away life's simple joys. This is our one word of advice, don't let zippers, duvet or hoodies put your kid at risk. It is completely safe for a healthy adult to wear a hoodie to block out the cold, and therefore should be able to wear their favorite hoodie to bed.

Related Questions

Are Zip-Up Pajamas Safe?

Zip-up pajamas are not entirely safe for babies to sleep in. There have been reports that toddlers had been nearly strangled when put to bed while wearing a onesie with a zipper when the front of the onesie was once pushed against the toddler’s airway when she moved around while sleeping – with the zip becoming caught.

Is it Safe for Your Toddler to Go To Bed in a Hoodie?

It is not safe for a little one to be left sleeping in a cotton hoodie due to the risk of SUID. While the risk seems to reduce once your baby is older than 12 months, there is some risk of suffocation – especially if drawstrings are in the clothing. The right kind of pajamas are the kind that don't have excess material - plus they're easy to wash. It's fine if you choose to wear a hoodie, but don't let your kid.

Are Hoodies Dangerous for Kids to Play In?

Hoodies can be dangerous – and even deadly – for little ones to play in; one case found that a 7-year-old female died when the hoodie became tangled on a door handle.

Hoodies Can Be Dangerous for Babies

Even though you can purchase warm hooded clothes, pajamas, rompers, and onesies for babies, it doesn’t mean that they are the safest options to wear or sleep in at bedtime. Because even in healthy children, the hood offers the chance of suffocation (and strangulation if a drawstring is present).

In the case of children who are predisposed to SUID syndrome, the dangers extend even more because their brains may lack the ability to relay the protective wake-up signal that makes them cry and get help if they start to overheat or suffocate due to re-breathing while in bed. This is preventable, and the last thing you want is to be in the house, unaware that your child needs help.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Fred Felton          

Content Creator / Editor

Fred Felton is a copywriter, editor and social media specialist based in Durban, South Africa. He has over 20 years of experience in creating high end content. He has worked with some of the biggest brands in the world. Currently Fred specialises in the winter outdoors space, focussing on skiing and snowboarding. He is also a keynote speaker and has presented talks and workshops in South Africa.