Bedtime has always been a time that you treasure and look forward to. After all, that feeling of laying your head on a soft, plump pillow as you curl up in the duvet at the end of a long, hard day is one of the best in the world. A moment to yourself in which you can truly relax.

Now that you have a baby, you obviously want to make sure that they’re as comfortable as they can be during their naps and bedtime. However, up until now, you’ve been preparing their sleeping space without a pillow. Now that your baby is nearing 1 year old, you wonder if it will soon be time to add one to their cot.

It’s completely natural to want your baby’s sleeping space to be as cosy and comfortable as possible. However, there are rules in place about a baby’s sleeping environment for safety reasons, so it’s always better to explore what is recommended before adorning their sleeping area as you wish.

So, to help you learn more about this subject, let’s first outline when it is safe for your baby to use a pillow.

When is it safe for my baby to use a pillow?

Although it may seem strange for you to sleep with a pillow and your baby to sleep without one, if your baby is under 1 year old, then they definitely should not be sleeping with a pillow. Babies under the age of 1 year should only sleep on a firm mattress with nothing else (save perhaps a thin sheet that’s been safely tucked under the mattress below their nipple line). According to the American Academy of Paediatrics, this is because extra items within the cot increase the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). Extra items count as things like blankets, quilts, stuffed animals, toys, cot bumpers, sheepskins, or anything attached to the cot slats. Sleeping with other items like these increases a baby’s chance of strangulation, suffocation, and entrapment.

Now that we’ve defined that it is not safe for babies under the age of one year to use a pillow, let’s delve into the risks of using a pillow for babies, so you can feel completely informed on the subject.

What are the risks of using a pillow for babies?

SIDS Risk. As mentioned, one of the main reasons why pillows should not accompany a baby who is under one year old while they sleep is because of the SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) risk. During the first year, and particularly in their first 4 months of life, babies are at the highest risk of SIDS. Although some parents wonder whether using a firm pillow would sufficiently avoid the risk of SIDS, this is still not recommended.

Risk of suffocation. Using pillows can increase your baby’s risk of suffocation, as they have a lot less head and neck strength than older children and adults. This means that if a baby turned their head into a pillow, they would struggle to readjust and could run the risk of suffocating themselves.

Risk of entrapment and strangulation. Having any loose objects in your baby’s sleeping space, such as pillows, can also increase your baby’s risk of strangulation or entrapment. This is because if a baby becomes entrapped underneath a pillow, they simply don’t have the strength to remove themselves.

Now that we’ve gone through why your baby shouldn’t sleep with a pillow if they are under 1 year old and the risks associated with this, we thought you would benefit from learning how you can keep your baby cosy, warm, and comfortable without a pillow or blanket.

How do I keep my baby cosy, warm, and comfortable without a pillow or blanket?

Dressing your baby in a sleep sack or a wearable blanket are both great ways to keep them cosy and warm during the times that they are asleep. In addition, you could swaddle your baby to help them feel cosy and secure. However, it’s important to note that you should stop swaddling your baby when they are between 2 and 4 months old. This is because during this time they are learning how to roll, and a swaddle will hinder their ability to do so and even cause SIDS or strangulation.

When can my baby use a pillow?

From Unii’s Baby Sleep Journey, we share when your baby can use a pillow.