6 Week Old Sweats in His Car Seat

Hi, my son is now 5 1/2 months and has always sweated a lot starting from about 1 month. In the car seat we dress him in short sleeve onesies and no pants or socks but we put a blanket on top of him. The blanket gave us flexibilty so when he was cold we could tuck it in around him and if he was hot we can adjust it. Also, when he was newborn we'd put a cap on his head to help keep his head warm.
Babies can't regulate their body temperature which is why they sweat easily or get cold easily.
I hope this helps.

I agree with Marie, children can't regulate their body temp BUT they can sweat and they also can get cold so there is a balance that needs to be maintained. I will check around into breathable fabrics and PM you if I find any. And NO i do not htink she needs to contact her peditrician immediately....the child gets hot!

Does the baby sweat any other time? I didn't think that babies that young could sweat and that is why you are supposed to regulate their temperature so much because they can over heat very easily.

Your friend should talk to her pediatrician immediately to be sure there is no medical issue. If there isn't then the Dr. should be able to give her some good advice.

The bottom line is, if the baby is uncomfortable the baby should be kept home as much as possible to avoid the discomfort of travel. Infants are fragile and we need to adjust our schedule to accomodate them not the other way around.

Good luck.

I hope Im not going out on a limb her but what culture does your friend come from? My family is Latino and I live in a predominantly Asian and Indian populated area (and have my entire life by virtue of the diversity here in the Bay Area) and these three cultures tend to layer and blanket their infants and children to extremes. As a teacher, I have experienced this also: regardless of what the season or weather is, Mexican, Asian, and Indian parents will often layer their infants, toddlers, and small children in anywhere from 3 to 5 layers of clothing, blankets. I have had many a client and student who, upon arrival at school, has to be stripped of jackets, long sleeved shirts, short sleeved shirts, pants, shorts - almost as if their parents have put every piece of clothing in their closet at once! More than a few times in my professional career I have had to have meetings with parents and families that continue to dress their children in clothing inappropriate for school and play, much less life! If she is from one of the above mentioned cultures, she was probably taught this over layering habit by her own mother and family members, and doesn't even realize it is this what is causing her newborn to sweat. This BY NO MEANS has anything to do with race, they are just cultural norms!

As a rule of thumb, tell her to dress her child as she would dress and blanket herself in accordance with the weather of the day and the season. If he sweats in his carseat, suggest she not put a blanket over him when riding in it, to remove any jackets that he is wearing, and just leave him in his typical little daily outfit - if he seems cold to the touch, cover him. If not, then he is probably fine. Infants DO regulate their own body temperature, unless they have some preexisting condition or brain damage that effects that particular physiological function.

Many parents also use the infant carrier as a sort of "perma bed": if their infants fall asleep in it, they leave them strapped in it to sleep, to eat, to go out and about. Its not really meant for the infant to be in it as often as many parents leave their infants in them, so suggest that she only use the infant seat for car riding, and have her take him out of it and put him in the stroller, sling, bjorn, or whatever she likes to use for transport of the baby when not in the car.

Hope this helps!