This may come as a surprise to many Vietnamese parents. Sleeping outdoors with young children has been surprising, even more surprising is that even in cold winter weather with freezing temperatures, there is snow, mothers in Northern Europe still leave strollers outside stores, cafes, parks, and warm-wrapped babies still sleep soundly.
The mothers here believe that exposure to the icy wilderness can strengthen the immune system of children, although this has never been proven by a serious scientific study.
This experience has been in this area for many years. Danish musician Amalie Bruun shared a post in which she said her 4-month-old son spent most of his time sleeping in their garden. This post prompted other Nordic parents to share their experiences with similar practices, but it didn’t stop there.
Some childcare centers in Sweden also let children rest in cold weather. For example, Forskolan Orren, a preschool in Stockholm, lets all children sleep outside until they are 3 years old. One group at this school spends all their time outside, from 9 am to 3 pm every day!
In Nordic countries like Denmark, Sweden, Norway, or Finland, you can easily see quiet strollers and prams sitting alone with sleeping babies inside, even on a cold winter day.
Even below 0 degrees, they still let their children sleep in outdoor cribs. Many parents here believe that sleeping like this supports various aspects of their children’s health. They believe that napping in fresh air, whether in summer or peak winter, reduces the risk of children getting sick with coughs and colds. They also claim that their infants sleep better when outside.
A study conducted in 2008 with parents in northern Finland showed that children nap longer when outdoors. They found that this process typically starts when the child is 2 weeks old and is typically done once a day. Parents say they are very happy to let their children sleep outside in temperatures as cold as -15°C (5°F), keeping them comfortable by wrapping them in woolen clothes and outer coats.
There is not much clear research on this, but many parents here say that their children tend to sleep longer when placed outdoors. 66% of Finnish parents said their children seemed more active after napping outside compared to napping indoors, while 88% said the children “clearly enjoyed” sleeping outside.
Traditional outdoor sleeping
Nordic parents are no strangers to this way of letting children sleep outdoors. This is even encouraged by midwives. Allowing infants to nap outside is believed to promote child development, support better health, and is a long-standing tradition in child rearing here.
Many Nordic parents believe that there is no bad weather, only insufficiently warm clothing for children.
Because of this belief, young children in Northern Europe can go outside at any time of the year, as long as they are dressed properly. Educators in Denmark and Sweden also apply a similar concept to teaching by encouraging outdoor learning and having children learn in the forest.
Expert warnings
Although most parent experiences are positive, experts and consultants are still cautious about this reality. Infants sleeping outside in freezing temperatures can have benefits, but there are also risks when the weather is too cold. The body of a newborn baby does not regulate body temperature like an adult, so the baby’s temperature can drop rapidly up to four times faster than an adult. Therefore, to let a child sleep outside without keeping them warm, the risk of the child’s body temperature dropping can increase significantly.
In this area, they are also fairly confident because Northern Europe is a relatively safe region with little crime. Like many other countries where children sleep outside, even a slight lapse of attention can result in the child being kidnapped.
Therefore, letting children sleep outdoors is still an experimental way and a cultural tradition in the region that has not been scientifically studied to see the real benefits of this practice. Therefore, mothers do not risk applying it because it may not be suitable anymore, even though it is a tradition, they have ensured that the clothes and equipment are very well prepared, the atmosphere is cold but fresh in order to dare to let the child sleep outside, and of course, even their clothes, prams, and strollers are meticulously prepared.
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