How Long Should Newborn Wear Baby Mittens? This is one question a lot of mothers keep asking, and in this article we answered all the questions popping in your mind about baby mittens and how long your baby should wear them.
You see, looking at the smile popping out of the face of a newborn baby almost after getting a whip at the buttocks by the nurse always leaves me in a world of total joy and confusion. Their tiny and fragile state could make one scared of mistakenly breaking a bone or something in them notwithstanding their weight at birth.
Immediately after their clean up, they are geared up with various wears ranging from cap to mittens. Almost appearing like astronaut prepped for outer space. Among the wears worn on a baby at birth and expected to be worn for some time, mitten stands as the very one that pops the constant question of ‘why’?
Does your Newborn Need Baby Mittens?
Baby mitten is gloves made from cotton worn on the hand with intention to cover the entire hands of the baby. It is meant to protect it from so many things depending on the nursing mother’s fears. At the start of antenatal and few weeks to delivery, an expected mother’s list of items to be gotten as listed by the hospital management includes mittens.
In short, mittens are expected to be among the items to be found in baby’s wardrobe. The reason is on the expected benefits which may range from protection against attracting germs, which could be transferred to the mouth, to scratching of their new beautiful face unknowingly, with their rather sharp nails.
The reason may look mild, but actually, after asking most mothers this question, and actually seeing a baby whose innocent face has been scarred by his very fingers, I came to the conclusion that indeed, baby mitten is needed for the protection of the baby’s face and health.
In an environment like those of third-world countries where the hospital ward is scrawling of germs as a result of untidiness, the baby may pick up germs which may be put into the mouth, most especially babies who suck a finger early.
How Long Should Newborn Wear Mittens?
A newborn should wear mittens for as long as necessary. How long therefore, is necessary? How Long Should Newborn Wear Baby Mittens?
Mittens are worn by Newborn babies under the age of nine months old, and shyly before one year old, because, within the first few weeks and months, babies do not have a control over their spontaneous moves which automatically puts their beautiful face in danger of being scarred by scratching.
Have this in mind, the worn mittens are not worn just to make the baby look fashionable, but basically for protection.
A nursing mother while reading this article is asking the question in her mind, and desirous to know the length of time required for her baby to wear mittens?
Her question is valid, but it’s dependent on the environment, and her baby’s reaction to it. An environment characterized by germs and you know that babies are prone to capturing them; such mother is required to keep the mittens worn on the baby for a long time, exceeding eight months with a cautious attempt to regularly cut the nails.
Secondly, the mother must dedicatedly watch out for any signs from the baby, either through rejection of mittens when about to be worn or tears expressed. This helps to indicate the baby’s readiness to do away with their mitts.
Thirdly, observe their spontaneous move or hand movements in the crib to notice if they are manageable enough. [Also Read: When to Lower the Crib for your Baby]
The choice of mitten’s fabric is as important as the length of time expected for the mittens to be worn. Don’t just purchase any mitten; purchase the right one.
The right one and safest at the moment is one whose material is hypoallergenic. The comfort of the baby when wearing the mittens will depend on the length of time they would desire to wear the mittens. As long as they are comfortable while wearing their mittens, then everything will be fine.
Finally, for parents who are sensitive enough and wish their babies to improve on their senses such as the sense of touch, discovering, feeling and exploring things and different textures in their new environment, may choose to do away with it when they are seven months or nine months depending on the weather condition of their place.
When Should Babies Stop Wearing Mittens At Night?
Night for babies seem to be their own morning when little sleep is gained while the mother struggles with sleep since she has labored enough during the day, from laundry to cooking, to taking care of the baby, and the adult baby – the husband.
Due to stress, the mother struggles to stay awake, leaving with the baby struggling with his or her reflexes. With such struggle, the baby may scratch the face with his or her sharp nails while the mother sleeps.
At night, the baby’s mittens should not be removed pending when the baby is able to manage his or her reflexes.
How Many Mittens Does a Newborn Need?
The number of mittens a newborn baby need is dependent on choice, fund and style of the parents. Basically, a newborn baby should have two pairs of mittens but can be more if the parent are fashionable or rich, and desire their newborn baby to wear mittens according to the color of his or her clothes.
Are Mittens Bad for Babies? – Baby Mittens Pros And Cons
Basically, mittens have come to stay, and occupy a part of your baby’s clothing with no known plan to be obsolete soonest. Like everything on earth, mittens usage has its pros and cons. So here are the pros and cons of your baby wearing mittens.
The 9 Pros of Wearing Mittens
1. It ensures a scratch-free skin
Sharp nails on babies produces an urge to scratch themselves as a result of their spontaneous movements which ends up leaving marks or wounds on their delicate skin that may become scars. This scratching is dangerous because, your baby has a skin that is easily hurt, and such wounds might get infected, most especially in an environment exposed to germs. Leave the mittens on them as long as their nails are long and their reflexes are unmanaged.
2. It ensures constantly clean hands
Do you know that babies love to pick things? Do you also know that, they put their hands or those things picked in their mouths? Their hands are kept clean when they are tucked away in mittens. This tucked away hand ensures that sickness is prevented as a result of germs.
3. The ‘One size fits all’ attribute
Mittens have an attribute that makes it able to fit all sizes. This is unique indeed. Your baby can wear them as long as they need to, no matter the speed in growth due to its uniqueness of size.
4. It ensures warmth to the hands during cold season
Mittens can also be called warmers, especially during the cold seasons and nights. It helps to prevent baby’s tiny hands from getting cold. Your baby’s need for comfort during cold season and nights is assured by it.
5. It ensures a Cozy breastfeeding
The pain that comes from the squeezing of a breastfeeding mother from her baby whose nails are cut short can be termed ‘painful’ but it is excruciatingly painful when the nails aren’t cut. The pain can be reduced or avoided if they are wearing mittens, therefore leading to a cozy experience whenever you are breastfeeding them.
6. It ensures an avoidance of thumb sucking
Using mittens can help your baby avoid thumb sucking because the mittens’ fabric is not comfortable to nibble on. If your baby is not a fan of thumb sucking, you can do away with the mittens.
7. Attractive shade of colors
Babies get attracted to color which build their psychomotor. The various shade of color helps parents that are fashion driven to choose from an array of colors the one that matches the baby’s overall.
8. It enables babies to be at peace
Babies easily disturb whenever they are in discomfort arising from cold or scratched skin. The usage of mittens ensures that babies stay in peace in their cot while their mother face other need except in times when they are in need of breastfeeding.
9. It is fashionable
The usage of mitten makes the baby appear fashionable and presentable to visitors. It makes the baby appear like a model on a runway.
The 3 Cons of Wearing Mittens
1. It causes rashes
The responsive nature of some fabrics is high. Some mittens have garters that keep them on your baby’s hands which have a strong possibility of resulting in a serious rash or unwanted skin effect.
2. It most times gets misplaced
Some parents prefer to use ribboned mittens for their babies which often get misplaced due to their loose nature. This exposes it to a great possibility that one or both of them will be lost, especially when in transit.
3. It could be an agent of sickness
Even though mittens may help to prevent germs that cause diseases, it can also be responsible for sickness when not changed or washed regularly. A dirty mitten can be put into the mouth or sucked which may lead to sickness.
Conclusion On How Long Should Newborn Wear Baby Mittens
A lot of mothers and caregivers may not have known much about Mittens, but I believe this article was able to answer some of the questions you had wanted to ask about How Long Should Newborn Wear Baby Mittens and other questions relating to Baby mittens. Hope this article helps? Let us know in the comment section!
