Infant's bed climate and bedding in the Japanese home

Objective: to assess the bed climate of infants in their homes in Japan. Design: descriptive, exploratory, non-experimental research design. Setting: the data were collected at the participants' homes under normal circumstances. Participants: nineteen healthy infants between the ages of two and five months. Their mothers, who joined a parenting class organised by a maternity clinic in Okayama, Japan, consented to participate in this study. Measurements and findings: we visited the infants' homes and interviewed their mothers concerning the types and use of bedding. The temperature and relative humidity of the bed climate at the back and foot of the bedding, and in the room were measured every minute for four consecutive days. Differences among the bed climates measured during three seasons (spring, summer, and autumn) were assessed by one-way analysis of variance. The bed temperature was higher for infants than for adults. No significant difference in temperature was noted among the three seasons. The bed temperature was about 36.0 °C when waterproof sheets and futon mattresses for children or adult were used. The average relative humidity of the bed climate at the back was highest in summer, followed by that in spring and autumn; the differences were significant. The use of waterproof sheets and futon mattresses for children in summer increased the relative humidity to 80% or more. The use of infant beds, sunoko drainboards, and cotton futon mattresses in summer was effective in reducing the bed humidity. Conclusions: these results suggest that nurse-midwives should advise the parents on comfortable bed climates for their infants, as well as how to select and use bedding for them.