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Health & Fitness

Car Seat Standards Revamped

New guidelines revise at what age children should remain in a rear-facing position in vehicles.

There appears to be a lot of controversy and confusion about when to switch your child from a rear facing to forward facing position (in regards to car seats). I have done some research and here is some information to try and make your lives a bit easier and provide a better understanding of these new recommendations.

Traditionally, parents have been advised to keep their child in a rear-facing position until the age of 1 or until the child has reached 20 pounds. For many parents making the switch to the forward-facing position was a milestone to be celebrated along with the child’s first birthday.

However, it now seems there are new studies changing these guidelines and proving that the longer children are in a rear-facing position the safer they are in a vehicle.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends that parents should continue using a rear-facing car seat until their child is at least 2 years old. The agencies also note that the age of 1 is too soon and making the switch was merely a minimum requirement.

This advice seems to be based on a 2007 University of Virginia study that discovered that children younger than 2 are 75 percent less likely to suffer severe or fatal injuries in a crash if they are rear facing.

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According to Dr. Dennis R. Durbin, scientific co-director of the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the lead author of the policy statement, “A baby’s head is relatively large in proportion to the rest of his body, and the bones of his neck are structurally immature. If he’s rear facing, his entire body is better supported by the shell of the car seat. When he’s forward facing, his shoulders and trunk may be well restrained, but in a violent crash, his head and neck can fly forward.”

This new policy also advises that all children should be in a belt-positioning booster seat until they are 8 to 12 years old and stand at least 4-foot-9.

Not too long ago, most rear-facing car seats did not accommodate children weighing more than 20 pounds. Today, however, most manufacturers have increased the weight limits to 45 pounds. Thanks to this change, nearly all toddlers can remain rear facing beyond the age of 2.

Please ensure that your child is safe, that their car seat is up to code and properly installed. If you are unsure, visit any fire or police department; they will be able to assist you.

At the age of 7 months our daughter out grew her infant car seat by height, so we switched to a convertible car seat; she remains rear facing for the time being.

The one thing that bothered my husband and I from the start was not being able to see her, but we purchased a mirror that attaches to the back seat headrest. The mirror has some great features aside from the obvious one; it is musical, which soothes her and it has a light that allows us to so see her when it’s dark, both controlled by a small remote that clips onto our car’s visor.

Are you currently facing and challenges with your kids and their car seats?

For a chart on car seat age-weight recommendations click here.

For the state of Illinois laws, click here.

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