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MrsDash

Mon, Apr 02 2012, 11:29 pm

Please take the time to ensure that your child is restrained properly in a vehicle. I can't stress enough how important it is. It can literally be the difference between life, and death. The whole process can be time consuming, and inconvenient, but that doesn't constitute jeopardizing the well-being of our children.

Here's a great article posted on The Lakewood Scoop.

http://tiny.cc/zj65bw

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 9:58 am

Thank you for posting this. I have been contemplating writing a safety article to a local Jewish magazine out of concern for the lack of safety I see regarding young children in a car.

That being said, I think he completely minimized the risk of internal decapitation. Those words are harsh, but reality isn't always so nice. He added in an after the fact that the head won't be snapped back when rear facing. The truth is that the most important reason to leave young children in the car rear facing as long as possible is because their spinal structure is still forming and not completely strong enough to withstand such force, and a lot more than whiplash can occur in such a collision. The bones are not mature enough till around 3-4, and we can't know the exact age. The longer we keep our children rear facing, the safer they are.

I really should muster up the time to write such an article. It needs to be read, and not just by people with internet access. If anything, I see more to be concerned about in people who don't know because they don't see these things online.

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 11:54 am

What about a minivan with airbags that come out of everywhere? I have ceiling airbags, seat airbags - where is the safe place to put a carseat?
My biggest annoyance is booster seats. They don't look safe to me. I think they can cause more damage than good - in a crash it looks like they can fly out from underneath the kid and then become dangerous for whoever is sitting in front of it.
For carpool, what do you dO when a 5 year old refuses to sit in one? Does it make a difference if the kid is hefty? I have a 5 year old who weighs 33 lbs, I hope that the law is 8 years OR 60 lbs, not AND. The safest seat for that kid is probably the front cuz the air bag doesn't turn on. But I think it's illegal to have a kid in the front of there are empty seats. Gotta love the lobbyists who make up these ridiculous laws!

GetReal

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 12:27 pm

HY until when do you rf? My baby is almost two and I'm wondering how much longer I can keep her facing back.

21young

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 12:46 pm

I'm an EMT so I'm the first one to advocate safe car seats, having seen the damage, but as a mother I think it's a little ridiculous to say that a kid has to be in a rf car seat until age 4. My 1-year old is quite hefty and he was busting out of his rf car seat which officially holds up to 30 lbs. Last week I switched him to a front-facing seat and we're all much happier. He just physically did not fit into the rf anymore.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 12:55 pm

JB -- I'm not sure where the safest place is in that case. Boosters if buckled in properly should NOT fly out from under the child. The laws vary by state. A child under 4 and under 40 lbs MUST be restrained pretty much everywhere. I think some states have 80 lbs, not 60 as a weight limit for the law, but in that case I think it goes by "or". Check your state. Everyone is aghast that all my 5 children are still in seats (although I did switch my oldest from a harness to a high back booster this summer)...it's the safest. Even a hefty 5 year old does not mean that he would be sitting properly on the car's seat for the seatbelt to fit him properly (the belt should be on his thighs, not his stomach) and the booster serves as an artificial pelvis to take the brunt of a collision.

GetReal -- I have been switching my kids at 3+ (usually 3.25). They still fit in my convertible rear facing then (I have a true fit that goes to 35 lbs) but I have usually ended up having a baby within a few months, and I felt that they were probably ok FF at that point (without knowing for sure) but since I was going to have my toddler and baby RF, doing 3 RF at that point seemed like the benefits did not necessarily outweigh the cons...in the future, I might not switch them at that point if there was no need.

GetReal

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 12:58 pm

Thanks. I have to check the weight limits for her carseat. She's short so she can definitely stay rf longer. She curls up her legs.

emama

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 7:04 pm

When you watch the videos or listen to the parents/grandparents of a terribly injured child with a neck injury(in one video) it makes you stop and think. What's the rush to turn the child around? If you don't think your child will fit rear facing, check out the site, www.car-seat.org and ask for suggestions about make of seat to fit your child and your car. They are great at helping us keep our children safe.

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 7:45 pm

I switched my kids around 1 1/2. I use a safe seat. They have varied in weights at that age from almost 20 l s to over 20 lbs. Yes, I had someone tell me it was okay to switch them at that point. I have one kid who asked to be put onto a highback for comfort.

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 8:22 pm

I'm with 21 young. The laws don't make sense from a mother's perspective. From a safety point of view everyone should be rear facing.
But I don't think they are all that safe - I ordered the skinniest seats in order to fit 3 across the back seat and it sort of works. Anyone have a Sienna with 3 across the back? (booster seats)

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 8:30 pm

What are Child Passenger Safety Laws?
Transportation Article 22-412.2 (Child Restraints)
current law (effective June 30, 2008) requires that children under eight years old to ride in an appropriate child restraint,* unless the child is 4’9” or taller or weighs more than 65 pounds.
*Child restraint includes car seats and booster seats and other federally approved safety devices.
Every child from 8 to 16 years old who is not secured in a child restraint must be secured in the vehicle’s seat belt.
This law is applicable to in-state and out-of-state vehicles.
It is the driver’s responsibility for making sure all children are correctly buckled up
If you are in need of a car seat or booster seat, contact KISS at 800-370-SEAT (7328) for a referral to a local car seat loaner program.
Transportation Article 22-1121 (Children in Rear of Pick-up Trucks)
Children under the age of 16 may not ride in the bed of an unenclosed pick-up truck.
**Please note: Some jurisdictions, have local
Ordinances that prohibit anyone from riding in the bed of an unenclosed
pickup truck. If you have questions, contact your county or local
police department.
Does Law prohibit children from riding in the front seat?
child passenger safety laws do not prohibit children from riding in the front seat. The exception is placing a rear-facing child in the front seat with an active air bag. If a driver is unable to turn off an air bag, it is a violation of law (as well as a terrible danger to the baby!) to place a rear-facing child in the front seat. Click here for air bag video clip.
**Please note: KISS and other child passenger safety experts strongly recommended all children under age 13 ride in the back seat. Research conducted and published in a report by Partners for Child Passenger Safety clearly shows that children are 40% less likely to be seriously injured when properly restrained in the back seat. For more information on safe seating positions, click here to view the report.
What does Law say about taxis and car seats?
Currently, taxis are exempt from the law. They are not required to transport children using car seats. However, KISS recommends that you follow Child Passenger Safety laws when your children are riding in these vehicles.
For a list of child passenger safety laws in other states, click on a link below.
This is my state's law. Or laws. How did taxis manage to get around the laws? Must have had good lobbyists!

MaBelleVie

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 9:03 pm

My ds is a TALL 2.5 year old (over three ft), and over 30 lbs as well. He is still RF without complaint. I really don't know why anyone has to turn a smaller child.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 9:52 pm

21young wrote:

Was it an infant seat or convertible? HUGE difference. Most of the convertibles on the market go till at least 35 lbs, if not 40+ these days.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 9:54 pm

JB wrote:

When they switched from rear facing?

Under 20 lbs is AGAINST THE LAW (if safety doesn't concern you) to switch FF.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 9:56 pm

JB wrote:

Radians? Those are the skinniest convertibles.
I currently do not have 3 across in my Sienna, but I have done it with other seats and boosters are really easier to do it with. I don't have 3 (or even 2!) in boosters yet to make this feasible. There are threads on car-seat.org devoted to 3 across, especially in Siennas.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 10:00 pm

JB, you're in MD? I can get you in touch with a KISS representative here.
If so, it is true that there is no law about rear facing limits (surprisingly enough since most of America has the bare bones limit of 20 lbs/1 year) but they're working on it.
It really is unsafe to turn a child around so soon, even if you don't want to RF till 4. Till 2 is a good medium range that the AAP recommends and there really is no good reason not to in most cases.

MrsDash

Tue, Apr 03 2012, 10:16 pm

MaBelleVie wrote:

My ds is a TALL 2.5 year old (over three ft), and over 30 lbs as well. He is still RF without complaint. I really don't know why anyone has to turn a smaller child.

My daughter was about that age when we were involved in an accident.
Because she was still rear facing - a. she didn't get injured, and b. she didn't even realize that we were in an accident. She was over the 90th percentile for height at that age, and we were driving a small 2 door coupe. Securing her in the car seat was definitely no picnic.

lst

Wed, Apr 04 2012, 2:50 am

yoshi wrote:

MaBelleVie wrote:

My ds is a TALL 2.5 year old (over three ft), and over 30 lbs as well. He is still RF without complaint. I really don't know why anyone has to turn a smaller child.

Thank you for posting your story. I just turned my 3yo around to ff. Everytime we get in the car he gets upset that he's not in a highback booster like his sister. We buckle him into his carseat despite his complaints. He can be upset all he wants. He is getting buckled into that carseat anyway. Here is a great website with lots of information. They can provide you with lots of stories where rf kids were not injured in horrific car accidents.
http://www.thecarseatlady.com/
They can also install your carseats for you...tighter than you can ever imagine. The car seat lady lives in Maryland, and her daughter, I believe, lives in New York.

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