Car Seats
Everyone With A Child Should Read This.....
Car Seat Safety: The Benefits of Extended Rear Facing (ERF)
What is Extended Rear Facing?
Extended rear-facing simply means to keep a child in the rear-facing position after the child reaches 1 year and 20 lbs. 20 lbs is the minimum requirement for turning a child to the forward-facing position (by Ontario law). While you can choose to forward-face at the current minimum of 20 lbs, it is highly recommended that you keep your child rear-facing until the upper limits of the seat are reached. Your child will reach these upper limits when one of the following conditions occurs:
1. The child reaches the rear-facing weight limit
2. The top of the child's head is within one inch of the top of the shell of the car seat. Push down on the padding and measure with the plastic shell.
Why should I keep my child Rear Facing?
It is the safest way for anyone to ride. Need proof? *From 1992 through June of 1997, only 9 properly restrained rear-facing children died in Sweden. In the United States, the number one cause of death in children under one year of age is from congenital anomalies. At the age of one, when most children start riding forward-facing, the number one cause of death is motor vehicle crashes. Rear-facing children are 500% safer in an accident than forward-facing children. It reduces their risk of death by 71% and their risk of injury by 75%. Why is Rear Facing safest? Front-end collisions are not only the deadliest of accidents but also account for 74% of all crashes.
Let’s examine what happens in a front-end collision:
Rear-facing: The seat moves in the direction of the force, not against it. The shell takes the bulk of the force and passes very little along to the child. The forces that do get passed along to the child are spread across the entire area of the back, neck, and head, which are kept aligned. The baby’s head is cradled within the shell of the seat and moves in unison with the seat, and the neck is protected from stretching forces.
Forward-facing: In a crash, the harness straps hold the shoulders and torso in the seat, but the head and neck are thrown violently forward. A young child's spinal cord is still very immature. It contains a lot of cartilage and not as much bone as an older child or adult. Research has shown that the forces applied to the necks of a forward-facing child can cause the spinal cord to stretch up to 2 inches. A spinal cord will rupture if stretched more than 1/4". This will cause decapitation. While the head will still be attached to the body, the neck will not.
Who exactly recommends ERF?
The AAP (American Pediatric Association) now recommends keeping a child rear-facing until the upper limits of the seat are reached. Since many seats rear-face up to 30-35 pounds, many children can ride rear-facing into their second, third, and even fourth year of life. In Sweden, it is common practice to keep children rear-facing until 4 or 5 years of age.
Is it dangerous to have my child's legs bent and/or his feet touching the seat?
There are no documented reports of children breaking their legs or hips in a crash. In a crash, a rear-facing child's legs will be thrown up and back away from the vehicle seat. It's important to note that children are very flexible and do not find riding this way uncomfortable. What looks cramped to an adult is fine for a child.
My child's doctor says I can turn my child around forward-facing even though she is not yet one year old
.Unfortunately, your child's doctor is giving out very outdated and very dangerous information. Many doctors have a very brief lesson on child passenger safety in medical school. They do not keep up with the changing standards and safety recommendations.
My child is only 9 months old, but he can hold up his head, sit, crawl, and walk. Doesn't he have enough muscle strength to ride forward-facing now?
This is a big misconception. The recommendations on turning a child forward-facing have nothing to do with muscular strength. They are based on skeletal strength.
My child screams the entire time in the car. It is distracting to me and I think I should turn him around forward-facing. He will be happier, and I will not be a distracted driver.
This tends to be one of the biggest reasons why parents turn children forward-facing. What they don't realize is that they are taking a huge gamble on their child's safety. It is no fun to listen to a crying baby, especially in the car. However, it is MUCH better to have a crying baby than a dead baby.
Which car seats allow me to rear face past 20lbs?
All car seats currently on the market in the United States rear face to a minimum of 30lbs, most even Rear face to 35lbs. To know what the weight limit is on your seat check the manual that came with it. There are currently 7 seats in America that Rear Face to 40 lbs (that I know of, if I've missed one let me know!): Graco MyRide65; Sunshine Kids Radian 65SL; Safety 1st Complete Air; Britax Marathon 70/Boulevard 70/Advocate 70 CS; Evenflo Triumph 65; Evenflo Momentum 65; and Cosco Scenera. In addition, the Sunshine Kids Radian XTSL and Sunshine Kids Radian 80SL both rear face up to 45lbs.
For additional information you can ask me or you can visit the following website, there are a bunch of links at the bottom the page for more information if you still have questions! :)
http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html
-copied Written by: Nikki Waring
Car Seat Safety: The Benefits of Extended Rear Facing (ERF)
What is Extended Rear Facing?
Extended rear-facing simply means to keep a child in the rear-facing position after the child reaches 1 year and 20 lbs. 20 lbs is the minimum requirement for turning a child to the forward-facing position (by Ontario law). While you can choose to forward-face at the current minimum of 20 lbs, it is highly recommended that you keep your child rear-facing until the upper limits of the seat are reached. Your child will reach these upper limits when one of the following conditions occurs:
1. The child reaches the rear-facing weight limit
2. The top of the child's head is within one inch of the top of the shell of the car seat. Push down on the padding and measure with the plastic shell.
Why should I keep my child Rear Facing?
It is the safest way for anyone to ride. Need proof? *From 1992 through June of 1997, only 9 properly restrained rear-facing children died in Sweden. In the United States, the number one cause of death in children under one year of age is from congenital anomalies. At the age of one, when most children start riding forward-facing, the number one cause of death is motor vehicle crashes. Rear-facing children are 500% safer in an accident than forward-facing children. It reduces their risk of death by 71% and their risk of injury by 75%. Why is Rear Facing safest? Front-end collisions are not only the deadliest of accidents but also account for 74% of all crashes.
Let’s examine what happens in a front-end collision:
Rear-facing: The seat moves in the direction of the force, not against it. The shell takes the bulk of the force and passes very little along to the child. The forces that do get passed along to the child are spread across the entire area of the back, neck, and head, which are kept aligned. The baby’s head is cradled within the shell of the seat and moves in unison with the seat, and the neck is protected from stretching forces.
Forward-facing: In a crash, the harness straps hold the shoulders and torso in the seat, but the head and neck are thrown violently forward. A young child's spinal cord is still very immature. It contains a lot of cartilage and not as much bone as an older child or adult. Research has shown that the forces applied to the necks of a forward-facing child can cause the spinal cord to stretch up to 2 inches. A spinal cord will rupture if stretched more than 1/4". This will cause decapitation. While the head will still be attached to the body, the neck will not.
Who exactly recommends ERF?
The AAP (American Pediatric Association) now recommends keeping a child rear-facing until the upper limits of the seat are reached. Since many seats rear-face up to 30-35 pounds, many children can ride rear-facing into their second, third, and even fourth year of life. In Sweden, it is common practice to keep children rear-facing until 4 or 5 years of age.
Is it dangerous to have my child's legs bent and/or his feet touching the seat?
There are no documented reports of children breaking their legs or hips in a crash. In a crash, a rear-facing child's legs will be thrown up and back away from the vehicle seat. It's important to note that children are very flexible and do not find riding this way uncomfortable. What looks cramped to an adult is fine for a child.
My child's doctor says I can turn my child around forward-facing even though she is not yet one year old
.Unfortunately, your child's doctor is giving out very outdated and very dangerous information. Many doctors have a very brief lesson on child passenger safety in medical school. They do not keep up with the changing standards and safety recommendations.
My child is only 9 months old, but he can hold up his head, sit, crawl, and walk. Doesn't he have enough muscle strength to ride forward-facing now?
This is a big misconception. The recommendations on turning a child forward-facing have nothing to do with muscular strength. They are based on skeletal strength.
My child screams the entire time in the car. It is distracting to me and I think I should turn him around forward-facing. He will be happier, and I will not be a distracted driver.
This tends to be one of the biggest reasons why parents turn children forward-facing. What they don't realize is that they are taking a huge gamble on their child's safety. It is no fun to listen to a crying baby, especially in the car. However, it is MUCH better to have a crying baby than a dead baby.
Which car seats allow me to rear face past 20lbs?
All car seats currently on the market in the United States rear face to a minimum of 30lbs, most even Rear face to 35lbs. To know what the weight limit is on your seat check the manual that came with it. There are currently 7 seats in America that Rear Face to 40 lbs (that I know of, if I've missed one let me know!): Graco MyRide65; Sunshine Kids Radian 65SL; Safety 1st Complete Air; Britax Marathon 70/Boulevard 70/Advocate 70 CS; Evenflo Triumph 65; Evenflo Momentum 65; and Cosco Scenera. In addition, the Sunshine Kids Radian XTSL and Sunshine Kids Radian 80SL both rear face up to 45lbs.
For additional information you can ask me or you can visit the following website, there are a bunch of links at the bottom the page for more information if you still have questions! :)
http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html
-copied Written by: Nikki Waring
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