When I think of milestones I always thought of turning my daughter’s car seat forward as a big girl milestone. I thought it meant she was growing and now would have a better view of the world around her in the car. To me this meant when she dropped a book or her sippy I now could hand it to her easier. But little did I know by turning the car seat forward I was now exposing my baby to new risks in the world.
The rule my daughter’s pediatrician told us up until recently is when she turned one and was also 20lbs we could option to turn her car seat around. My daughter didn’t hit 20lbs until she turned 16-months because she is rather small. It wasn’t until after that I had heard of the newer information. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as well as many other reliable sources says now the recommendation is to keep your child rear facing until they are at least 2 years old or reach their highest weight or height allowed by their child’s car seat’s manufacturer. There are many carseat’s out there today that let you extend the rear facing time for your child I personally have the Safety First Complete Air Car Seat.
There are many reasons behind why not just the NHTSA but also the American Academy of Pediatrics is now recommending not turning your child forward facing until you have to. One of those reasons is according to an article in the Journal Injury Prevention ,which can be found here http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/13/6/398.abstract ,the rear facing car seats restraining 1 year olds in crashes from 1988-2003 were 15% higher in effectiveness than the forward facing car seats. Another shocker I found is children under two restrained by a rear facing car seat are 75% less likely to die or have a serious injury (http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/121/3/619). Personally, I think that 75% alone yells at me to keep my child’s car sear rear facing. But there is more.
According to several articles one of the main reasons keeping your child’s car seat is more recommended has to do with the head, neck, and spine. When a car gets in a wreck and the car seat is facing forward more strain is put on the child’s neck to hold the head back. As we all know a baby’s and toddler’s head is much larger compared to their little bodies. Another strain is put on the spinal cord due to the head being tossed forward and the straps holding back their body. In some cases this can cause the spinal cord to break. Picture the rear facing car seat and the forward facing. If you picture the way the rear facing car seat cradles the head you can see how less strain would be put on the head, neck, and shoulders.
Now one thing I thought of when debating was in a rear facing car seat crash would the child’s legs get hurt or broken. According to some of the information I read (http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/121/3/619) there is no data to support the child is more likely to sustain injury to the legs more than a forward facing. Of course it does happen but nothing says it happens more. When you think about the idea, it makes sense because in forward facing the child’s legs could easily hit off another passenger or seat and sustain injury. Of course another reason some people do not option to keep a seat rear facing is their child gets bored. But by packing things such as books, toys, and things for your child to do that may help with the boredom.
In the end it always comes down to a choice do you keep your child’s seat rear facing longer or turn them around for a better view. Personally, I feel the data and suggestions given by reliable organizations shows it is much safer to keep your children in a rear facing position when it comes to the car as long as possible.
Here is a video I came across on YouTube showing some effects.
References
Aldana, Karen. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. n.d. 23 March 2011
B Henary, C P Sherwood, J R Crandall, R W Kent, F Vaca, K B Arbogast, M J Bull. Injury Prevention:Car safety seats for children: rear facing for best protection. 28 August 2007. 19 March 2011
CPSafety: Rear-facing - Unmatched Safety. 2001-2010. 21 March 2011
Marilyn J. Bull, MDa, Dennis R. Durbin, MD, MSCEb. Rear-Facing Car Safety Seats: Getting the Message Right. 11 December 2007. 20 March 2011
Safety Benefits Of Rear Facing. 2008-2009. 19 March 2011
TryggTrafikkNorge. You Tube video: Rear facing vs forward facing position in the car . 9 July 2010. 19 March 2011
Amanda, I'm glad you posted this early. I was going to post mine at 9. I asked on DB if anyone was posting today, I didn't hear from anyone, so I was ready to post. I'll check out a day next week. Great post. I was going throught town the other day and seen a woman in the front seat with a baby on her lap. The sad part was there was a carseat in the back seat. All I could think was what if they were hit by someone? I'm sure they were being careful, but someone could have hit them. And If someone did hit them the airbag would have killed that baby. A lot of info. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteBev
Bev
Hi Amanda,
ReplyDeleteGood job. You have a lot of good information that seems to be forgotten at times. I, like Bev, have seen numerous little children not buckled properly while the vehicle is moving. It is sad. The state police are always offering free child seat safety checks. There is no excuse not to have your child buckled, even if you are only going around the block. The video is very impacting. Thank you.
Cary Bryson
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the info on rear facing car seats. I myself only kept my daughter in one til she was 10 months old. (20 months). I bought a graco nautilus...3 in 1...Convertible, Booster High Back and Booster so we'll never need to buy anything else. I love it. I don't like rear facing seats because I can't see my child and I don't see how it is safer by any means. Good info though.
Alison
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteI don't have kids, but I agree that kids should be kept as safe as possible. Good information and nice job.
Samantha
Thank you all for your comments. I agree car seat safety is very important. Cary you a very right. Especially when there are free checks. Ali I understand what you mean. I originally had my daughter in a car seat for rear facing and I didn't understand how they could be safe due to their build and they tend to wiggle more if you don't have the latch system. We now have a convertible seat which can be rear or front facing . I can't see my daughter over it which is annoying even if I use one of those mirrors with the toys. It took a long time to adapt to that because I did have her front facing for 2 months. But now she and I don't mind it as much she listens to her music and plays with her toys and if I hear them going I know shes awake otherwise shes sleeping.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDeleteKeeping your child safe is any parents number one priority. I think it is great how you provided information to help all parents keep there children safe!
Eric Cogovan
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteYou have written a great blog. The information that you have given proves that things continue to change for the better. As generations go on safety seems to become perfected; your blog proves this. It really helps to pass valuable information out there. I never realized that little ones were even "allowed" to sit backwards at this age let alone be required. Again, you have done a great job. Bravo!
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteI thought this blog had a lot of useful information. I have heard that experts were increasing the age for forward facing car seats. My only question for them would be where do the child's legs go in the rear facing car seats when they are too tall? I turned my sons car seat to forward facing on his first birthday because his feet were already hitting the back seat causing his knees to bend. I do agree with you though, to take any precautions you can with your child. Well done!
Thanks for the additional comments. Assunta I have yet to experience this because my daughter is extra small. From what I have read they state children can sit with their legs crossed, over the sides of the seat, or propped up. Thinking about it I would think the feet over the sides would be more comfortable out of the three especially if it is a long car ride crossed legs might get tired.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDeleteYour blog is very informative and hits a very important part of child safety. I also thought that turning my daughter around was a great milestone. Now with new research, I agree that reverse is safer. Although, it is too late to turn her back around. I will keep the information for the future. I do miss though the singing mirror that she had to look into when she was reverse. Great job and again thanks for the very important safety information.
Christina Chinchock
Amanda, I agree with the praise here. This is a great post. I've been really impressed with so much of the classes' writing this semester. It seems with the blogs you all really embrace the power you have as an authority. You are all authorities on parenting, and Amanda, you're experiences here are a great example of that. Very nice job.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDeleteI learned a lot I had no idea that the child could stay faced backwards till they where two and that it was advised that they do so. My cousin is having her first baby and this will be great information that I can relay to her. Thank you for the informative post good work.
Jaycin Firestone
I got a rear facing car seat from a family member and never really thought of the importance of it. This is a great topic. Alison commented and said about not being able to see her child, but they make those new nifty mirrors that you put on the head rest so you can see your baby through the rear view mirror. I think they would help anyone when it comes to not seeing their baby. Great topic, thank you! -Nicole Shaffer
ReplyDelete