A to Z Disease

Overview

More than 80 percent of car seats and booster seats are used incorrectly. But if used properly, a car seat can actually reduce a child's risk of dying in a car crash by more than 70 percent. Here is information, provided by Safe Kids Worldwide, on how to correctly install and use car seats for infants, toddlers, and older children

Newborns

The first seat you need when you get home from the hospital is a rear-facing seat, which faces the back of the car. You want to do that until the child is at least one year old and at least 20 pounds. When your child outgrows this seat, he or she can move into a rear-facing convertible seat.

• Make sure your child is properly placed in the car seat. For a rear-facing seat, you want the shoulder straps to be at or below the child's shoulders. You want the retainer clip at armpit level. And you want to make sure the straps are snug, laying flat against the baby.
• Make sure you have time to carefully loosen and tighten the harness on every trip. To check to see if you have a snug fit, at the baby's collar bone, see if you can pinch the webbing. If you can, then it's too loose, and you have to tighten it up.
• After you have your baby in the car seat, you can move it to the side, and install your base. It doesn't matter if you use the lower strap attachment or the seatbelt to secure your base. Both will provide protection in a crash.
• Look at your car seat user's manual to review labels and to identify your seat belt path. Run your seatbelt through, and buckle it in.
• Lock your seatbelt down. Pull the webbing out all the way to lock it, and then you tighten it up, feeding the extra webbing back into the retractor.
• To test for a snug fit, it should not move more than one inch from side to side or towards the front of the vehicle. After you have the base nice and tight, put the car seat back in. Make sure it's clicked in, and you want to make sure again that the back of the seat is reclined between 30 and 45 degrees, more towards 45 for a newborn.

Remember; resist the urge to turn around while driving if your baby starts crying and fussing. The safe thing to do is to pull over so you can give your baby the attention he or she needs.

Babies One Year and Older

When your baby outgrows the weight and height limits for the rear-facing convertible seat, and is at least one year old, you'll need to take the seat out and re-install it in the forward-facing position.

• The harness on a forward-facing seat fits very similar to the way it did for an infant. The harness straps have to be snug, which means that you should not be able to pinch the webbing, and the retainer clip goes at armpit level.
• The big difference with the harness is that these straps are at or above the child's shoulders in a reinforced slot. You can use the lower anchor straps or seat belt to secure the seat, but you should never use both.
• Look at the labels and read the instructions to identify the belt path. Run the seat belt through, and buckle it in. Lock the belt and then pull the lap belt nice and tight. Feed the extra webbing back into the retractor.
• The seat shouldn't move more than one inch from side to side or towards the front of the vehicle.
• You should always use a top tether. This is different for every car, so be sure you always read your vehicles owner's manual to understand how to use it.

Older Children

Children who have outgrown a forward-facing car seat at 40 pounds are still not big enough to be properly protected by an adult seat belt. These kids need to ride on a booster seat until they're 4' 9", and can pass the Safety Belt Fit Test.

• You'll need a high-back booster if your car does not have a head restraint or has low vehicle seat backs.
• Always read your labels to find your seat belt path and buckle it in. Put your child in the seat and then pull the seat belt through the booster seat.
• The booster seat lifts the child up so the lap belt fits snug across the hips and upper thighs, and the shoulder belt is right across their chest.

Graduating to an Adult Seat Belt

The Safety Belt Fit Test will help you determine when the booster seat is no longer needed. This usually happens when your child reaches a height of about 4' 9".

For the Safety Belt Fit Test, your child should sit all the way back in the vehicle seat. His or her legs should bend all the way and his/her feet should touch the floor. The lap belt should fit low and snug across the hips and the shoulder belt across the chest.

Remember, your kids will learn their safety habits by watching you. So be a good role model, and buckle up every time you're in the car.