This Week's Most Popular Stories Concerning Newborn Car Seat
Choosing Between an Infant and a Convertible Newborn Car Seat
A car seat for newborns, also known as an infant safety seat or a baby car seat, helps protect infants from injury and even death in car accidents. The harness distributes the restraining force over the child's head and body instead of the spinal cord or neck.
infant car seat rear facing can be either rear-facing or convertible and come in a variety of sizes and weight limits. They can also be part of a set for travel that snaps into the base of a stroller.
Rear-facing
Rear-facing newborn car seats offer unmatched protection for infants in crashes. They are designed to support and cradle children, ensuring their neck, spine, and head. They also aid in reducing injuries by stopping the impact of an accident from striking your child. This is because your child's body isn't hitting the car seat or front passenger seat, but instead the soft, cushioned surface inside their car seat.
According to the AAP and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Parents should keep their child rear-facing until they reach the maximum weight or height limit. Around age 1, most children will outgrow their infant car seat and be moved to a convertible seat that can face forward. However, many parents want to keep their child in a rear-facing seat until they turn 2.
There are two types: infant-only car seats and convertible car seats. Both are equally safe but offer different conveniences. For example, infant-only seats are smaller, lighter and come with a quick release base that is able to be removed from the car, and then reattached to a stroller base. Convertible car seats are bigger and heavier, and don't have a built-in stroller base.
Whatever seat you pick, it is important to adhere to the manufacturer's guidelines and to always place the seat in the back of your vehicle. It is also recommended to place washcloths that are tightly rolled or blankets between the crotch strap and your baby to ensure that there is no slack in the harness. Ensure that the lower anchors of your car seat are securely installed and are connected to the lower anchor points on the lower anchor bars.
There is a lot of disagreement about how long a baby should ride rear-facing, research shows that infants as young as 12 months old are less likely to be injured in car accidents when they are facing the back of the car. Rear-facing car seats allow babies to experience less impact when they strike the car's front, as opposed the the back which can result in serious injuries.
Forward-facing
Most parents have spent a lot of time into their infant car seat. It was a key item on the baby registry and how you got your baby home from the hospital. You may think about changing the car seat to face forward as your child gets older. But, it's important to keep in mind that children aren't yet ready until they reach the weight and height limits set by the manufacturer of their car seat.
Rear-facing is recommended until your baby weighs at least 20 pounds and has reached the age of one year. Children younger than one year do not have the neck muscles necessary to resist whiplash resulting from being hit in a crash. They also face an increased risk of suffering injury to the spine when involved in head-on collisions.
You can buy convertible or all-in-one seat that allows your child to remain rear-facing until they meet the weight and height limit for the seat. These are usually bucket-style infant car seats that attach to a base that can be installed in your vehicle. The base can be removed and connected to strollers to form a travel system. However, they typically have smaller weight and height limits than a standard convertible car seat.
You can also get an extra booster. These seats are fitted with a harness and can be converted into a booster seat that allows your child to wear a seat belt when they are ready. This kind of car seat has the main benefit of being used in your vehicle throughout the duration of your child's life which makes it much easier to move them from one vehicle into another.
No matter which car seat you select, always read the manual and follow the instructions for installation. Contact a certified car safety technician to ensure your child's car seat has been installed and is used in a safe manner. Car seat misuse is very common, and well-meaning parents could injure their children if they aren't aware of what they're doing. It is best to study the instructions on the car seat and follow the recommendations of a CPST.
Convertible
Many parents choose convertible car seats for newborns because they can develop with your child, allowing them to travel in a safe manner from infanthood to toddlerhood. They are less expensive than infant seats and have a longer lifespan. It is important to choose one that fits your vehicle and is easy to install. Be sure to keep your baby safe by buckling them correctly each time.
Snug straps stop the head from moving into a potentially dangerous chin-to-chest posture that could result in asphyxiation or strangulation. Many infant car seats have straps that are loose or not buckled. This is a serious safety issue. Straps that aren't buckled could cause a neck to hang, which is the cause of numerous accidents. The crotch buckle can also be a danger when it isn't tight enough to pass the pinch test. This test will determine if the crotch buckle fits enough to prevent a newborn's legs from sliding down the seat, leading to them getting trapped or cut.
Some convertible infant car seats come with an adjustable torso-height that allows you to alter the height limit to suit your child's development. The minimum torso height must be equal to the height of your infant's shoulders or one inch lower. Some models include an infant insert to help bring your child up to the appropriate height for the seat.
The most suitable convertible infant car seat should have a comfortable fit, comfortable padding and a narrow base to allow you to put it in your car. It should also have a snug, tight harness that passes the pinch test as well as a small and tightly-rolled blanket or towel for an emergency. It should also come with a tether strap that attaches to the anchor points on your vehicle, which can reduce crash injuries by cutting down the impact force on your infant. It should also include the travel set, which is a car seat and stroller that can be used to move your child from the car to the stroller.
Safety features
Parents must consider when they're choosing the best car seat for their babies. Car seats are an important purchase for families who are starting a new life because their proper use can reduce the likelihood that your child will suffer an fatal motor vehicle crash injury by 71 per cent. The decision between a baby car-seat and a convertible one is based on a variety of factors, including safety features, compatibility with your vehicle, and the ease of use.
Infant car seats are designed with a newborn's fragile physiology in mind. They typically come with an attached base that remains in the vehicle, and the carrier snaps into place, making it easy to transfer your baby from the car to stroller and back again without disturbing them. They come with a crotch and harness built in to keep your child safe.
Some infant cars are equipped with side-impact protection, which distributes the force of a crash away from the baby's neck and head. Foam, metal, and plastic absorb energy and shield the baby's face from direct contact with a vehicle frame or any other object involved in the event of a collision. Some come with a special pod that extends beyond the door to protect the child's head.
Another safety feature that is becoming more prevalent in infant car seats is a chest clip that holds the harness straps flat across your newborn's chest. This stops the straps from getting caught or twisting around the shoulders, which can put your baby at higher risk of injuries. If you choose a seat that has this feature, make sure the chest clip is set at the armpit height. You should also be sure to avoid dressing your baby in bulky outerwear which could hinder the fit of the harness.
No matter what kind of car seat you pick, check that it's installed in your vehicle according to the instructions provided by the manufacturer. Look for the Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children system. This system consists of connectors that clip into the lower anchor points of your car, and a tether that hooks onto an anchor inside the vehicle. If your vehicle doesn't have LATCH, a seatbelt may be used to secure the car seats.