We're just a few days away from the Fourth of July. Before you hit the road this holiday, safety experts have some advice on the best way to keep your kids safe in the car.
Brandi Thompson with Blank Children's Hospital says, "We encourage parents to go above and beyond Iowa's child passenger safety law and truly follow best practice guidelines that have been set by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration."
Iowa law requires all babies to be in a rear-facing child safety seat until they are one year of age and 20 pounds. Thompson says the AAP and NHTSA recommend children remain rear facing until they are 30 to 35 pounds, which includes most two year olds and even some three year olds. Thompson says to look at the label on your car seat and keep your child rear facing as long as that car seat recommends.
She says kids are five times less likely to be hurt or worse, if they're in an accident rear facing. She says, "Developmentally their necks and spines just are not strong enough to go through those crash forces in forward facing mode."
The law says kids through the age of five need to be in a car seat or booster seat. But, Thompson says the best practice is to keep kids in a booster seat until they are four feet nine inches tall and weigh eighty pounds, which is usually around eight years of age. She says, "The booster seat is truly doing exactly what it's name says. It's boosting her up so the adult vehicle seat belt will fit her properly."
Once kids are out of the booster seat, she says they should be buckled up. She says kids are safest in the backseat until thirteen years of age because of airbags.
Brandi Thompson with Blank Children's Hospital says, "We encourage parents to go above and beyond Iowa's child passenger safety law and truly follow best practice guidelines that have been set by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration."
Iowa law requires all babies to be in a rear-facing child safety seat until they are one year of age and 20 pounds. Thompson says the AAP and NHTSA recommend children remain rear facing until they are 30 to 35 pounds, which includes most two year olds and even some three year olds. Thompson says to look at the label on your car seat and keep your child rear facing as long as that car seat recommends.
She says kids are five times less likely to be hurt or worse, if they're in an accident rear facing. She says, "Developmentally their necks and spines just are not strong enough to go through those crash forces in forward facing mode."
The law says kids through the age of five need to be in a car seat or booster seat. But, Thompson says the best practice is to keep kids in a booster seat until they are four feet nine inches tall and weigh eighty pounds, which is usually around eight years of age. She says, "The booster seat is truly doing exactly what it's name says. It's boosting her up so the adult vehicle seat belt will fit her properly."
Once kids are out of the booster seat, she says they should be buckled up. She says kids are safest in the backseat until thirteen years of age because of airbags.
