Transcription:
Car Seat Safety Tips

Deborah Howell (Host):  You’re listening to Children’s Health Checkup, where we answer parents’ most common questions about raising healthy and happy kids. I’m Deborah Howell. And today we’ll throw the spotlight on some car seat safety tips for both travel near and far and talk about some safety tips for your child’s growth and age levels. Our guest is expert David Aguilar, Senior Program Coordinator, Injury Prevention at Children’s Health. Welcome David.

David Aguilar (Guest):  Heh, thank you Deborah for having me on. How are you?

Host:  Great to have you on. I’m great except for this daunting statistic. Every 33 seconds, a child in the US is involved in a car crash. Regrettably, over a third of the children who died in those crashes were not in a car seat restrained, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. How do you feel when you hear that statistic David?

David:  That’s really stunning because we know that car crashes cannot be prevented however, the use of car seats and parents strapping the kids in that car seat correctly is what’s going to keep them safe. And that’s a preventable measure. So, it’s something that could be avoided by parents just always using their car seat correctly.

Host:  Perfect. Now first of all, how do we pick the right car seat for our child?

David:  That’s a great question. So, what we always recommend parents is all the car seats are now designed with stickers on the side that tells the parents to pick the right car seat by height and weight. A lot of parents think oh it’s age, but it’s really not age. Everything is guided by height and weight. Because there’s going to be some kids that are going to be taller and some of them are going to be shorter that are the same age. So, we want to make sure that we stay by height and weight.

Host:  Absolutely. I wouldn’t have thought of that. What’s your opinion on rear facing versus a forward facing seat? That’s the age old dilemma, right?

David:  Yes, it is. I think a lot of parents they rush to face the kid forward because I think as parents, we always want to be concerned that we are able to see the kid to make sure he’s okay. However, when we rush in the car seat world, when we rush from stage to stage; we are actually exposing our child to danger. So rear facing. What rear facing does is it protects the neck and the spinal cord in case of a car crash because their neck never really bends forward. It never has the whiplash motion that you and I would have. And so, that’s actually what the rear facing car seat is expected to do. And when you rush them and put them in a forward facing, now we are exposing them to that and since most kids are top heavy, their head is heavier; what’s going to happen is that whiplash motion could cause some severe injuries to the spinal cord even brain.

Host:  Wow. Okay, that’s great information. Now a lot of new parents might not know the difference between booster safety seats and car seats. Can you explain the difference between the two?

David:  Actually booster is a type of car seat. But a lot of people, parents we make the assumption that just because they are no longer have the harness that it is no longer a car seat. But a booster seat is a type of car seat. It’s just the last car seat before they actually graduate to using the seatbelt. And we actually recommend for them to even use booster seats because again, so we have kids that are going to be – they may be eleven years old. Texas law on car seats tells you that any child under the age of eight should be using some kind of car seat. However, this is whenever we explain the law of the land versus the law of physics. So, sure, maybe we have a nine year old that no longer under the law is going to be needing a booster seat. However, the kid is going to be better protected if the seatbelt fits him properly across the strongest points of the body which is across their chest and across their hips.

That right there is going to put the child in a safer position in case of a car crash.

Host:  Absolutely. Each kids is individual. Now four out of five car seats are used incorrectly. I find this really hard to believe. But I guess it’s true. Where can parents go to find out how to properly install a car seat?

David:  Yes. So, Children’s has certified car seat technicians. We are actually out there inspecting car seats and teaching parents how to use it correctly. Something so simple as maybe not buckling the car seat right, the kid is not using the harness correctly and also just being in the wrong car seat; those are the three top issues why parents are not – why the stats are the way they are because they just rush to put them in the car seat, maybe they don’t know that they’ve already outgrown it and kids don’t like to be restrained to be honest and so what happens is that parents allow them to – the harness to be too loose and unfortunately if we allow that, in case of a car crash; the more wiggle room there is when the kid’s body is moving, that’s when injuries occur. So, we want to make sure that they are nice and snug and also that the car seat is snug to the seat. Because if the car seat is moving; it’s not longer safe and just becomes and item that the kid’s bouncing around in the back seat with.

Host:  Now do you have any advice about traveling with a car seat in an airplane?

David:  They have to make sure that it is FAA approved. They want to make sure that when they purchase that car seat that they can use it. Now, a majority of the time, they are only going to be able to use a car seat that’s going to be a forward facing with a harness. Obviously, a booster seat is not going to help them out anyway. And because the lap belt is not going to keep their head from going forward. So, anything with a harness is going to work.

Host: And what about traveling on long road trips?

David: When they are doing long trips and parents become concerned because oh my God, it’s so uncomfortable, they are so hard. I understand that it may not be the most convenient or maybe the most comfortable thing, however, when we look at comfort versus safety; we want to make sure that the kid is safe versus comfortable. And of course, I think whenever they are doing a long trip, every hour – every three hour when they have to refill for gas, get out and walk around. Let the kid have a little bit of fun and then get back on the road trip. I know that travelling with kids can be a little bit difficult just because they get annoyed and all that. But I think it’s going to be very important that the kid has the ability to kind of get out and walk before they are able to continue the travel.

Host:  That is a really, really good tip. Give them a little treat between car seats. Is there one most commonly seen issue with car seats that you check for at Children’s Health?

David:  Well again, I think that the three most common mistakes are just the kids are – that the car seat is not installed correctly. Sometimes parents think that the more the better, so they end up installing it with lower anchors and the seat belt and at that point, the car seat was not manufactured to be used that way and so, but I think it’s a simple human error that we make. The more the better. Sure, why not right? Because it’s extra tight. However, at that point, we creating a lot of extra stress to that plastic part and you could cause the car seat to function differently like break in or whatnot and so that’s one of the most common things. it’s just parents not knowing how to install their car seat correctly.

Host:  Sure.  How often should we clean our kid’s car seats due to germs and they’re interacting in preschool and all that.

David:  Right. And actually, I don’t think there’s a recommendation to that. But you know your kids. actually we have some parents that have the no eating rule in the car which I think it’s great. I mean if you can get away with it because kids get hungry all times of day. However, that is going to allow you to kind of keep your car seat cleaner. Now, kids get hungry and they are going to give them crackers, grapes and stuff that way. But if you feed your kid in there, it’s going to cause the car seat to get dirty or they are going to have those blow up diapers or whatnot. So, one of the most important things to make sure you follow the manufacturers guidelines as far as cleaning it.

A lot of parents what they end up doing, some of your car seats allow you to take that cover off so you can wash it but some of the older or less expensive car seats don’t allow you to do that so you are not supposed to take it off, take it apart and throw it in the wash with harsh detergent because that’s what’s going to allow the chemicals. So, some car seats come with anti-flammable chemical that won’t allow the car seat to catch on fire. So, once we wash it, that chemical will come off. And so it’s very, very important not to wash it and follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for cleaning it. Some of them it’s just wet rag and hot water and spot cleaning it.

Host:  Perfect. That is really excellent advice. Is there anything else you’d like to add David?

David:  Yes, definitely. I want to recommend make sure parents are aware to never purchase a used car seat. I know that car seats can be expensive but a car seat that’s been involved in a car crash will look the exact same way as a brand new car seat. Of course minus the wear and tear. However, we’re talking about the physical features. You cannot ever really tell if a car seat has been involved in a car crash. So, never buy used car seat unless you trust that person. If it’s a family member and you know their kids and you trust them and you are around them all the time; then if you trust them, yeah definitely. But make sure you ask a couple of questions. Is it expired? And has it been involved in a car crash? Because if it’s been expired, then it’s not going to be safe to use. Technology changes. Safety features change and if a part is missing you may not be able to get it anymore. So, you want to make sure that you never purchase a used car seat unless you trust that person.

And come and visit us. We also replace car seats if the child has need and they’ve already outgrown our car seat; we can provide them a car seat at low cost or sometimes even at no cost.

Host:  That is wonderful news. So, I guess just in summation, get the right seat, with the right size for your child, install it properly and follow the guidelines.

David:  Yes, that’s best recommendation that we make to parents.

Host:  Well thank you so much David Aguilar for your time and thank you for listening to Children’s Health Checkup. For more information please visit us at www.childrens.com/carseat. If you found this podcast helpful, please rate and review or share the episode and please follow Children’s Health on your social channels. That’s all for this time. I’m Deborah Howell. Have yourself a terrific day.