Car seat safety is a major concern for many parents, and rightly so. The style or positioning of these safety restrains can often translate into the difference between life and death during a traffic collision.
As the New York Times reported earlier this week, a new policy statement from the country's leading pediatrics organization is now recommending parents keep small children in rear-facing car seats until age 2, if not longer.
The revised guidelines also suggest that older children ride in a booster-style car seat until they are 4-feet, 9-inches tall and 8 to 12 years old.
“Our recommendations are meant to help parents move away from gospel-held notions that are based on a child’s age,” Dr. Dennis R. Durbin told the newspaper. “We want them to recognize that with each transition they make, from rear-facing to forward-facing, to booster seats, there is a decline in the safety of their child. That’s why we are urging parents to delay these transitions for as long as possible.”
As the article mentions, many parents look forward to the transition from rear-facing to forward-facing car seats, and that change is usually the one parents are least likely to delay.
What do you think? Is it a good idea to delay car-seat transitions beyond the minimum recommendations? What do you do when your older kids are less than thrilled about riding in a booster seat?
