Learning About Infant Carseat Safety
Carseats didn’t come on the market until the early 1970s. Before that anything was fine. Kids were piled into cars without seat buckles for long road trips. Parents let them bounce around, stand up, and even fist fight without a problem. Even the law had no problem with this. Not even infants were given special consideration. Put them on a lap or even on the floor. It’s a miracle that our parents didn’t injure us permanently. However, there were some fatalities, and enough for the government to get involved and order safety standards, and those included inventing an infant car seat.
Nowadays, if you even think of putting a five month old in the car for a drive down the street for a gallon milk you’d better have a government approved safety seat with the appropriate crash test ratings.
As opposed to earlier versions that could be placed anywhere, these newer ones are ergonomically correct and must be placed facing backwards, in the back seat, in a position where the driver can access the baby quickly.
Carseats grow as an infant grows. There are car seats designed for newborns, who aren’t even allowed to get into a car to go home until a nurse has seen the car seat and checked to make sure it has been properly installed.
As an infant grows, they probably need a larger carseat to accommodate longer legs and have a more comfortable tilt for the head and neck. Securing straps are a bit longer as well, enabling the infant to be snugly placed into the carrier.
Most carseats have multiple purposes nowadays. No longer relegated to being stuck in the back seat, they now can be turned into strollers, and carried with a handle. Others also double as rockers and come with an optional easily installed curved rocker bottom.
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