Choosing The Safest Car Seat For Your Child

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Choosing the safest car seat for your child will be one of the most important decisions you'll make during your lifetime. Ease of use, durability and car seat crash test ratings should all factor into your decision making process.

Infant car seats, toddler car seats, convertible car seats and child booster seats are manufactured by over twenty companies. The most popular of these companies are Britax, Peg Perego, Graco, Evenflo, BabyTrend, Safety 1st, Chicco, Compass and Cosco. Child car seat prices range from $50 to over $300 depending on the manufacturer and feature set. Keep in mind that expensive doesn't always mean better. Some of the cheaper seats perform just as well as the top models.

Let's take a look at a few of the standard features found in child car seats:

1) 5 Point Safety Harness - This is the most secure belt system a seat can have. If the car seat you are considering does not have a 5 point safety harness, I advise you to look elsewhere.

2) EPS Energy Absorbing Liner - Without question, the most important feature a child car seat can have. Almost all new car seats come with this type of liner. Upon impact, the foam linear absorbs and distributes the energy which decreases the likelihood of seat failure. Please make sure the seat you are considering has this type of liner.

3) LATCH System - LATCH stands for Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children. It's an easy and safe seat anchoring system that is built into all new automobiles.

4) Adjustable Seat Levels - This allows the parent to adjust the seat positioning. The seat can be set to a reclining or vertical position. Seat positioning usually depends on the size and age of your child.

5) Weight Restrictions - Recommended child weight is usually between 5lbs and 40lbs.

6) Rear Facing and Forward Facing - Infant car seats are always rear facing. Convertible seats are rear and forward facing. Booster seats are always forward facing.

7) Removable Padded Fabric - Great feature to have! You'll definitely throw the cover into the wash multiple times during the life of the car seat. Kids have a knack of making a mess!

Now that you understand the basic features you should be looking for in a child car seat, its time to start doing your research. Remember, CHILD SAFETY comes first, so DON'T choose a seat for the way it looks! Most car seats come in multiple patterns and colors. If you can't find one that suits your needs, you can always buy a child car seat cover to change the pattern. Booster Seat Covers have become very popular over the last few years. One more tip, do not base your decision solely on user reviews written at sites like http://Amazon.com. They should only be used as a aid in your decision making process. If you're looking for crash test ratings I suggest you use Google to search for the term "Car Seat Crash Test Ratings".

Good Luck and best wishes to you and your little one!

K.J. Brown is an expert article writer based out of New York City. He has written over 100 informative articles ranging from finance to child safety. To find more articles related to Child Car Seats and Child Safety, please visit http://www.bestchildboosterseat.com and http://www.boosterseatcover.com.

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Car Seat Safety Tips For Your Baby

by John Foley

Do you know that according to a report 80% of kids are not properly seated in the car seat and thus many children get unnecessarily injured in car accidents. Still many of us do not bother about using safe car seats for our children. So let us follow some basic tips so that we can avoid our babies from getting involved in an accident.

The biggest mistake that you parents often commit, is not to bother whether the seat is right for your child's age and whether he is facing the right direction.

a) Always remember infants should be in a rear facing infant only seat or convertible seat until they are 1 year old and weigh twenty pounds. Kids whose weight remains less than 20 pounds even after 1 year should also continue to face backwards.

b) When a child is above 1 year in age and weighs more than 20 pounds then he/she can be seated in a forward facing car seat, until they are 40 pounds of weight. Children over forty pounds should be placed into a belt positioning booster seat and they should usually stay in it until they are at least 8 years old.

c) Parents always remember not to use the car's regular seat belts for your child until they fit correctly when your child is about 80 pounds and is 4ft 9 inches tall. Your child should not use regular seat belts until the shoulder strap fits across his shoulder and not his neck, and the lap belt fits across his hips and not his stomach.

d) You should not allow your child to sit in the front seat until he/she is more than 12 years of age

e) Remember! Do not use seat, which has its harness straps too loose or in the wrong position, always lock the seat belt properly with a locking clip, secure the seat belt correctly and do not place an infant seat in the way of an air bag.

f) Always make sure that the harness chest clip of the infant seat is positioned at your child's armpit level, the harness straps are straight, the rear-facing straps are positioned at or a bit below your child's shoulders, the seat is reclined at about a 45 degree angle and never ever place an infant in a rear-facing child restraint in the front seat of a car.

g) When you are using a rear facing convertible seat, see carefully whether the harness straps are positioned at or a bit below your child's shoulders, the harness chest clip is at the armpit level, the harness straps are straight and the seat is reclined at a 45-degree angle.

h) While using a forward facing convertible seat, watch out that the harness straps are positioned at or slightly above your child's shoulder, the straps are straight and the harness chest clip's position is around your child's mid-chest or armpit area.

i) You can only use a forward facing combination seat if the harness straps are positioned at, or slightly above, your child's shoulders and you must stop using a shield booster when your child is 40 pounds.

j) If you want to use a belt-positioning booster seat, first make sure that you are using the lap/shoulder belt combination with a belt-positioning booster. Never use just a lap belt. Secondly, the shoulder belt must rest across the chest and thirdly the lap-belt should remain across the lap or upper thigh area and not across the stomach

Finally, do not use a car seat that: a) was involved in a crash, b) more that 10 years old, c) does not have a label with its date of manufacturing, d) does not have instructions, e) has a crack in its frame or has some part missing.
Always follow these instructions to ensure your baby's safety in the car.


Article Written By J. Foley
http://your-bay.blogspot.com

Article Written By J. Foley http://travelguy.typepad.com/your_baby

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