Child Car Safety – Security In Securing Our Kids

Added: 12/18/2005

Recent developments in research and manufacturing have been turning the task of keeping our children safe in our vehicles into a precise science. From yearly safety ratings to various safety checks by these child car safety companies, we have been seeing improvements in the products we employ to keep our kids in their seats. Should we relax our vigilance in the wake of these developments? Or should we keep our eyes open to flaws and problems that might still arise if we rest on our laurels?

Child car safety has always been a primary concern for parents and guardians when it came to traveling with children. With so many vehicular accidents these days due the the increasing number of vehicles on the road, it is no wonder that the research and manufacture of these child car safety tools have taken an upward direction. Nowadays with the birth of computer aided manufacturing techniques and research facilities, consumers can now rest-assured that their child car safety paraphernalia are of the utmost quality and that they also have quite a number of choices available for their specific need.

One of the most common child car safety products purchased by consumers is the child safety car seat. Invented in 1921, the first child safety car seat is very different from today's child car seats. It was created after the introduction of the Henry Ford's Model T. Early versions were somewhat primitive in that they were essentially sacks with drawstrings attached to the back seat. History also states that Tennessee became the first American State to require child safety seat use back in 1978.

This child car safety gadget has seen its share of downs, what with poor research and manufacturing by some companies, resulting in unwarranted child deaths that ultimately resulted in product recalls and some lawsuits. These days, however, companies producing child safety car seats are becoming more conscientious and precise. This can be attributed partly to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration or NHTSA, which implemented in 2001 its Ease of Use ratings program to encourage child car safety manufacturers to improve their products and to prompt them of flaws in such items. Those who wish to purchase a child safety car seat can now easily check the ratings of the available seats in a chart produced by the NHTSA every year, which includes the type, mode and safety rating of each manufacturer's product. With seats ranging in size from infant to booster, this rather long list gives the consumer a lot of choices to fit their needs.

In choosing the right child safety car seat for your car, there are some points to be taken into consideration, two of which are the age and weight of the child who will be using this child car safety device. The rear-facing, infant only child safety seat is recommended for babies aged newborn up to those weighing 22 pounds. Convertible seats can be utilized by babies up to 40 pounds. Forward-facing only seats can be used by children 20 to 40 pounds in weight, as long as they are at least a year old. The same goes for the Combination Forward-Facing/Booster seat. Booster seats are also available for children above 40 pounds.

Whatever child safety car seat you do decide on, irregardless of the brand or price, it is extremely important that you couple your choice with a good research into the background, safety rate and proper installation of these devices. Always remember that the safety and the life of your child is in the care of this child car safety device and should warrant no less than your full attention to the details.

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