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What to Look for in an Infant Car Seat
Every parent’s ultimate concern is baby safety. The most important part of that plan is to choose the best seat for the particular car. Keep these tips in mind when looking for the ideal design.
The first things you need to look at are weight and age. Babies less than one year of age need to have a safety seat that is especially made for their small size. It still needs to be facing the rear, and shouldn’t be used with an older baby.
The average weight for a child between the ages of one and four is about 20 to 40 pounds. Of course, they’re also taller than small babies, and they keep increasing in height as they get older. This introduces the possibility for a car seat that faces forward, making things more convenient for the parents. It should still be installed in the back seat, though.
Convenience doesn’t have to be sacrificed for any of these goals, of course. Many models are convertible. This means that they can be switched from facing backward to facing forward with just a few moves. But don’t forget about the specifications concerning weight and age.
It’s important that your car seat satisfies certain criteria. A 5-point harness attachment design is key. So the parents can use the car’s safety belt to fasten the baby seat at the shoulders, hips and between the legs. This gives a more secure and stable base.
It’s helpful to have an overhead shield, too. These padded covers circle down and around the infant. A variation is the T-shield, a padded T-shaped section that attaches to the shoulder straps.
Look for models with a tether at the top that can be attached from the top of the child’s car seat to an anchor point in the car. That adds extra safety. Some have a system called LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children). Therefore, there’s no need to use the safety belts in the car which are really intended for adults and older children. Instead, the safety seat is fastened only to the anchors.
Extra safety and comfort is provided by baby car safety seats that safely allow for adding or subtracting padding or blankets. As well, parents don’t have to spend as much time making adjustments to the seat for a good fit. That’s a situation in which no-one loses. Some even have integrated travel vests that can be buckled around the child.
That same double theme of safety and convenience is carried on by seat designs that make it easy to insert and adjust the restraining straps. Parents are busy people and it’s all too easy to take an occasional shortcut. But no one wants to sacrifice safety. A design that requires only a few seconds to install or move the seat satisfies all those needs.