Though most states in the United States require parents to place their children in car seats until they are 6 or 7 years old, some studies suggest that for children over the age of 2, seat belts work just as well. Car seats are much more effective at preventing fatalities and injuries in kids younger than 2, but some studies suggest that there is virtually no difference in the frequency of fatalities or serious injuries in crashes with children older than 2 when comparing those wearing a lap and shoulder belt with those in a car seat — this according to a recent TED speaker. Other experts dispute this and strongly recommend that parents continue to use car seats for children up to 40-60 lbs (about 18 - 27 kg) or 4 - 7 years of age, as required by law in some places. Booster seats are required in some US states for children up to 60 - 80 lbs (about 27 - 36 kg).
More facts about car seats:
- New car seats in the U.S. typically cost anywhere from $30 USD Dollars (USD) to $400 USD apiece, and Americans spend more than $30 million USD buying car seats every year.
- The first modern car seat was invented in 1962 — before that, car seats were intended to help keep children in their parents' sight rather than to protect them.
- Car seats in the U.S. have to get a certain safety score before being approved for manufacture; any score of less than 1,000 is considered safe. In crash safety tests, a seat belt gets essentially the same score as a high-end car seat; both get 400-500 points.
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Discuss this Article
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anon164419
Post 3 |
What "studies" are these, exactly? |
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anon164354
Post 1 |
I don't understand how a seat belt which is made to fit adults would adequately protect a child, unless there was a special seat which raised the child to fit into the belt. I believe that raised seat might be called a "car seat." |
