To the appearance of the child, parents need gain a ton of things, the need for which they did not even suspect before or considered them optional. These things often include a car seat. Unfortunately, in our country, the culture of transporting children in a car appeared not so long ago, and some still think that car seats are absolutely unnecessary, because before everyone could somehow do without them.
However, according to a WHO study, the use of car seats reduced the mortality rate of children in road accidents by 54%, and the risk of injuries in children in accidents - by 70%.
In the Russian Federation, since 2005 (Decree of December 14, 2005, No. 767, Section 22, Clause 22.9 of the Traffic Laws of the Russian Federation), a law has been enacted on the mandatory availability and use of car seats when transporting children from 0 to 12 years old. For non-compliance with the requirements, the driver is brought to administrative responsibility: from September 1, 2013 the fine is 3,000 rubles.
Based on the foregoing, we conclude: a car seat must be installed in the car even before you go to pick up the child from the hospital. Now you need to determine which safety device is suitable for the newborn. There are two options for car seats for young passengers weighing up to 13 kg:
- Group 0: Car seat for children who cannot yet sit. These are the same wheelchair cradles that can be installed in the rear seat of the car. The baby in the cradle is fastened with a soft strap. Car seat used from 0 to 1 year.
- Group 0+: a carriage carrying that is set against the direction of travel - this arrangement provides greater safety during frontal impacts in an accident. You can install the carrier in the rear and front seats. Many 3-in-1 strollers now have carriers in their kit that can be used as a car seat, high chair or rocking chair. You can use the carrying chair for longer - up to 1.5 years.
- Group 0+ and 1: a car seat that can be used from the moment the children begin to sit, that is, from 6 to 8 months. These chairs are suitable for children from 9 to 18 kg.
How to choose a car seat for a baby up to a year:
- The product label must bear the ECE R44 / 03 or ECE R44 / 04 mark, which indicates that the car seat has successfully passed a number of standard tests and meets all the requirements.
- For young children, it will be much safer to face facing the direction of travel, since in a front collision of the car in this case the baby will push into the seat, which in the usual position, in the direction of travel, often ends in a sudden fatal outcome. This happens because at the age of one year the baby’s head is equal in weight to half the body weight, and the cervical vertebrae cannot hold it in a collision.Therefore, when choosing a baby carrier, give preference to one that has the ability to install in both positions.
- If you often reinstall a car seat from one car to another or carry your baby in a carriage, install it on a stroller, then pay attention to the ease of installation. It is important that you can easily do this with the child in it.
- It is good if the seat covers are made of natural fabrics. Children sweat a lot in car seats, especially in summer.
Car seats not only ensure the safety of the child, but also convenient in any relationship, especially when it comes to newborns: you will have free hands, you can always play and feed the baby, without worrying that drop it. And if you are a driver yourself, then without a car seat traveling alone with a baby does not seem possible at all.
We also read: Is it possible to carry a child in the front seat of the car: age restrictions, traffic rules and all the pros and cons
