Car travel can be dangerous, but follow these tips and your car travel will be safe for baby and family.
- When you car travel, always use a car seat for infants and young children. A rear-facing car seat should be used until your child has reached one year of age AND weighs at least 20 pounds. Once your child is at least one year of age and at least 20 pounds, he can ride in a forward-facing car seat, but it is better to keep him rear-facing to the highest weight and/or height allowed by his car seat.
- A child who has outgrown her car seat with a harness (she has reached the top weight or height allowed for her seat, her shoulders are above the top harness slots, or her ears have reached the top of the seat) should ride in a belt-positioning booster seat until the vehicle's seat belt fits properly (usually when the child reaches about 4' 9" in height and is between 8 to 12 years of age).
- All children under 13 years of age should ride in the rear seat of vehicles.
- If you car travel, never place a child in a rear-facing car seat in the front seat of a vehicle that has an airbag.
- Set a good example by always wearing a seat belt and your family will too.
- Children can easily become restless or irritable when traveling by car. Try to keep them occupied by pointing out interesting sights along the way and by bringing soft, lightweight toys and favorite CDs for a sing-along during car travel.
- Plan to stop driving and give yourself and your child a break about every two hours of car travel.
- Never leave your child alone in a car, even for a minute. Temperatures inside the car can reach deadly levels in minutes, and the child can die of heat stroke.
- In addition to a travelers' health kit, parents should carry safe water and snacks, child-safe hand wipes, diaper rash ointment, and a water- and insect-proof ground sheet for safe play outside.
SOURCE: American Academy of Pediatrics
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