Most times having children in your car while driving might be sometimes challenging, and this brings safety awareness to a greater level. Therefore in order to help you be the safest parent I have carefully carved out these tips for you to safely drive while having your baby with you.
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT CAR SEATS: Car seats varies for infants from infant; convertibles, full-sized boosters and backless boosters are readily available at baby stores.Make sure the seat is right for your child size, check the safety ratings and make sure it fits properly into your car. Do a test run before taking your child out with it, because not all seats are designed to fit all cars.
POSITION BELTS AND CLIPS RIGHTLY
When your child is rear-facing, shoulder straps should be at, or slightly below, their shoulders. Forward-facing children’s straps should be at, or slightly above, their shoulders. The clip should be placed at about armpit height. If there is too much slack (if you can pinch the belt), or the height of the belts are incorrect, this will allow too much movement and cause potential injury in a crash. Orbit Baby offers free diagrams and in-depth explanations of strap positioning safety, in case you are uncertain of your belt positioning.
DONT GIVE YOUR BABY TOY OR FOOD IN THE CAR
Now this is very important In order to be as safe as possible, try not to allow your child use toys in the car. In the case of an accident, toys can become very dangerous items capable of causing serious injury to the baby or anyone in the car. In the case of food, any food can be a choking hazard, and bottles can also be dangerous projectiles, always endeavor to feed your child before you leave or park your car at a convenient place to give your child the attention it deserves. Rear-Face your baby until age two. The American Academy of Pediatrics updated their specifications on car seat safety. This included recommending that all children rear-face until at least age two, or until they reach the maximum height or weight for the car seat. While it’s understandable that most parents look forward to new milestones, it’s not optimal to turn your baby on their first birthday like previously thought.
YOU COULD DECIDE TO OPT FOR A BACK-SEAT MIRROR.
Most times while driving and your baby is alone in the back seat it might be difficult to figure out what some noise can mean, you might want to find out if it is danger alert or just normal passing sound. You could easily get it in some of the popular online stores, getting a mirror will help you avoid pulling over to make sure everything is alright back there.
BY SOPHIE AIGBOMIAN.
