Booster Seat Message
Moms View Message Board: Parenting Discussion: Archive January-June 2004:
Booster Seat Message
Parents getting the message on booster seats
In cars, even 8-year-olds need to sit higher. Laws say so in Pa. and N.J.
By Susan FitzGerald
Inquirer Staff Writer
More parents are getting in the habit of keeping their children in car seats or booster seats, rather than moving them too soon into seat belts, according to researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
The use of safety seats for children ages 3 to 6 increased from 35 percent in 1998 to 65 percent in 2002, a sign that parents are getting the message that restraining small children in seat belts alone doesn't offer the best protection in a crash.
"It's a dramatic change in a short period of time," said Flaura Winston, one of the authors of the study, published in the May issue of Pediatrics.
While most parents use car seats for their babies and toddlers, the tendency was to switch children to seat belts when they outgrew the seats or a new baby came along. Using a seat belt is better than nothing, but the belts don't properly fit children until they are about age 8 or 9, making children vulnerable to serious injuries in a crash.
The increase in the use of booster seats - which help position seat belts at the proper place - coincides with public safety campaigns encouraging their use, and laws in 26 states, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, that require their use up to a certain age or weight.
"Parents want to protect their children, and with appropriate education they do the right thing for their kids," said Winston, who is scientific director for TraumaLink, a Children's Hospital center that does trauma research.
Keri Clapp of Villanova has three children, ages 3, 6 and 9. She began using a booster seat for her oldest son when he was 4, before the seats were required by law.
Clapp said she's very particular about safety issues - "I'm kind of a car-seat freak" - and even has a couple of extra seats in case her children are riding with someone else.
Since 1998, Winston and her team have been analyzing crash data filed with State Farm insurance company to study which factors put children at risk in a crash, or, on the flip side, what protects them.
For this latest study, her team looked at 8,730 crashes in 15 states, including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and the District of Columbia. The crashes involved 10,195 children younger than 9 and were reported to State Farm from December 1998 to November 2002.
Car-seat use was already almost 100 percent for babies and 1-year-olds at the start of the study, and was also very high for 2-year-olds. The big improvements occurred with older children. Among 4-year-olds, for instance, the use of car seats or booster seats went from 37 percent in 1998-'99 to 74 percent in 2002. The use of boosters among 5-year-olds quadrupled, from 12 percent to 48 percent.
Only about 5 percent of 7- and 8-year-olds were in booster seats, but this was up from nearly no use at the start of the study.
In a previous study, Winston and her team found that young children who were placed simply in seat belts rather than in car seats or booster seats were four times more likely to suffer a serious head injury in a crash. They were also more at risk for injuries to the intestines, liver, spleen and spinal cord.
Children should be kept in car seats until they weigh 40 pounds, or around the age of 4, and then moved to booster seats, which allow the shoulder harness and lap belt to be positioned properly.
In Pennsylvania, children are required to be in booster seats until age 8; in New Jersey the seats are required up to age 8 and 80 pounds.
Trina
Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician
Kids are safest in booster seats until about 4'9" and 80-100 lbs. and can pass the 5 Step Test.
1. Does the child sit all the way back against the auto seat?
2. Do the child's knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat?
3. Does the belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm?
4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs?
5. Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?
If you answered "no" to any of these questions, your child needs a booster seat to make both the shoulder belt and the lap belt fit right for the best crash protection. Your child will be more comfortable, too!
More info:
NHTSA - Booster Seats
I just bought Rylee another car seat because she's already over the 25inches mark and almost 20pounds. It changes from a carseat to a booster and goes all the way up to 100pounds. I never have to buy another one!!!
Rayanne, never say never! LOL! What specific car seat did you get?
A Cosco Alpha-Omega
Here is a review from a seasoned CPS Tech with personal experience with the Cosco Alpha Omega. Although a nice seat in many ways, it most likely will not be the only car seat you'll ever need.
Alpha Omega Review
Thank you Trina.
Well, like you said, hopefully it's the last car seat I ever have to buy.
LOL Trina!!! Using those stats I would have been in a booster seat in my first year in high school!!!!
Ame
By the way, I love my Alpha-Omega. I'm sorry the reviewer does not agree.
Ame
She didn't give it an awful review, just that it's not all it's cracked up to be. Their claim that it will be the only car seat you'll ever need to buy is quite unrealistic. Car seats expire 6 yrs. after date of manufacture, and it's recommended kids stay in a booster seat until at least age 8. That alone means the Alpha Omega won't be the only car seat you'll ever need to buy. It is a nice seat but there are pros and cons to everything. I've found CPS techs either love it or hate it. My CPS Instructor happens to love it. I don't have any personal experience with it, but a big plus is that it has the highest rear facing limit (35 lbs.). Important for heavy infants less than 12 mos. of age who need to remain rear facing. (The bare minimum requirements for turning an infant forward facing are 12 mos. and 20 lbs.. The AAP now recommends kids to remain rear facing longer, until they meet the limits of their convertible seat.)
In regards to the booster recommendations - I would have been in a booster in high school as well. LOL! It all boils down to the laws of physics and safety. Bottom line, vehicle seat belts were not designed for children or teens/adults that are small in stature (less than 4'9", 80 lbs.), which means they are not properly restrained/protected during a crash.
I can hear you chuckling! LOL! Yes, I'm passionate about child passenger safety. That's why I became a CPS Tech.
I sooooo wish you lived closer to me because I'd have you come and visit this family who lives in my apartments. They are of a different culture (indian background I believe, but not like American indian) and they have three children all of who should be in carseats, the youngest not even one yet and NONE of them sit in carseats. I've spoken to them, our manager has spoken to them, I've even told them I'd call CPS and nothing they still keep putting thier children at risk needlessly. The sad thing is that the mom and dad buckle up everytime while the kids roam around the van.
That is awful!!!!
I get so frustrated when I am driving and I see kids not buckled or in carseats.
Oh Christylee, I know how you feel! Very frustrating, isn't it?! If I were in your shoes I would call the police and report them. Not only are they putting their children's safety at risk but breaking the law as well. Can they speak English? Do you think money is an issue? I will see what I can round up for CPS resources in TX. Often coordinators of Car Seat Checks have car seats for families in need.
I'd appreciate it, they actually have a carseat for the youngest one and just don't use it. The oldest is around 6, then the middle one is 4, and then the baby.
I'll talk to my manager (I work in the office) and see what she thinks about giving the police a heads up on them.
Christy, you can go to SafeKids.org to look up state child restraint laws and Car Seat Check events and Inspection locations. (Along the right column.) I have access to names of CPS Techs all over the country. Many of them are police officers. Feel free to e-mail me personally. I'd be happy to see if there is anyone in your local area. (TX is a big state! LOL!)
Trina, I have a bit of a dilema. Robin is pushing 80lbs (he's about 79 right now) and he's about 4'6". The booster he's using now (and Evenflo Right Fit Backless) only goes to 80lbs. I'm debating on getting him a new one that goes to 100lbs (Wal-Mart has a couple for between $15-$20). What do you reccomend? Whatever I get, he'll probably be out of in the next year or so anyway. I just made him come outside with me to do the 5 point test and the only thing he didn't pass is the knees (#2). My car has adjustable shoulder belts (very nice for short people like me!), so that's not a problem. Dh thinks we should just let him not use a booster. What do you think? Randy's a long way from getting out of one. He's only about 4'2" and 55lbs. Robin's 10 1/2, btw and I bet he's the only soon to be 6th grader still in a booster! lol
Cat, I would get him a backless Graco Turbo Booster. They have them at Wal-Mart for $15-20 and they go up to 100 lbs.. I have two that we use as spares and for car pooling and they're nice boosters. Honestly, I don't care if my kids are the only ones in car seats/boosters. Safety is much more important than peer pressure, don't you think?! Actually DD is the only 6 yr. old (in 2 wks!) in our town that I know of who is still in a car seat! She's only 38 lbs. and is safest that way. DS is one of FEW 2nd graders still in a booster. They've both watched crash test videos and are mini car seat nerds like their mother. LOL!
Backless boosters aren't obvious and get the job done by raising the child to fit the vehicle belt properly. They are perfectly fine to use, as long as your vehicle has proper head support - a head rest or high seat back.
Backless Graco Turbo Booster
Trina, I don't care if he's the only kids in a booster, either. He doesn't mind using it. That seat is actually one of the two I looked at this weekend at Wal-Mart. It's $19.88. Not too bad. Thanx!
Trina - I have the Graco Turbo Booster (with the back) - can I just remove the back when my ds gets to 80lbs?
Amy, check your instruction manual. There are different Turbo booster models and I don't know which one you have. I just checked at gracobaby.com (they have instruction manuals on-line in PDF format now) and it said the back could be removed "on certain models". Backless boosters are good for car pooling because they're small, light and easy to move from vehicle to vehicle. As I mentioned above, they're good for older kids who still *need* a booster but don't want it to be obvious to the world. LOL! However, they don't offer head or sleep support, and that's where a high back booster comes in handy.
I'm so glad people are paying attention to what's safe for kids! I'm 22 so when I was a kid the carseat laws were a lot more lax. However, I used my booster seat until age 7 or so because it gave me a better view out the window.
It makes me so mad when people gamble with the lives of their kids.
When I was 12, I went on a trip with a bunch of adults from my church in a van. The driver teasingly said, "All right chidren, don't forget to buckle up." The two ladies behind me (both mothers of 3) were chatting noisily about how THEY weren't going to wear their seatbelts. They were spouting all sorts of nonsense about how seatbelts damage your internal organs and you're better off without one at low speeds etc., etc.(were were on the freeway!) They never made their kids buckle up, either. Anyway, I turned around, my voice dripping with honey, and said, "I know you're not going to wear your seatbelts, but would you mind trading seats with me so that when you go flying out the windshield I don't get decapitated?" LOL That really shut them up, and they even buckled up!
That's hysterical, Andy! And how smart for such a little girl. Good for you!
Ame
LOL, Andrea! I'm glad your comment made them buckle up! Unbuckled passengers become deadly projectiles during a crash. Let's see if I can find that link...
Hey, Trina, I just wanted to let you know I got Robin that booster this morning (the Graco you posted above). We got it at Target for $19.99. He like it and is using the cup holders to hold Pokemon cards. lol Dh doesn't know I got it yet, but Robin's got another 20lbs to get to 100 and like I said, he doesn't pass the 5-point test. I figure he's safest this way.
 Glad to hear Robin likes it. Yes, he is safest that way. LOL about the Pokemon cards!
Trina, I am wanting to buy one of those same boosters for my dd. She will be 3 in November adn weighs around 35lbs. What do you think?
Kristie, your DD is too young and too small for a belt positioning booster. Most kids aren't big enough or mature enough to sit properly in a booster until at least 4 yrs. and 40 lbs., some older. Your DD is safest in a 5 pt. harnessed car seat. When you transition from a 5 pt. harness to a booster (which uses the vehicle 3 pt. seat belt) you give up a little crash protection. Not to mention the fact that the weight requirement for the booster I posted above is 40 lbs..
Ok, Thank You, I wasn't sure of the height weight requirements. I have her in one that has straps that buckle like a puzzle, hard to explain. I will just keep her in that for now.
Trina - My friends have a Britax Starriser (I think). It says on the side that it is for children 30 - 80 pounds and less than 59" (I think - I may be wrong on the max height). I know I'm not wrong on the min. weight, however.
What do you know about this booster? I'm thinking of getting it for my son since he's 35 pounds and a large kid. I can't see him in a 5 pt harness carseat until he's 4. He's just too big.
Ame
Kristie, you're welcome.
Ame, how old is your DS? Your profile says 2, but I don't know if that's current. Best practice is to keep a child in a harnessed car seat until they are 4 yrs. and 40 lbs.. If a child reaches 40 lbs. before he/she turns 4, although they meet the weight requirement, they most likely are not mature enough to sit still/properly in a belt positioning booster. If they wiggle and do not sit within the seat belt correctly they will not be protected during a crash. There are seats on the market for 40+ lb. kids who are not ready for a booster.
Britax Marathon: a convertible car seat that rear faces to 33 lbs. and forward faces up to 65 lbs..
Britax Husky: forward faces up to 80 lbs.
Safety Baby/Nania Airway: a combination seat that harnesses up to 50 lbs. then transitions to a belt positioning booster
I have a Britax Star Riser Comfy. It's a high back booster. The Star Riser is backless. It's weight and height requirements/limits are: 30-80 lbs. and 33-53" tall. A very nice booster, but I wouldn't put a child in it unless he/she met the height/weight requirements and was mature enough to sit properly in it. My own DD (newly 6, 39 lbs.) has never ridden in a booster as of yet. She *needs* that harness! LOL! I'm waiting until she's at least 40 lbs. before putting her in a booster.
Britax Star Riser Comfy
Britax Star Riser
Child Passenger Safety Information:
NHTSA - CPS
CarSeat.org
CPSafety.com
Message board where CPS Techs and Advocates post and are very helpful and informative
Car Seats
To find Child Passenger Safety Technician or Car Seat Check event in your area:
SeatCheck.org
SafeKids.org
My ds was 40 lbs last year at his 3 yr. check-up, so I purchased the Britax Marathon. We love it!! It is expensive, but worth it. My ds loves this carseat. He is now almost 4 and he is very active, definitely not ready for any type of booster. He can not be trusted to sit correctly in a regular booster and he thinks it is funny to unhook the seat belt when he is in one. He will definitely be in this seat another year at least. It is definitely worth it!!
Thanks Trina,
He'll be 3 in December. He's a very good sitter, not realy a wiggler at all. I'm glad you were able to find the min. height req. for the Starriser Comfy Booster. That's the one my friends have. I found a whole bunch of info, but could not find the min. height requ. I'll have to measure him and see how tall he is at this point. I think he's somewhere between 34 -36 inches tall.
It's more expensive than a lot of other boosters. Is that because it's really good, or becasue of the name value? Do you like it?
Thanks for all the other suggestions, but If I were going to get another car seat, I'd just keep him in his Omega and get a smaller seat for baby sister.
Thank you fro all you do to keep us informed of car safety. I certainly know a lot more because of it. .
Ame
You're welcome, Ame. At 2.5 your DS really is too young for a belt positioning booster, even though he may meet the minimum size requirements. As I mentioned above most kids aren't mature enough to sit properly in a booster until age 4. Best practice, safety wise, is to keep children in a harnessed seat until 4 yrs. and 40 lbs..
That said, the Britax Star Riser Comfy is a really nice booster. It has features less expensive boosters don't have. The base width is adjustable and so is the height. The unique head wings offer more protection and good sleep support. In fact, it's my DS's favorite booster. However, he now mainly rides in a Britax Bodyguard (40-100 lbs., 43-60") because as a car seat nerd, I couldn't pass up the enhanced side impact protection. 
More info: BritaxUSA.com
Child Passenger Safety - Four Steps for Kids
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