Choosing Between an Infant and a Convertible Newborn Car Seat

A newborn car seat is also referred to as a baby car seat or infant safety seat. It is designed to protect infants from injury and death in vehicle accidents. The harness distributes the restraining force over the child's head and body instead of the spinal cord or neck.

These seats are available in rear-facing as well as convertible versions, and come with the option of varying weights and height limits. These seats can also be a part of a travel set that can be converted into the base of a stroller.

Rear-facing

Rear-facing car seats for newborns offer the most complete protection for infants during crashes. They are designed to hold and support children, while protecting their neck, spine and head. In addition, they help to disperse the impact of a crash from hitting your child's body which reduces the risk of injuries. This is because the child's body doesn't hit the seat of the vehicle, or front passenger seat. Instead, it's a soft, cushioned surface within their car seat.

According to the AAP, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, parents should keep their child rear-facing until they reach the weight limit of their car seat or height limit. At around the age of 1, children will outgrow their infant car seat and transition to a convertible seat that can be oriented forward. Many parents will leave their child in the rear seat until they turn two.

There are two main types of rear-facing car seats: infant-only seats and convertible car seats. Both are equally secure, but each offers different advantages. For example, infant-only seats are smaller, lighter and have an easy release base that can be easily detached from the car and reattached to a stroller base. Convertible car seats are larger and heavier. They also don't include a stroller base.

It is important to use the back seat regardless of the type of seat. It is also recommended that you place tightly rolled washcloths or blankets between the crotch straps and your baby to make sure that there is no slack in the harness. Check that the lower anchors of your car seat are securely installed and are connected to the lower attachment points on the lower anchor bars.

Research shows that babies who are facing the rear of the car are less likely to get injured in a car accident. Rear-facing car seats allow babies to feel less stress when they strike the car's front in contrast to the rear which could result in serious injuries.

Forward-facing

Most parents have invested a lot of thought into their newborn car seat insert car seat. It was a key item on the baby registry, and the way you brought your baby home from the hospital. Now that your child is older, you might be thinking about turning the car seat around to facing forward. But, it's important to remember that children aren't ready until they reach the height and weight limits set by the manufacturer of their car seat.

When your baby is at least 20 lbs and a year old, they should remain rear-facing. This is because babies younger than one year old don't have enough neck muscles to withstand the whiplash that results from being caught in a crash and thrown forward. They also face greater risk of suffering from spinal injuries in head-on collisions.

You can purchase a convertible car seat or an all-in-one seat that will allow you to keep the child rear-facing until the child reaches the weight and height limit of the seat. These are typically bucket-style infant seats that come with the base that you can install in your vehicle. They are also removed from the base and attached to strollers in order to form travel systems. However, they tend to have lower maximum weight and height limits than the standard convertible car seat.

You can also purchase an extra booster. These are typically fitted with a harness designed for smaller children, and then convert into a belt-positioning booster seat when your child is ready for it. This kind of car seat has the main benefit of being used in your vehicle throughout the duration of your child's growing years which makes it much easier to move the car seat from one location to another.

No matter which car seat you pick be sure to read the instruction manual and follow the installation guidelines. Consult a certified car safety technician to ensure that your child's car seat is properly installed and is used in a safe manner. It is common for parents to misuse car seats, and even well-intentioned parents may cause harm to their children. It is best to read the instructions on the car seat and follow the guidelines of a CPST.

Convertible

Many parents opt for convertible infant car seats because they can grow with your baby, allowing them to travel in a safe manner from infancy to toddlerhood. They are also less expensive than infant car seats and offer a long lifespan. However, it's important to choose a model that is simple to install and fits your vehicle. Also, ensure that you buckle up your lightweight baby car seat (official source) properly every time.

Snug straps keep the head from moving to a risky chin-to-chest stance that could result in asphyxiation or strangulation. Many infant car seats have straps that are unbuckled or loose and pose an extremely risky safety issue. Straps that aren't buckled could cause a neck to hang, which is the cause of many accidents. The crotch buckle can also pose a risk in the event that it is not secure enough to pass the pinch test. This test determines whether the crotch buckle is tight enough to prevent a newborn's legs from sliding around in the seat and result in them being cut or trapped.

Some convertible newborn car seat come with an adjustable torso-height that allows you to alter the height limit according your child's development. The minimum torso should be at least the height of the shoulders of your infant or an inch lower. Some models come with an infant insert that can help you raise your child to the right height.

The best infant carrier car seat convertible newborn car seat should be a snug fit, comfortable padding, and a slender base that lets you put it in your vehicle. It should also come with a secure, tight harness that passes the pinch test, and a short tight-rolled blanket or towel for an emergency. It should also include an anchor tether that connects to the anchor points of your vehicle, which could minimize injuries from an accident by reducing the impact force. It should also come with the travel set that is a car seat and stroller that you can use to transfer your infant from the vehicle to the stroller.

Safety features

Parents have a lot to take into consideration when selecting the best car seat for their newborns. car seat for newborn seats are an essential purchase for families who are just starting out because using them can reduce the risk of fatal child collisions in motor vehicles by 71 . The decision between an infant car seat and a convertible car seat comes down to several key elements, including safety features, compatibility with your vehicle and the ease of use.

Car seats for infants are created with the fragile baby seat's physiology in mind. They typically come with a base that stays in the vehicle and an infant carrier that snaps into place, making it easy to transfer your baby from car to stroller and back without disturbing them. They have a crotch and harness built in to ensure your child secure.

Some infant cars come with side-impact protection that disperses the crash force away from the infant's neck and head. They come with metal, plastic and foam that absorbs energy and shields the head of the infant from direct contact with the frame or other objects involved in a collision. Some include a special pod that extends from the door to protect the child's head.

Another safety feature that is becoming more prevalent in infant car seats is a chest clip that holds the harness straps flat across your newborn's chest. This prevents the straps pinching or twisting around shoulders, which could expose your child to risk of injury. If you choose a car seat that has this feature, make sure the chest clip is positioned at armpit level. It is also important to not dress your child in bulky clothing that might interfere with the harness's fit.

Regardless of which type of car seat you choose, check that it's installed in your vehicle according to the manufacturer's instructions. Check for the lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) system, which consists of an attachment that clips onto a car's lower anchor points and the tether strap, which is attached to the top of the seat and connects to an anchor in your vehicle. If your car does not have LATCH, a seatbelt may be used to secure car seats.