When is it ok to put your child in a front facing car seat. Guidelines? Weight....Height...etc?

Question

My 9 month old is 25lbs and is the size of an 18 month old. What are the guidelines for when to put them in a front facing car seat?

Answer 1

I don't know where you live, but the law in TX in that they must be at least 20 lbs and one year of age (they MUST be both).  However, I turned my daughter around at about 10 or 11 months because she was tall and heavy enough.  

Answer 2

they say its best to wait until thier 1. but my 10 month old is 25 lbs as well and shes in a front facing car seat.

Answer 3

Go to InventiveParent website, and you can view Kansas restraint laws. I'm in KS, too, and their laws stink http://www.kslegislature.org/legsrv-stat...

It only states you must use an 'appropriate' child restraint for children under 4 years old. If ask the experts, American Academy of Pediatrics, CPSTs (car seat techcnicians) they will tell you an appropriate child restraint for a child under 2 years old is a rear facing one.  That's right - TWO years old, not one. So turning your child forward facing just b/c she's bigger is not safe. I feel your pain - my son has always been big, and at now 4 is the size of some 6 year olds. But he's still harnessed, b/c that is the safest option for a 4 year old. Convertible car seats rear face to 30-35lbs, and her weight gain will significantly slow down once she starts walking, as well, so she still has plenty of time in order to rear face. Basically what it comes down to is this: just b/c its legal doesn't make it safe. Consider this: In Kansas its also legal to ride a motorcycle without a helmet, and plenty of people do it. That doesn't make it safe. Its legal for a pregnant woman to drink and smoke, that doesn't make it safe. LOTS of things are legal that are completely unsafe.

The laws of physics are the same no matter what state you're in, and that's what you want to go by here. The guidelines for a forward facing seat? When she has outgrown a rear facing convertible or is 2 years old. Rear facing convertibles are outgrown when either happens:

1)the weight limit is reached, 30-35lbs depending on model

        OR

2)there is less than 1 inch of seat above the child's head.

The old 20lbs/1 year rule is just that. OLD. It came about in the 1980's when our seats were only capable of rear facing to 20lbs and we didn't know any better. Now we definitely know better and all current convertible seats rear face to at least 30lbs, but its hard getting people to realize this.

Turning kids forward at 20lbs/1year is an outdated practice that could cost you your child's life!

1)A forward-facing child under 2 years old is 5 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured in a crash than a rear-facing child of the same age.

2)A child's vertabrae do not fully fuse until 3-6 years old, before then, she is at great risk for internal decapitation. The spinal column can stretch up to 2 inches in a crash BUT the spinal cord can only stretch up to 1/4 inch before it snaps and baby is gone.

3)Current research suggests that children under the age of two years are 75 percent less likely to die or be seriously injured when they are riding rear facing.

4)In a recent article from Injury Prevention, it was found that the odds of severe injury to forward facing children age 12-23 months old was 5.32 times higher than a rear facing child. (Car Safety Seats For Children: Rear Facing For Best Protection; Injury Prevention 2007; 13:398-402.)

It works this way: when you get in an accident and run into something, the car stop suddently, but everything and everyone in the car keeps moving in the direction the car was moving when it stopped, in most accidents, this is forward. So in an accident with a child in a forward facing seat, his head, the heaviest part of the body on babies and toddlers, flies forward very forcefully and easily snaps. If that same child is in a rear facing seat, his head tries to fly forward but is supported by the back of the rear facing seat, so there is no stress put on the child's neck and spine.

Check out this photo album exclusively of rear facing kids, many of them much older than 12 months: http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum...  There isn't a single documented case of a child breaking their legs b/c they were rear facing in an accident. There are, however, lots of cases where children have been killed and seriously injured where a rear facing seat would have protected them better. And  most kids actually prefer to be rear facing b/c they can rest their feet on the vehicle seat back. When they are forward facing, their legs don't receive enough support and will frequently fall asleep.

Answer 4

Try this site it is for all states...........

http://www.childseatcenter.com/article10...

Answer 5

when in doubt, contact the local DMV or ambulance service -ask the pros!

Answer 6

where are you?

what are the limits of your seat?

ours had a 13kilo (28lb?) weight limit, the forward facing one started at 10kilos (22lb)

how well does he hold his head up when sitting unaided?

if he sits well, it sounds like he will be ok.

my son went forward facing before 9 months as he was far too long for the infant carrier. his head was out the top!