Should my son still be rear facing in the car?
Monday, November 30th, 2009 at
6:01 am
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You need to get a convertible seat for him. That type of seat can remain rear facing to 30-35 lbs (depending on model). The legal minimum for forward facing is both 12 months and 20 lbs. He needs to be turned back to rear facing for safety reasons.
From: http://www.carseat.org/
Why is facing rearward so important?
Babies have heavy heads and fragile necks. The neck bones are soft, and the ligaments are stretchy. If the baby is facing forward in a frontal crash (the most common and most severe type of crash), the body is held back by the straps, but the head is not. The head is thrust forward, stretching the neck. Older children and adults wearing safety belts may end up with temporary neck injuries. But a baby’s neck bones are soft and actually separate during a crash, and the spinal cord can tear. It’s like yanking an electrical plug out of a socket by the cord and breaking the wires.
In contrast, when a baby rides facing rearward, the whole body–head, neck, and torso–is cradled by the back of the safety seat in a frontal crash. Facing rearward also protects the baby better in other types of crashes, particularly side impacts. For more information, go to "Rear-facing vs. forward-facing."
He absolutely should still be rear facing. Depending on where you live what you’re doing could be illegal.
The weight limit for rear facing is 20+ lbs. AND over the age of one. Right now your son’s neck muscles are not strong enough to withstand much impact. If you don’t have one yet, get a convertible car seat. My son will be 11 months old on Wednesday and is 23 lbs. and fits in his just fine(rear facing).
He needs to be 12 months and 20+lbs. You need to get the convertible type of car seat.
Yes He should Still be Rear Facing.
Rear facing until Age 1 year (12 months) AND 20 pounds.
Not either or.
His neck can not handle the impact of a forward facing crash. His neck could Break.
Buy a convertible car seat that rear faces to at least 30 pounds.