Did you know that your child is up to 5 times safer in a rear-facing car seat than in a forward-facing car seat? This means that in the event of a collision the chances of surviving or avoiding serious injuries decreases 5 times, if your child is traveling in a rear-facing car seat instead of a forward-facing car seat. Let us take you through the key steps.
Toddlers Bones need rear-facing car seat
The neck vertebrae of a young child are very delicate due to the whole neck area being underdeveloped. When a baby is born, neck vertebrae are “composed of separate portions of bone joined by cartilage, in other words, the baby’s skeleton is still soft”. The cartilage turns into bone during the first three years of a baby’s life. The hardening process of the bones, called ossification, continues until puberty. Muscles and ligaments in the neck develop in a similar way. Young children can’t handle the incredibly high forces in a collision while in a forward facing car seat, not even at speeds which we adults may think are minor. A rear- facing car seat offers the best protection to the child's head, neck and spine.
The size of the child's head
Look at the chart below, as you can see that the child's head is disproportionate to the body and makes up to 25% of the total body weight in comparison to an adult where the head only counts for about 6% of the total body weight. At the same time, the child's neck is extra vulnerable since it is not fully developed yet. The sensitive neck in combination with the head's weight makes it even more important to protect and support the child's neck for as long as possible.
The forces on the child's neck up to 5 times greater
Frontal crash tests show that the forces acting on the neck are up to 5 times greater when the child sits in a forward-facing car seat compared to a rear-facing car seat. During impact, in a forward facing car seat, a child’s shoulders and body are held back by the harness. But the neck and head are thrown violently forward, putting tremendous force on the yet undeveloped head, neck and spine. If the child sits in a rear-facing car seat, the car seat supports the child's entire back, neck and head, distributing the crash forces over a larger area and therefore significantly reduces the forces imposed on the neck. Therefore, a rear- facing car seat gives your child better protection and reduces the risk of injury in the event of a collision.
Until what age your child should travel in a rear-facing car seat?
For your child's safety, always use a rear-facing car seat for as long as possible, at least until your child is 4 years old. It is recommended to keep them rear- facing for as long as possible until the existing car seat allows it and based on the child's weight and height (not on age). Thanks to the fast growing technology, you can now find car seats which allow your children to be rear facing up to 125cm which is approximate up to 7 years of age.
“5X Safer with rear facing”
The first country to adopt this measure was Sweden. Children have been traveling rear-facing over there for the past 40 years; even the parents of today's Swedish children were travelling rear-facing when they were babies!
In Sweden, between 1992 and 2012, 15 children died whilst traveling rear-facing. All these unfortunates deaths happened due to major force (ejection due to collision with another heavy vehicle, flattening or lack of oxygen related to the type of crash), but never related to car restraint system.
In Norway, a country which adopted similar measures to Sweden more than a decade ago, have managed zero death due to car accidents in children under 12.
Countries which have adopted rear-facing policies have held the lowest ratio of children dead per capita.
To wrap up: Rear-facing is the safest way for your child to travel! For your child's safety, always choose a rear-facing car seat for as long as possible, as it will protect your child's neck, soft parts and make sure that your child is as safe as possible in every single event of a collision.
