After conducting a series of crash tests, Consumer Reports has issued a new car seat guideline. The organization recommends that parents move their babies from rear-facing infant carriers to rear-facing convertible car seats by the time they turn 1.
Consumer Reports reached this conclusion after developing new crash tests to determine how well different car seats protect children in frontal crashes. Using a 22-pound dummy to represent a 1-year-old, they found that babies at that age were more likely to hit their heads on the back of the front seat when riding rear-facing in infant carriers than in convertible seats.
This video about the findings notes that babies are too big for their infant seats when they exceed height limits or their heads are less than an inch from the top of the carrier shell. The video adds, however, "We are now recommending that all children be moved to a rear-facing convertible seat by their first birthday even if they haven't yet outgrown their rear-facing infant seat.
Consumer Reports also suggests that the best car seats are the ones that make installation more user-friendly and allow parents to make adjustments as their children grow.
When it comes to car seats, safety should always be the top priority.
H/T BabyCenter
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