Health Matters: Child Passenger Safety

It’s the leading cause of death in children under the age of 19. “We really stress the importance of buckling up your children, every time, every ride,” said Sally Kreuscher, a child advocacy program coordinator at Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.

Health experts say it’s important to make sure a child’s car seat is the correct size for their height and weight. “Car seats are an extremely important piece to keep kids safe when traveling in the vehicle. To make sure that your car seat is installed properly it’s important to follow that manufacturer’s instructions,” she said.

Children should be rear-facing in the backseat as long as possible. “Airbags are made to hit an adult in the breast bone, so if a child were to sit in the front seat too early, the airbag could deploy and hit the child in the face. Really, it’s recommended that the child under the age of 13 sits in the backseat. The back is the best,” said Kreuscher. It’s also important that children aren’t taken out of a car seat too early. “Many families want to move a child from a car seat to a seat belt and we’re missing a step. Putting a booster seat in really helps to boost the child up to fit an adult-size seat belt, so a booster seat is what’s going to protect a child in between a car seat and a seat belt,” she said. Keeping the most precious cargo protected on the road.

View More Health Matters video segments at LeeHealth.org/Healthmatters/ Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries. Lee Health – Caring People. Inspiring Care. Visit LeeHealth.org

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