MONDAY, Jan. 30 (HealthDay News) -- Most parents in the United
States place their children in a booster seat when they're driving
their own car, but many don't enforce this rule when their child is
in a car with another driver, a new study indicates.
The researchers at University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's
Hospital found that more than 30 percent of parents don't require
their children to use a booster seat when they carpool, and 45
percent of parents don't make their children use a booster seat
when driving other children who don't have one.
The study appears online Jan. 30 ahead of print in the journal
Pediatrics.
"The majority of parents reported that their children between the ages of 4 and 8 use a safety seat when riding in the family car," Dr. Michelle Macy, a clinical lecturer of emergency medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School and a pediatrician at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, said in a university news release.
"However, it's alarming to know that close to 70 percent of parents carpool, and when they do, they're often failing to use life-saving booster seats," she added.
Factors such as limited vehicle space and difficulties making
arrangements with other drivers can cause parents to do without
booster seats when carpooling, the researchers suggested.
U.S. guidelines encourage the use of a booster seat until a
child is 57 inches tall, the average height of an 11-year-old. In
many states, children are required to use a booster seat until they
are 8 years old.
Using an adult seat belt for a child who is too small can result
in improper fit of the shoulder and lap belts and nullify the
lifesaving benefits of a seat belt, the researchers said.
"Therefore, parents who do not consistently use booster seats for kids who are shorter than 57 inches tall are placing children at greater risk of injury," Macy said. "Parents need to understand the importance of using a booster seat for every child who does not fit properly in an adult seat belt on every trip."
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more
about
child passenger safety.