Parents: Learn The Facts Behind Booster Seats (NAPSA)—Until what age should children be strapped into car seats when ridingin the car? It may surprise many parents to learn that kids should be placed in some kind of a restraint—rearfacing child seat or booster seat— until they’re eight years of age, or weigh 80 pounds. Making surechildren are prop- erly restrained is the best way to avoid a painful statistic: Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for children of every age. While many parents keep infants buckled up, they maylet older kids ride like adults—andit could have fatal consequences. That’s why Evenflo and AAA have teamed up to provide consumers with easy-to-use information on booster seats; the “Put Big Kids in Boosters” campaign is designed to help parents properly fit their children in boosterseats. “T find that parents know how to use convertible car seats for their infants, but even the most safety-conscious parentsfall short when they don’t put children between 40 and 80 pounds in booster seats. Standard shoulder and lap belts don’t fit young children like adults, a fact that can be deadly if children aren’t riding in booster seats,” says Dr. Tanya Altmann, a general pediatrician and memberof the Evenflo Safe Baby and Toddler Council. Altmann says an easy rule of thumbis that children who cannot sit with their backs straight against the seat back cushion, with knees bent over the edge of the seat, are not big enoughto sit in the back seat of a car without a boosterseat. Most states are supporting the use of booster seats and are passing laws requiring children to be properly restrained in car and a hadi Children should ride in booster seats until age eight. booster seats until they reach 8 years or 80 pounds. Below is Evenflo’s guide to what parents need to know whenbuyinga boosterseat: Pick a high-back or backless booster seat that fits the child and the car’s back seat. If the car has a low seat back, a high-back booster is recommended. A booster with a removable back cushion converts to a backless booster for older children. Choose a booster with a lap belt positioner to keep the lap belt low and snug across the hips. The lap belt positioner should let the seat belt move freely while remaining properly positioned. Some booster seats include armrests that pivot out of the way for convenient entry and exit and winged headrests for comfort while sleeping. Most importantly, choose a seat that the child will use and use correctly. There are many resources available to provide parents with the most up-to-date information about car and booster seats. For a free “Put Big Kids in Boosters” brochure, go to evenflo.com or call your local AAA.
