Child passenger safety week

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – It’s child passenger safety week and AAA wants to make sure your children are safe when you travel with them.

Spokesperson, Kimberly Schwind, said car seats have come a long way, but a lot are still not used correctly. One of the main issues is parents are turning their children forward facing too soon. She recommends to keep them rear facing until they reach the upper weight and height limit of the car seat.

“Toddlers heads are disproportionately heavy compared to the rest of their body,” said Schwind. “So when you turn them forward facing and if they’re involved in a crash, you could see severe spine or head injuries.”

Schwind said to make sure you are fastening the car seat correctly, she recommends looking at the manual or finding a certified child passenger safety technician. You can get your car seat checked at the Zanesville-Muskingum County Health Department or the Newark AAA store.

“Car seats are so complicated and even if you think you’re doing it right, really just always read the manual – it’s really important,” explained Schwind. “The manuals can be overwhelming, the car seats can be overwhelming, so if you have questions, go find a child passenger safety technician.”

For more information, you can visit safe seats4kids.aaa.com.