Reply to Short 2nd graders -- what age did they switch from car seat to backed booster

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]our dd is only 46" tall and like 44 lbs -- she is tiny (we are not particularly tall either).

she is still in her 5 point car seat -- it goes to 50" and 65 lbs, so no need to change yet, but she reports all of her friends are in boosters (even ones shorter than her).

are most people switching to boosters once they weight 40 lbs and are basically at the minimum reqs for a booster, rather than exceeding the car seat?

[b]car seats are so much safer[/b], but i know its hard for DD to be the outlier here and its "babyish"[/quote]

The bolded isn't actually a known thing for older kids. Both five point harnesses and high back boosters are significantly better than belts (this has been studied), but the data isn't actually very strong for car seats making a huge difference once kids are older.[/quote]

I think it's important to understand WHY certain things are considered safer when we make these decisions.

The reason boosters are necessary is that seat belts are designed for adults so a child under a certain height will not be secure in a shoulder belt -- it's not possible for a child under a certain height to be correctly positioned.

5 point harnesses restrain in an ideal way, keeping the body perfectly positioned for restraint be preventing slouching and ensuring the straps stay over the shoulders. That's why they are essential for babies and little kids who are either incapable of sitting upright or unreliable for it.

So IF a child is in an appropriate booster for their head that and size, and IF the belt positions correctly against their body, and IF they can be relied upon to sit up and leave the belt where it's supposed to be (including not falling asleep and sliding sideways under the belt), there is no safety reason why the child should be in a 5-point harnessed car seat.

If you understand this you can make choices that are safe and make sense. Like one option is for a kid who is big enough and mature enough for a shoulder belt but is prone to falling asleep on car trips: use a car seat that converts to a high back booster and use it in booster mode with a shoulder belt for day to day around town (short trips) but put the harness in for long trips. Then you get the benefits of a booster (ease of drop off and pick up, kid feels more in line with peers) but you are still maximizing safety.[/quote]

Where is the research showing a harness is safer than a belt booster for older kids? [/quote]

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