While most parents acknowledge the necessity of car seats for babies, many are not aware of the need to properly restrain older children. Seat belts are designed for people who are at least 4 feet 9 inches (145cm) tall. In a crash, a proper fitting seat belt places pressure evenly across the shoulder, chest, and hip bones – the strongest parts of the body. When a child is too small for a seat belt, it tends to cross over the more vulnerable places of the body such as the neck and stomach. ‘Seat belt syndrome’ is how doctors describe injuries to the spine and internal organs – something that happens to children who were too small to use a regular seat belt.
