Is It Safe to Face Forward for My 19 Month Old?

Hi K. - my daughter was not a premie BUT she was very thin - to the point where she didn't reach 20 lbs. until she was just about 2 years old. My doctor told me I needed to keep her in her rear facing car seat until she actually reached 20 lbs. Other people told me that it would be ok but I always thought it would be better to be safe than sorry. I did do what the doctor said. I thought that if anything actually did happen and she wasn't in the car as she was supposed to be, that I would never forgive myself.

NO -- I would not face her forward until she is 20 pounds, especially since she was a preemie. I think the 20 pound rule has something to do with their bodies being developed enough and strong enough to handle the impact during a crash. How preemie was she? If she was 2 months early, than she is really 17 nmonths etc. Nothing is more important than her safety so I would keep her facing backward until she meets the weight requirement.

The Britax roundabout is a great carseat. It can face backward and foreward and they can use it until 40 pounds. I agree with the other mom about making sure she is not too tall for her current seat. Is she still in the carrier seat?

my daughter is also 19 months and not even 20 pounds yet. she was not a premie, she will be petite like i am. we put her car seat forward facing the day she turned a year old. She likes it much better because she can see me and out the window better. she hates to be confined, so this helped a little. it hasn't hurt my daughter to be turned forward facing, but you need to do what you feel comfortable with and what will be best for your family. hoped this helped some.

Unfortunately, it's probably not a good idea. Generally, the reason they put weight limits on things like car seat guidelines is do to the results in the event of a crash.
Without getting too graphic the way 17 lbs. reacts to an impact may be very different to the way 20 lbs reacts.

I would suggest you ask you doctor and contact the car seat manufacturer (but my guess would be that especially the car seat company will say to wait).

They put both age and weight requirements for a reason. Kinda like height requirements for certain theme park rides. Rear facing is simply safer anyway but if she is still not the right weight then you should wait to make her forward facing. Most of what I have read tell me to leave my child rear facing as long as the seat recommends weight wise because it simply is safer.
This is quoted from the following link:
http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_newborn/home/a...
"A baby who weighs 20 pounds (about 10 kilograms) but has not yet reached 1 year of age should still ride in a rear-facing seat, because the baby's neck is typically not strong enough to support the baby's head in the event of a crash. It's a good idea to follow the height and weight guidelines on the child safety seat, and you will want to keep your child in a seat that faces the rear as long as it's possible and the seat still fits.

This is where most parents turn their infants to the forward-facing position and switch to an infant seat designed for larger babies or a convertible seat for infants and toddlers. However, smaller children are simply better protected in rear-facing seats."

This is the best stated information that I have found. I was interested in this as well since I am 2 months shy of my due date. I guess most sites dont expect you to have a 1 yr old not reaching 20 lbs. that i thought was odd. But i would wait on the forward facing.

Hi K., I see that you have a very sweet baby girl. I too know what its like to have a premie. My daughter was 5 weeks early and only weighted 5 pounds at birth. She spent 2 weeks in a Nicunit but becasue of God she is doing great now and she is 2 years old. I talked to her Dr about her Carseat. So that may be something that you want to do. But they told us to wait till her first birthday to put her in a forward faceing carseat. Also make sure its a 5 point carseat also you can go online to www.safetyfirst.com and look at there carseats. Also you can go to wal-mart and look at the boxes and read up on them to get the one that is just right for you and your family. I hope that I was some help to you and your family. I wish you all the best and hope you have a great year and that you little one have a great year also. Bye for now and God Bless.

K. K.

I would call the local DMV and find out what Mississippi's actual law is. Cause if they pull you over and the baby is not in the correct seat, they will fine you:-) Hope that helps.

I looked up the legal guidelines in order to prevent my brother-in-law from putting his 6 month old facing front (that's another issue there!). The law says that they must remain rear-facing until they are both 20 lbs AND 1 year old; however, they recommend that you keep them rear-facing as long as it is feasible, because it is the safest position.

While we're on the subject, another thing that most people don't know is that a child must remain in some type of safety seat (booster seat) until they are 8 years old OR 4'9".

Back to your angel... if that means she is 2 years old and at 20 lbs, then that's fine. Being in the backseat is the safest place for her to be!

Hope this helps!!

Hi. I use to be good friends with a car seat specialist. The "rule" was to be rear facing until 1 year AND 20 lbs. BUT you want to make sure she isn't too big for her car seat. You need to check the weight AND height requirements of her seat. If she is in an infant seat she might need a toddler seat (there are some that can be rear facing). If the middle of her head is near the top of her car seat she is too tall for it and needs a bigger seat. I would keep her rear facing as long as possible (esp if she doesn't care). My friend has a premie (she was 1 lbs 10 oz and has a growth problem and is now almost 3 and weighs only about 17 lbs) and she is still rear facing (she'll be 3 in feb).. I'm sure if you contact someone such as the Department of Children & Families (or HRS or whatever it's called there) they can help you and hopefully find a car seat specialist. Over 80% of children are not properly seated in a car seat (whether it be because it's not installed properly or they are in the wrong type of seat). It's better to be safe than sorry...

I would not turn her around yet. I have a 25 pound 13 month old that's still rear-facing, and he will continue to rear-face until he reaches 33 pounds (which is the rear-facing weight limit for our particular carseat). I would check the rear-facing weight limit for your seat and have your child continue to ride rear-facing until reaching that size. The age is really irrelevant. It's the size that matters. Rear-facing is the safest way for your child to ride.

Hi K.,
When putting your child forward facing you also have to look at height. Most infant carriers have a height limit on them as well as a weight limit, and on most infant carseats the limit is 20-22 pounds. I called The clarksville PD when we first moved here to find out the car seat regulations here. (we are originally from wi) They said till they are one they need to be rear facing. After the age of 1 they can be moved to forward facing . Hope that helps.

I would encourage you to extend rear facing. Aside from the minimum requirement being 1 year OR 20 pounds, the turn from rear to forward facing isn't actually a promotion, but a demotion in safety. For that reason, my son, 25# and almost 16 months, is still rear facing. A pediatric nurse / carseat tech suggested extended rear facing to me -- I'd not actually heard of it prior to her, but goodness! It makes good sense to me.

How wonderful that your girl is thriving!!

I think you need to ask her doctor before making that decision. You would think her little bones would be strong enough by now in case of an accident...but you never know.

Hello K., I think this is a wonderful question! I see people all the time that have their children in carseats improperly. I would suggest leaving your daughter rear facing until she is twenty pounds, unless she is too long for the seat. (Your owners manual should have weight/height limits listed) She is definitely safest that way! If you are still in doubt, I would call your doctor's office, and ask their opinion. Good luck!

G.

Hi-

I have always heard 12 months AND 20 pounds, both. I think the age has something to do with how developed their neck muscles are (or something like that). I would definitely check with your doctor since your little girl was a premie, but I suspect you're going to hear the same answer. It's a small price for the added assurance of safety in case you're in an accident.

Take care,
J.