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Seat belts are the
most important and obvious feature when it comes to automobile safety.
Always wear your seat belt and shoulder harness when riding in a
vehicle. The safest place for
you in a crash is sitting securely in your seat.
Many fatal crashes occur at relatively low speeds, and you double
your chances of surviving a crash by wearing your seat belt.
Your best bet in reducing your risk of a fatal crash is your seat
belt. A seat belt alone is 42%
effective in comparison to airbags, which are only 12% effective.
Seat belts and airbags together raise effectiveness to 47%.
It is
important to wear your seat belt properly for it to be the most effective.
The belt should cross your shoulder and rest on your hips and pelvis.
Pregnant woman are many times unsure about wearing their seat belt
and often do not as the size of their growing abdomen increases.
They should continue to wear their seat belt making sure to place the
restraint belt over and under their abdomen.
Many people
mistakenly believe that they can brace against the steering wheel and avoid
serious injury in a frontal type crash.
However, even at only 25 mph, an unrestrained driver can strike the
steering wheel with the same force as falling from the 3rd floor
of a building.
Airbags are a
supplemental restraint system (SRS). They
are designed to work in conjunction with your seat belts and shoulder
harnesses, not instead of them. Many
people mistakenly believe that because airbags are “newer technology,”
they must be more effective than seat belts and shoulder harnesses.
However, by themselves, airbags provide less protection then the seat
belts and shoulder harnesses do by themselves.
Seat belts and airbags used together offer the most protection in a
crash.
Did you know
that, tragically, more than 40% of children who die in car crashes are
unbelted? This number is
alarming and can be avoided by using the proper child restraint system
(CRS). Always be sure children are properly protected when riding in
a moving motor vehicle under your control; it’s the law.
In most cases,
child restraint systems provide more safety than your car’s standard
seats. Nonetheless, research
shows that most parents either don’t use them properly or don’t use them
at all. It is also a good idea
to check your automobile’s owner’s manual for specific recommendations
before shopping for a CRS. Some
cars made before 1996 have the wrong belt anchors for typical CRS systems,
but Ford, GM, Honda, and Nissan all make replacement parts to upgrade for
newer CRS compatibility.
Children
weighing up to 20 lbs. must ride in a rear-facing seat designed and approved
for an infant. The infant’s
head must be at least an inch from the top of the seat back and should
remain rear facing for a minimum of one year, but longer if possible.
Children over 1 year old and weighing 20 to 40 lbs. may ride in a
forward-facing CRS. Children no
longer able to fit in the 5-point harness of a forward-facing CRS, generally
4 to 8 years old, should ride in a booster seat until they are at least 57
inches tall.
For more
information about CRS or other safety issues, please visit the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website at www.nhtsa.gov.
I am fortunate
enough to be lecturing this information with a slide presentation to the
Peoria Bariatrics Group, founded by Lynne Worthington.
Chiropractically
Yours,
Robert
R. Zinser, D.C., C.C.S.P., P.C.
www.zinserchiropractic.com
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