How to transport a child in a baby seat in winter? Beware of thick jackets and overalls!

Every conscious parent knows how to fasten a child in a baby seat – so as to remove all possible slack under the seat belts. However, not everyone is aware of the fact that thick jackets and down overalls can make this much more difficult. In today’s article, we suggest how to transport a child in a baby seat in winter to ensure its safety and at the same time not to expose it to cold.

Contents:

Dear Parent, don’t make this mistake!
So, how do you protect your baby from the cold?
Baby in overalls in the baby seat? Definitely not, even for short distances!

Dear Parent, don’t make this mistake!

Winter, for various reasons, can be the most disliked season of the year. For parents – due to the necessity to dress children in layers of tights, sweaters, warmers, jackets, hats, and scarves. The preparations for leaving the house are then much longer, and sometimes can even run alongside quarrels – especially if the toddler is already able to communicate clearly and loudly that he or she does not like something. Like this green polka dot jacket …

Regardless of the parent’s best efforts to dress the child in a warm coat, in the car, it should be.. taken off. Why?

Children’s winter jackets or overalls are usually filled with down, thick, and voluminous. A baby dressed in such a cover cannot be properly fastened in the baby seat because winter clothes compress strongly – their filling, under the influence of pressure, reduces in volume. This creates an empty space between the child and the belts, which prevents the belts and harnesses from being properly tightened. Even if the adjustments look fine, in the event of heavy braking or some other traffic incident, the straps will “compress” the fabric, pushing air out from between the padding of the jacket. This will create dangerous slack on the harness, through which the toddler can simply slip out of the seat!

If you want to see how much winter clothes make it difficult to tighten the belts correctly, do a little experiment. Dress your child in a warm cover and fasten them in the seat, adjusting the harness properly. You can mark the places where you tighten it with a tape to have a better comparison. Then take off the baby’s jacket, fasten it again in the seat and check the difference in tightening the belts – depending on the thickness of the jacket, it will be even a few centimeters!

These few centimeters of unnecessary slack can be decisive for your child’s health. Do you want to take the risk?

So, how do you protect your baby from the cold?

All right you ask, but how to transport my child in the baby seat in winter so that it is properly fastened and at the same time does not freeze? In the case of newborns and infants, special sleeping bags are an alternative. Such a cover for the baby seat is mounted under the stabilizing inserts, and then it covers the toddler like a blanket. This guarantees the little passenger comfort and warmth without the risk of overheating, as well as safety – the harness belts fit closely to the child’s body, and the baby seat provides adequate protection.

And how to dress a newborn baby in a baby seat in winter? The best choice will be a crawler + a warm, fleece, a romper + a swaddle cover. When it gets warmer in the car, the sleeping bag for the baby seat can be unfastened to prevent your toddler from overheating.

In the case of older children, an ordinary blanket can serve as a suitable cover. Some parents, after entering the car, take off their child’s jacket, and after fastening the harness, they put it “back to front”, covering the child like a blanket. This is also a good idea because, thanks to this, the hands and chest of the child are protected against the cold, and we do not have to remember to carry additional covers in the car.

If your child is already travelling in the 100-150 cm (15-36 kg) group baby seat, you can simply place the waistband underneath the jacket and then fasten it. Adults should do the same – our winter, down coats may also cause car seatbelts to not work as they should in a moment of crisis.

Baby in overalls in the baby seat? Definitely not, even for short distances!

We know exactly what winter mornings look like. It’s dark, cold, everything is done on the run, because before you go to the kindergarten and work, you still need to clear the snow… Putting on a jacket at home, and then taking it off in the car and putting it back on after driving just a few kilometers seems completely pointless – because it’s only a short distance away, so what can go wrong?

The numbers, however, leave no illusions. According to police statistics, more than half of the road incidents occur within 8 km from the driver’s home. When we cover the same route for the hundredth time, we focus less on what is happening on the road, because the familiar areas give us a sense of security. Unfortunately – deceptive. An accident can happen anywhere and to anyone, even a driver who drives super safe and has two blocks to go.

Therefore, let’s remember: before putting the child in the baby seat and fastening the belts, take off the jacket, overalls, or other down “suit”. These little routine activities – though they seem overdone – may one day save the health of our little ones. And the more we repeat them, the sooner they will become a habit.

It is not difficult to answer the question of how to transport a child in a baby seat in winter. The most important thing is to be aware of the risks and spread knowledge about the safe transport of babies. Send this article to at least one parent you know and let’s all travel safer!

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