When are you going to turn his carseat around? Answer -- not for a while. It is so much safer to keep him rear-facing. And even though its more of a pain in the rear (keep in mind, he weighs about 28 pounds by now) I'll keep him that way.
One big reason for this is because my family is known for its big heads ("Pumpkin Heads", we like to call them). When you go visit my Aunt Kathy and Uncle Steve, you have to have your head weighed. Right now, Uncle Steve is king of the Pumpkin Heads, though I think Zach might give him a run for his money when he grows up. The pediatrician always measures Zach's head twice at his check-ups because the measurement is so large, and his first pediatrician even wanted to send him for a CAT scan to make sure nothing extra was growing in there. She decided not to when I explained the history of Kowalski/Gruda big heads. My head is bigger than Jason's (so I always know when he borrows my hats), and I even had to have an extra-large cap for law school graduation.
So you're wondering why I've babbled on about our big heads.... It is best explained by this video: The Importance of Rear-Facing. The Cliff Note version of the video is that there is a risk that the head of a young child who is forward-facing in a head-on collision will become separated from the spine (internal decapitation, its called). This is because the child's head is heavy and the neck muscles aren't strong enough to fully withstand the collision forces. If the carseat is rear-facing, it supports and cradles the head in the way the neck can't. Given Zach's extra-large head, I'll deal with the extra hassle of putting him in the car rear-facing rather than face a risk about which I hate to even think.
(Sorry if this seems like a lecture -- I've just had to explain my decision quite a bit lately. Stepping off my soap box now.)
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
The Big Question Now That Zach's Turning One...
Posted by Zach's Mom at 9:57 AM
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