I have a 7 month old baby. I am in the process of upgrading her car seat as she has just about out grown her infant seat. Looking on the internet, it seems that there are two trains of thought.

1) From the age of 9 months, it is safe for a baby to sit forward facing in the car.

2) It is safer to continue with your baby sitting in a rear facing position as long as possible, as it is so much safer.

So... should one buy a rear facing seat, forward facing seat........ or a convertable seat that apparently does both???

I have to say whilst on the subject, the choice in europe and US is just incredible, not easy choosing one from a distance. I note that Thailand has a very limited selection, of which all are twice as expensive than US and Europe.

Any views?

There is more to your question than just age. How is the baby developmentally? How much does he/she weigh?

The primary reason for rear facing vs. forward facing is neck strength and head control. I was always taught to leave them rear facing until 1 year old when you can be sure their neck muscles are strong enough to support their head in a crash. This is probably the more important factor in my opinion than whether their legs are slightly too long for the seat. Of course, if they are really just way too big for the seat then I might reconsider this. At some point that does become a serious problem.

Each child can be different and you need to make your decision about when they are ready to graduate to forward facing based on all available evidence. If in doubt, leave them rear facing until you are certain it is safe to give them a forward facing seat.

Certainly the children like the forward facing seats much better when they start to become more aware of their surroundings, so you also need to consider what they want as long as it isn't dangerous for them.

Hi Greg, Thanks for your very useful reply.

My baby girl weighs 7.5 kg at the moment.

You are quite right in all you say. I was just thinking though, how does one know if the neck muscles are strong enough? Not really easy to measure. She fully supports her head and is now sitting looking around in all directions without any "wobbly" moments at all.

I guess the answer is to keep rear facing as long as possible, but like you say, she enjoys looking around at her surroundings all the time. She may get frustrated in time if she is restricted.

I am tempted to follow your suggestion and persevere with the infant seat as long as possible, then opt for the forward facing.

Next job is to filter through the 1,000's options for the seats themselves.

Thanks

There is more to your question than just age. How is the baby developmentally? How much does he/she weigh?

The primary reason for rear facing vs. forward facing is neck strength and head control. I was always taught to leave them rear facing until 1 year old when you can be sure their neck muscles are strong enough to support their head in a crash. This is probably the more important factor in my opinion than whether their legs are slightly too long for the seat. Of course, if they are really just way too big for the seat then I might reconsider this. At some point that does become a serious problem.

Each child can be different and you need to make your decision about when they are ready to graduate to forward facing based on all available evidence. If in doubt, leave them rear facing until you are certain it is safe to give them a forward facing seat.

Certainly the children like the forward facing seats much better when they start to become more aware of their surroundings, so you also need to consider what they want as long as it isn't dangerous for them.

We flipped our sons car seat around when he got to about 5 months. He is much happier facing forward. Facing backwards he would either sleep, or yell.

Facing forward he spends most of the time looking at things out the window and is fine traveling for many hours in the car.

He's 9 months now and there is no way he'd even fit in the seat facing backwards, his legs would be all cramped up from the back of the seat.

Edited August 9, 201114 yr by dave111223

Hi, I brought a maxi cosi from Europe when coming over with my 3 month old daughter.

Now she's one year, we bought a facing forward seat since she is well over 70 cm and 10 kg...

Facing forward is more easy for the passenger in front and/or driver to keep an eye on the baby.

But do agree with a post above stating that seats facing forward, are in an upright position and obvious your baby must be able to support itself properly.

The primary reason for rear facing vs. forward facing is neck strength and head control. I was always taught to leave them rear facing until 1 year old when you can be sure their neck muscles are strong enough to support their head in a crash.

This is what I have heard also.

Hi, I brought a maxi cosi from Europe when coming over with my 3 month old daughter.

Now she's one year, we bought a facing forward seat since she is well over 70 cm and 10 kg...

Facing forward is more easy for the passenger in front and/or driver to keep an eye on the baby.

But do agree with a post above stating that seats facing forward, are in an upright position and obvious your baby must be able to support itself properly.

How do you figure it is easier to keep an eye on the child if he/she is facing forward? It is the opposite. If you are alone with the child, he shall sit facing the rear in the front seat. Then he can see you all the time. And also a passenger if she/he is seated behind you. This, of course, necessitate that an airbag for this seat can be disconnected. Now, if you or the other person in the car want to be closer to the child, put him in the rear seat facing rearwards and yourself on the other backseat. Then you can reach him or play with him or whatever.

Keep an infant in a rear facing seat as long as they fit in the chair. A one-year-old does not have neck muscles to support their heavy heads in case of a collision or an emergency stop. Why do you think many adults suffer from neck injuries after even minor accidents?

Edited August 15, 201114 yr by Tanaka

If you are alone with the child, he shall sit facing the rear in the front seat. Then he can see you all the time. And also a passenger if she/he is seated behind you. This, of course, necessitate that an airbag for this seat can be disconnected.

The car seats have about a million stickers all over them saying don't put it in the front seat.