If you had to read some of my articles in Babies and more, you may have noticed that I am very interested in the use of car seats. As a mother I know it is a very important issue, but as a Mexican I recognize that in our country there is not enough talk about him.
From my perspective, in Mexico we are still quite "in diapers" on this subject. So I gave myself the task of paying a little more attention around me and decided to investigate how is the current situation in our country regarding the use of child restraint systems.
The car seat, something you don't think about much
I know of many families that know and have a chair for their children in the car. However, I know and see many more who do not use it or have not even thought about buying one.
I give the first example: my daughter's school. Every morning we leave Lucia at her school at the same time as some parents. At the time of departure we agree with others, we rarely have to arrive at the same time as those in the morning or even those of other days.
I do not exaggerate when I say that of the 60 children who attend that school (it is a small preschool), I have only seen about 10 or 15 cars with some type of child restraint system. Of course I have not seen all the cars of the other children, but certainly most of them shine because of their absence. The funny thing is that I have noticed that the teachers have looked at me strangely when I see that I am taking Lucia to counteract even at almost three years of age, since it is not a common scene among the other parents.
Another example is what I see every day on the streets while driving: children who jump in the car seat, sitting without any protection in the place of the co-pilot or in the arms of the parents in the case of babies. A close relative who has a son almost the age of my daughter, bought him a chair for the car but the boy is never sitting in it because he says he cries a lot when they try to place it there.
In general, information and awareness about the use of child restraint systems among fathers and mothers in our country is scarce.
Road safety in Mexico: current situation
According to the Specific Road Safety Action Program 2013-2018, deaths and disabilities due to road accident injuries are a public health problem that continues to increase in Mexico.
This document lists information from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), in which it states that every year, on average, more than 37,000 Mexicans lose their lives due to some type of accident, being road accident injuries the most frequent (43.8%) and more than six million children, youth and adults suffer accidental injuries of all kinds.
Regarding children (considered by INEGI in the age range of 0 to 9 years), 6.19% of accidental injuries correspond to injuries caused by road accidents. In the case of adolescents (considering the age range of 10 to 19 years) they are 13.71%. These percentages represent 60,389 road accident injuries in children and 257 thousand 967 in adolescents.
According to this report, injuries caused by road accidents are a risk particularly for children, adolescents and young adults. In 2012 road accidents were the first cause of death in children between 5 and 9 years old with 352 cases and a rate of 3.1. This rate is higher than deaths due to leukemia (2.6), congenital heart malformations (0.9) and low acute respiratory infections (0.8).
What really causes me concern is that these results are worrisome but really do not surprise us much. In Mexico, the road culture shines because of its absence and for the same reason, many parents do not know the importance of placing their children in a car seat.
According to the data recorded through the Methodology for the Measurement of Four Main Risk Factors in Road Safety, in different municipalities of the country during 2012, only 7.6% of children travel safely in a child restraint system.
Why don't most parents use the car seat in Mexico?
You may wonder why this happens. From the legal scope, the problem stems from the fact that traffic regulations in Mexico vary greatly according to the city in which you are located. For example, in Mexico City the regulation indicates that children under 12 must use a child seat or booster cushion for the car. However, there are few states in the country where the use of a child restraint system is indicated. At the national level, there is no road safety law where this important point is touched.
In addition to the fact that there is no real regulation on this issue, there are several reasons why many fathers and mothers do not use the child restraint system. The main reason is definitely misinformation. And this is so much that it encompasses different thoughts, among which I highlight the following:
They do not consider them necessary
Most of the people who choose not to take their children in a car seat do so because they think that phrase that - perhaps - we will all have said sometime in life and not necessarily on this subject, the famous "nothing happens"They believe that there really is not much difference between taking a child in his chair to carrying him in the car seat. And many of them carry them without the seat belt or even put them sitting on their legs.
Not worth the expense
Most people consider chairs to be too expensive. And yes, the truth is that they are. There are some models that many families definitely cannot acquire because their price is very high. The problem arises when this comment comes from misinformation, as some think this because they believe that the life time of a chair is very short compared to the investment it represents.
Actually, if we do a little research we can realize that there are more and more brands and models available in the market. In Mexico we also have the advantage of being able to buy chairs from the United States, so there are greater possibilities of finding one that meets the safety requirements at a moderate cost.
Actually, if we choose carefully, we can get a chair that grows with our child or whose weight and height capacity is very large. In this way the investment will not be so long term and we will have what it takes to protect them for a long time.
The children do not want them
This is a way of thinking that makes me a little ... annoying. Many believe that chairs rather than help only hinder or are annoying or cause children to behave worse while sitting in them.
But imagine if we used that mentality for other things of parenting: we would not give them vegetables "because they do not like them", or we would not limit their time in front of the television "because it bothers them that we tell them that it is enough". Why don't we give them junk food all the time or let them see how many cartoons they want? Why we know that it is not the best for them. The same would happen if parents knew the risks of not using a child restraint system.
Something that I consider necessary to mention is that due to the growing practice of porting (which I applaud), many mothers have chosen to think or believe that when carrying their baby when they get in a car, it is safe. But it's not like that. Neither a scarf, mei-tai nor baby carrier are accepted as a child restraint system. Mind you, porting is highly recommended, but you have to do it responsibly.
But it's not all bad news
As with various maternity issues, the information about the use of the car seat has been increasing and getting closer to the parents. Social networks help to disseminate this information and thanks to them we have seen that more and more parents are concerned about the safety of their children in general and take the time to research on the Internet.
With the increasing increase of blogs of mothers and fathers information has also come from other countries that in Mexico we needed a lot. Campaigns like "Against the road I travel safely" managed to cross the Atlantic and step by step we have been raising awareness about this important issue.
A few months ago the first information and consultation group on child retention systems in Mexico was opened on Facebook: SRI - Counter-speed (Rear Facing) MEXICO. Every day there are more parents who join and come to him to consult the main doubts about the use of the chair for the car and also ask for opinions on a particular model. I must emphasize that in the absence of true regulation in Mexico, this group follows the practices recommended by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the United States.
Although we still have a lot to grow and myths to break, over time we will raise awareness about this important and much needed issue.
Currently the Chamber of Deputies is working on a Road Safety Law, so that this issue is addressed in a special section and thus at the national level the states are obliged to have this regulation in force.
Photos | iStock
In Babies and more | Do you travel by car with children? Use well the child restraint system, Child chairs, essential for car trips
