Rear facing is a step that is poorly understood by law enforcement and the general public alike, but it's a vital step in protecting your child. One that should not under any circumstances be rushed.
To put it bluntly, the longer your child is rear-facing (meaning, faces the back of the car), the better. The reasons for this are quite simple, yet also very profound, and are based on an understanding of basic physics as well as an understanding of how the skeletal structure of a child develops.
When your child is rear facing, he or she recieves the maximum amount of protection available. In a crash, rather than your child's spinal clolumn taking the crash forces, the child's seat absorbs them.
The younger a child is, the larger the skull is in proportion to the rest of the child's body. This means that in a crash, the very large head can cause the spinal column to seperate. In younger children (under twenty pounds AND twelve months old) this generally results in death. At about twelve months AND twenty pounds the damage is less likely to result in death. Instead serious (often permanent) injury occurs because the bones in the spinal column are not yet mature.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868
Children under age two are four times more likely to be killed in a side impact crash when forward facing. The vertebrae of a young child is still in three pieces until 3-6 years of age; it simply cannot withstand the extreme force exerted when forward facing, even at a low speed crash.
Here's a quick activity to help you understand what happens.
You will need:
Slide the candy inside the coils of the phone cord, then hold each end tightly. Now, as hard and as fast as you can, pull the ends apart.
While very graphic, this is what happens to a child who is forward facing too soon. The phone cord is the child's vertebae. These will stretch. The candy is the spinal cord. It will snap.
Needless to say, this is not a good thing for your child. However, you can prevent these injuries by keeping your child rear facing to the limits of his or her seat!
Why and how does this make a difference, you ask?
Have you ever played "egg toss" or water balloon catch? If you have, you understand the best way to keep from breaking your egg (or balloon) is to cup your hands together like a baseball glove as you catch it. Your hands absorb the stopping force on the egg, rather than the egg itself recieving the impact and breaking.
Your child's rear-facing car seat acts on your child the same way. The rear-facing seat absorbs the tremedous energy from a crash, dispersing it around your child.
Using our "egg toss" analogy - your child is the egg and his/her rear facing seat is the baseball glove. In a crash, the inertia of your child pushes him or her into the child seat; the seat gently brings your child to a stop, cradling his or her head and spinal column.
"What about my child's legs?"
One of many car seat related myths is that a rear facing child is at risk of broken legs when rear-facing. The reality is this: any crash severe enough to break the legs of a rear-facing child is enough to severe the spinal column and kill a forward facing child. There has never been a documented case of damage to the legs, hips or internal organs when rear facing.
On the other hand, the single most common injury for FORWARD facing children? Broken legs.
"What about comfort?"
Children are rather odd creatures, they find comfortable positions that would land the average adult in traction. Most children simply prop their legs on the back of the vehicle seat, or cross them. Many children actively prefer rear facing.
"My child suffers from car sickness."
While there are a few cases in which turning a child forward facing relieves travel sickness, it really is a toss up. There is no guarentee that doing so will relieve your child's symptoms, and the evidence that it can harm your child to be forward-facing too soon is overwhelming. While being car-sick is a miserable experience for parent and child alike, it's extremely important to remain rear facing.
"My child hates riding in the car!" or "My child is miserable rear-facing."
You will, over the course of your child's life, have to make many decisions which will make your child unhappy.
Safety issues are non-negotiable. You would not allow your child to play in the Wal-Mart parking lot the Saturday before Christmas, would you? Of course not! Choices regarding your child's safety seat are just as important and should not be influenced by what the child desires.
My preschool-age daughter would love to eat chocolate cake for every meal. That would make her happy. But it would not be a healthy choice for her.
That said, if your child only knows what it's like to be rear facing, there is no evidence that turning him or her forward facing will make them happier. Many children actively dislike forward facing. There is no support for their legs and if they drop something (like their favorite "lovey", or a sippy cup), it hits the floor rather than landing in their lap where it can be retrieved easily.
http://www.cpsafety.com has an album of older rear facing children.
"My pediatrician said my child can/should forward face now."
Pediatricians are trained on a great many things. Child Passenger Safety is not one of them, and many pediatricians do not even keep up with the recommendations of the American Association of Pediatrics, which are to keep children rear facing to the limit of their seats. (AAP 2002) This is not a new recommendation by any means, however, that doesn't mean your pediatrician is aware of the recommendation. Here is a link to a recent study discussing why rear-facing is so important that you can pass on to your ped.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/extract/121/3/619