Q&A Forum

22/11/21

Jacqui

Hi there, I’m just wondering what the guidelines are for car travel. I will be traveling with a 10 week old and want to know how long can he stay in his car seat between stops? My destination is 7hrs away and I’m wondering if this is too long in one day to travel (even with stops). Thank you

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Posted a response on 23/11/21

Red Nose Education

Red Nose has no specific recommendations for time frames when travelling with baby in a car safety device but has the following information.
Once the car journey is over it is very important that you remove baby from the car seat or capsule, even if this means waking baby, because it is not safe for baby to spend long periods in car seats, capsules or infant seats.

Research has shown that:

babies left in a sitting position for a long period of time may be placed at increased risk for sudden infant death.
car or baby seats may cause baby’s neck to flex forward which may block baby’s airway not allowing airflow
falls from car seats used outside of the car as infant carriers are common, often involve children unbuckled in their car seats and represent a significant source of head injury for baby. Never leave baby in carriers on shopping carts, counters, or other high locations
https://rednose.org.au/article/are-there-recommendations-for-car-seat-or-baby-seat-use

Most safety organizations would follow travelling advice for all when driving long distances - take a break every 2 hours….... so this would be applicable for baby also.
When you stop for a break, get baby out of car seat/capsule even if baby is sleeping.

If you are going shopping with baby, do not carry baby in a capsule, instead use a pram when baby is lying flat.

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