A new poll found that 40% of children who are required by law to use a car booster seat do not. Laws vary some state to state, with requirements as low as age 5 in some places, but parents should take as much precaution as necessary. Booster seats can reduce risk injury in car crashes by up to 50%.
“There have been many times driving around this area when I’ve seen cars with young children who obviously aren’t in safety seats,” writes Kathy Lauer-Williams at the Lehigh Valley Parenting Blog. “Why wouldn’t you put your child in something proved to save lives AND required by law?”
Rather than an age-specific limit, the National Highway Safety Administration recommends that children use a booster seat until they are either 4′9″ because that is the height at which a regular seatbelt fits a child safely. The average child doesn’t reach that height until 11.
Babble declared the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 the best stroller you could buy. Reviewer Kate Bayles writes, “Once your babe is ready to face forward (recommended after the first year), the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 is your best bet… A steel-reinforced interior, deep head wings and EPS foam provide safety support while the 3-position recline, full body pillow and armrest with cup holder add comfort.”
But do other parents echo Babble’s praise? Cathy of Chief Family Officer ran into trouble soon after purchasing the spendy carseat when the belt frayed: “After less than one month, the belt on one of the Nautilus seats began to fray – and since it was the belt that you pull to tighten the harness, it would get stuck and the belt would be impossible to tighten or loosen. In other words, the seat became unusable.”
On the upside, this only happened to one of the two Nautilus 3-in-1s that Cathy owned, and Graco customer service was quick to send a replacement part. She still recommended the carseat.
Great Dad also had high praise for the Nautilus 3-in-1, but also listed a few critiques about it: the carseat can be difficult to install, it’s a little bit too heavy to move between cars, and it’s forward-facing only. Great Dad said, “If you’re looking for the Fort Knox of Sturdiness, look no further!”
Overall, it seems like the complaints are minor about the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 carseat, and that it’s strongly recommended.
Can your Facebook profile affect your real life? (Get it?)
It’s no secret that we reveal a little bit too much about ourselves on the internet, but our privacy is safe as long as we avoid giving out our address, phone number, and Social Security number, right? Not quite. It turns out that using all of the other seemingly trivial information we put out there about ourselves can make it pretty easy to figure out a lot personal information from the harmless information we put out there. Think of it as profiling your Facebook profile.
For example, two students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, were able to predict with 78% accuracy whether a Facebook profile belonged to a gay male, by using only profile information and links to gay friends.
Here’s an even scarier example: Last year, two researchers from Carnegie Mellon University reported that they could predict the full, nine-digit Social Security numbers of 8.5% of people born in the U.S. from 1989 to 2003. That’s about five million people. Knowing that the first three digits are assigned by location, the remaining six can be figured out through projections using public data.
Luckily, all of this data mining is in the hands of university researchers, not identity thieves. But the risk potential is enough to leave one feeling uneasy.
Last week, we wrote about baby slings as a safety hazard. Baby sling manufacturers, including Hotslings, Maya Wrap, Moby Wrap, and Wrapsody, have responded with an official statement. The companies make a distinction between “bag-style” slings, which they believe are dangerous, and a number of other variations that are safer.
In contrast [to bag-style slings], shallow pouch-style slings, ring slings, mei tais and wraps hold baby in proper alignment and they fit snuggly by design and instruction. They have been engineered, developed and tested by parents, often the manufacturers themselves with their own children. These carriers are often simple and without gimmicks. Dedicated and concerned manufacturers of these types of safe slings and carriers have sponsored this release.
It’s true that the Associated Press story identified a single type of baby sling that’s come under fire from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and it’s likely that all styles of slings will get a bad wrap.
Chewing gum may not be at the top of your healthy product list, but Life 360’s green reviewer Steffany Boldrini says Glee Gum has everything you’d want in an environmentally friendly product. It uses no artificial sweeteners, donates one percent of its profits to environmental causes and sustainably harvests its materials.
Verve inc., which makes the gum, has been working in Guatemala since 1992 to make the all natural gum. It comes in six flavors and the company also sells a “make your own gum kit.” Glee Gum, Steffany says, is a great and tasty way to “take action” through a company that’s committed to being green.
For more reviews–as well as deals and discounts–on products like Glee Gum, visit Steffany’s website.
Wearing used clothing isn’t a new phenomenon, but Life360’s green reviewer Steffany Boldrini wants to introduce you to Stay Vocal, a company with a novel idea about reusing t-shirts. Stay Vocal rescues unwanted shirts—which would otherwise be thrown away—from large corporations, turns them inside out and rebrands them with a limited edition design. Read More
Another runaway Toyota Prius was reported yesterday. A 56-year-old driver was injured while driving her 2005 Prius in New York. The accident was blamed on the sticky accelerator pedal that has the Japanese automaker under fire. So what should Toyota owners do? Read More
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is preparing a safety warning about baby slings, the popular baby carriers that parents can strap around their chest. The concern is that infants can suffocate, and there have already been several instances.
According to CPSC head Inez Tenenbaum, “We know of too many deaths in these slings and we now know the hazard scenarios for very small babies. So, the time has come to alert parents and caregivers.”
Concerns about baby slings were raised as early as 2008, when Consumer Reports experienced two dozen serious injuries when children fell out of the soft fabric slings. Though the baby slings are both fashionable, and advertised as an important way for new moms to bond with their babies, it’s clear that the safety risks aren’t worth it.
You may or may not find this chart comparing the levels of caffeine in various drinks surprising, but it’s good to know that coffee lovers are the supreme caffeine addicts. (And maybe coffee lovers like knowing that brewed coffee has way more caffeine than an Americano?) Of course, the serving sizes for each beverage varies. The full breakdown at Wisebread.
If you said that hot dogs were bad for me, I probably wouldn’t disagree with you. I mean, as delicious as they are, there’s no way a ballpark frank can be healthy. But the American Academy of Pediatrics is questioning the safety of hot dogs as a choking hazard. Here’s a surprising statistic:
Each year more than 10,000 children under the age of 14 are sent to the hospital because of choking. Of those seeking treatment, 77 die each year from choking-related injuries. Hot dogs, a favorite item to serve picky young eaters, are the most common food for young children to choke to death on, typically claiming 13 lives a year.
It seems clear to me that the solution is for parents to cut up hot dogs for their kids, but in a lot of ways, doesn’t that ruin the fun of eating a hot dog? Kids love hot dogs, chicken fingers, and grilled cheese because they’re simple and handheld. Obviously, there’s no way to stop kids from eating these foods, but parents should just keep in mind that hot dogs have the potential to be a choking hazard.
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A new poll found that 40% of children who are required by law to use a car booster seat do not. Laws vary some state to state, with requirements as low as age 5 in some places, but parents should take as much precaution as necessary. Booster seats can reduce risk injury in car crashes by up to 50%.
Last week, we wrote about 
Another 
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is preparing a safety warning about baby slings, the popular baby carriers that parents can strap around their chest. The concern is that infants can suffocate, and there have already been several instances.
