The Danger Of Putting A Car Seat In The Shopping Cart

One Ohio mom, Lindsey Wisnewski, received a wonderful blessing while out shopping with her children. When the the shopping cart holding her infant's car seat toppled over, something very bad could have happened. . .but it didn't. And now, she's using her close call to warn other parents of the common, yet dangerous practice of strapping car seats onto shopping carts. Here is Lindsey's harrowing tale, which she shared on Facebook. . .

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  Credit: Facebook / Lindsey Wisnewski "So this just happened. I was strapping my preschooler into his car seat and the wind slightly caught one wheel and the weight of the infant car seat pulled the whole thing down over the curb. No worries~~ I was wearing A in my baby carrier so she was not in the car seat at the time (which is the only reason I had it up there in the first place). [rsnippet id="3" name="Article-Ad"]

Please, please, please parents do not put the carseat on the top part of the cart!

Any car seat technician will tell you that it's extremely unsafe. I post this PSA without judgement, as I myself did this with both boys. Up until about 2 years ago, I thought the seat was safe since it clicks into place. But the car seat in the picture was "locked" into place. (And sure, had my baby actually been in the seat, I wouldn't have left it unattended. But accidents happen in the blink of an eye)."

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A Common Mistake

Thank the Lord that Lindsey's baby girl was strapped in a carrier to her mama instead of in the shopping cart! Despite the many serious, and sometimes even fatal, injuries resulting from children's car seats in shopping carts, many parents are completely unaware of the risk. Thankfully, Lindsey's shocking photo is helping to get the word out about just how dangerous this practice is. For parents of children who are too young to sit upright in a shopping cart seat, Nationwide Children's -- a pediatric health care and research center, recommends either leaving the child at home with an adult, or else using a stroller or wagon to transport the baby around the store, versus using a shopping cart. The shopping cart seat should be used for older children. Credit: ThinkStock

Guidelines For Shopping Cart Safety:

• Use a cart that has a child seat that is low to the ground, if one is available.
• Choose carts that appear stable and are not wobbly.
• Always use the shopping cart safety straps. Be sure the belt fits snugly around your child and that the child’s legs are placed through the leg openings.
• Avoid placing infant carriers on top of shopping carts.  If your child is not old enough to sit upright by himself in the shopping cart seat, consider using one of the alternatives to shopping carts.
• Only place children in the shopping cart seat. The outside, the bottom, and the basket of the cart are not safe places for children to ride.
• Stay with the cart and your child at all times.
• Make sure your child remains seated.
• Keep children away from the wheels where little fingers can get pinched.
• Recognize that it is very easy for older children to tip a cart over if they are trying to push it or if they are hanging on it.

Please be sure to share this warning with anyone who may take children along on shopping trips! [rsnippet id="2" name="ArticleAd-300x250-3"]

Be sure to read this dad's warning about a danger to baby's toes!

  h/t: Little Things

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