Car Seats Lower Oxygen Levels for Infants
Healthy newborns show significantly lower oxygen saturation levels when in their car seats versus in cribs, according to a study published in the most recent Pediatrics magazine. While this information sounds scary for parents, the study's researchers concluded that car seats should be used only for travel and not as a replacement for a crib.
The angled position of the car seat plus the lack of neck control means that even healthy infants can have some trouble breathing when they're in a car seat for a long time. The study measured oxygen levels of 200 2-day-old infants as they were laying in a crib, a car bed and an infant car seat. These infants had the highest average oxygen saturation in the crib (97.9%), while the lowest average oxygen saturation was in the car seat (95.7%). Infants in this study also spent more time with oxygen levels below 95% when in the car seat (23.9% average total time) versus the crib (6.5%).
What does this study mean for your baby? If you're only using your baby's car seat when he or she is in the car, not much. This study isn't suggesting that babies shouldn't ride in car seats in the car. If you're letting baby snooze in the car seat after you're home, or using a carrier-style car seat as a substitute crib, these study results do suggest that long, unnecessary stretches in a car seat could cause harm since it's harder for young babies to breathe in that position. The angle of your baby's car seat can also play a role in neck position, which can affect breathing, so it's also a good idea to double check the manual and any on-board leveling indicators to be sure baby's car seat is installed at the correct angle.
Comments
Great article! I hope that the doctors who say car seat use for medical issues will take this article into account before suggesting it. Car seats are for the car!!!
ok is 97.9% vs 95.7% really that big a deal? like parents of newborns needed another reason to worry. sheesh.
The researchers called it a significant difference. It seems like their oxygen saturation is going lower and lower as they spend more time in a car seat whereas it doesn’t go down as much in a crib. So, it may not be a huge difference at one hour in a car seat, but they’re saying, don’t let the baby sleep in the car seat for 4 hours or 6 hours, because the difference could be much greater at that point.
Most neonatal units consider a saturation level below 95% to be cause for concern so it makes sense that they only monitored the babies long enough for them to cross that threshold if their levels displayed a consistent downward trend. It seems like common sense to me not to leave your infant in a carseat for hours at a time anyways, so I’m glad they finally looked into this!