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Juvenile Products Manufacturers Ass Sponsors Baby Safety Month 1999

1 September 1999

Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association Sponsors Baby Safety Month 1999: Take Time, Each Time, to Check Your Car Seat

    MOORESTOWN, N.J., Aug. 31 -- Are You Using Your Car Seat
Correctly?  The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) encourages
parents and care givers to ask themselves this question to help encourage the
proper installation of car seats.  An alarming number of car seats are
installed incorrectly and some parents may unknowingly put their child at
risk.
    Every September, JPMA sponsors Baby Safety Month to help educate parents
and other care givers on the importance of the safe use and selection of
juvenile products.  This year, JPMA is concentrating its efforts on alerting
parents to the importance of installing a car seat correctly.
    "Parents should always follow BOTH the car seat and the vehicle
instructions," said Kathleen M. Baier, JPMA Vice President of Communications.
"We want parents to help ensure their baby's safety by buckling up baby
correctly and securely every time."
    JPMA encourages parents to take time, each time, to:

    Check the Seat
    -- The back seat is the safest place for a car seat.
    -- Never place a rear-facing car seat in a position with an active airbag.
    -- Secure the car seat tightly, allowing as little movement as possible at
       the base of the car seat.
    Check the Child
    -- The harness straps must go over the child's shoulders and lie flat
       against the child's chest.
    -- The harness clip should lie flat at armpit level.
    -- Allow no more than one finger to fit between the harness strap and the
       child's shoulders.
    Check the Age/Weight Guidelines
    -- Up to 1 year and 20 pounds: Use a rear-facing seat.
    -- At least one year and up to 30-40 pounds: Use a forward-facing seat.
    -- More than 30-40 pounds: Use a booster seat.

    JPMA is rallying retailers to help support the car seat safety message
through in-store Baby Safety Month promotions.  JPMA provides retailers with a
Baby Safety Month Promotional Kit that includes all of the necessary tools and
information to hold successful promotions.  Every year, retailers from around
the country help JPMA spread the Baby Safety Month message.
    JPMA takes many steps to educate parents about the safe use and selection
of juvenile products.  Consumers can visit JPMA's Web site at http://www.jpma.org to
see the JPMA Safety House, filled with critical safety information.  In
addition, JPMA produces Safe and Sound For Baby, a 16-page safety brochure
which consumers can receive free by sending a business-size SASE to JPMA
Safety Brochure, 236 Route 38 West, Suite 100, Moorestown, NJ 08057.
    The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association, Inc. is a national trade
organization of 332 companies in the United States, Canada and Mexico.  These
companies manufacture and/or import infant products such as cribs, car seats,
strollers, bedding and a wide range of accessories and decorative items.