My sister and I were talking about what to get for my 16-month old nephew. My nephew is not too keen on his high chair as he’d like to join his parents at the table so that got my sister debating on the merits of a booster seat.

Image: Oliver's Baby Care

I’ve asked my friends on the advantages of the booster seat and this what they have to say:

Booster Seat

• There’s no need to have an extra chair around the dining table as booster seats fit in any regular-sized dining chair.
• Easy to clean because it’s made of plastic so all you have to do is wipe everything and the dirt goes away
• Very secure even with hyperactive toddlers sitting on it!
• Has a detachable table so you can still use the seat while your child eats off the dining table
• It doesn’t take up space unlike high chairs

Similar to Virginia, Massachusetts has passed a law which requires kids under the age of 8 to ride in a car seat or booster seat. The law, which took effect July 10, 2008, replaces an old safety seat statute that required children under the age of 5 or under 40 pounds to be in a child car seat. The new car seat law is based on age and height-based rather than age and weight based, attempting to prevent children from improper alignment of adult seat belts.

From BostonHerald.com

…parents are required to use car seats or booster seats to protect kids until they are tall enough for adult seat belts.

Under the new law, children must be 8 years old or 4 feet, 9 inches tall to use adult belts. Smaller children don’t get the safety benefit — and can be seriously injured — from adult seat belts that run across their abdomens or chest instead of their hips.

The new law replaces one that used a weight and age standard for using adult belts. The old law required only that kids up to age 5 and 40 pounds be protected by a car seat or booster seat.

The new law carries a $25 fine.

The American Association of Pediatrics has issued it’s 2008 guide for car safety seats. It’s a great resource for what can be the very confusing world of car seats, be it rear facing, forward facing, convertible or booster. The guide distinguishes between the types of seats for infants to school-aged kids and covers the various harnessing or attachment systems such as LATCH and traditional belt-based attachment.

An incredibly helpful feature of this guide is the answers to common questions interspersed throughout the sections of content. One in particular that caught my eye and is often garners ambiguous answers when asked:

Q: What if my baby weighs more than 20 pounds but is not 1 year old yet?

A:Use a seat that can be used rear-facing by children who weigh more than 20 pounds and keep your baby rear-facing as long as possible, or at least until he has reached his first birthday.

You can view the guide online at the American Association of Pediatrics at http://www.aap.org/family/carseatguide.htm