Increasing car seat use for toddlers from inner-city families

Objectives. The purpose of this project was to increase toddler car seat use in low-income minority families. Methods. Families from Newark, NJ, were divided into two study groups. Both groups were given car seats; one group also received education regarding car restraint use. Observations were made of car seat use before car seat distribution, immediately after distribution, 4 to 5 months later, and 1 year later. Results. Car seat use increased markedly immediately after distribution and remained high 1 year later, regardless of education. Conclusions. These results indicate that distributing car seats results in long-term use among a currently low-use population.