• Always use a lap and shoulder belt. The biggest risk to your baby is if you ride unbuckled.
• Push the lap part of the belt down as far as possible below your baby. Check often to make sure it stays low, especially late in pregnancy.
• If you are wearing a heavy coat, open it or take it off. This will help keep the lap belt low and snug.
• Sit as far as possible from the steering wheel.
• Let others drive as much as possible during the last few months of pregnancy. Riding in the back seat using a lap/shoulder belt usually is even safer than riding belted in the front passenger seat.
• Get yourself checked out at the emergency room after even a minor crash. Your unborn baby, uterus, or placenta could be seriously injured even if you do not seem to be hurt.

Use a Car Seat for Your New Baby

• Carry your baby in a rear-facing car seat for the first year. If you buy a convertible car seat, choose one that can be used facing the rear up to at least 30 pounds.
• Follow the car seat instructions.
• If you have a vehicle with a passenger air bag, always put your baby in the back seat. The air bag could kill or seriously injure an infant riding in front. Read your vehicle owner's manual about air bags, safety belts, and car seats (child restraints).
• Make sure the safety belt holds the car seat tightly in place. Fasten the straps snugly over your baby's shoulders.

To learn more about car safety for babies:

Call the National Auto Safety Hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT or the Safety BeltSafe U.S.A. Helpline at 1-800-745-SAFE. Look at these Web sites:

• www.nhtsa.dot.gov
• www.childsafety.org
• www.aap.org
• www.saferidenews.com