Pregnancy & Baby Index: Baby Health: Safety: Grocery store shopping carts: Safe for kids?
Grocery store shopping carts: Safe for kids?
As shopping cart-related injuries are common and can result
in severe injury or even death, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
recommends that parents consider alternatives to placing children in
shopping carts, until carts are redesigned to prevent injury.
August 2006 - In 2005, more than 24,000 children were treated in U.S. hospital
emergency rooms for shopping cart-related injuries. Most of these
injuries occurred when a child fell from a shopping cart, the cart
tipped over, the child became entrapped in the cart, or the child fell
while riding on the outside of the cart, according to the new policy
statement, "Shopping Cart-Related Injuries to Children." Injuries
to the head and neck accounted for 74 percent of shopping cart-related
injuries among children younger than 15. Of the 4 percent of children
treated in an emergency room for a shopping cart injury, more than 93
percent were under age 5.
With the potential instability of some existing shopping cart designs,
and because it is difficult for a parent to easily ascertain a cart's
safety simply by looking at it, parents should carefully consider the
potential for injury before placing a child in a shopping cart,
according to the policy. Instead of putting children in shopping carts,
parents can try one of the following alternatives:
Get another adult to come with them to watch the children while
shopping.
Put children in strollers, wagons, or frontpacks instead of in
shopping carts.
Ask older children to walk and praise them for behaving and staying
nearby.
Leave children at home with another adult.
Shop online if local stores offer shopping on the Internet.
If a parent chooses to place a child in a shopping cart, he or she
should ensure that the child is properly secured in an effective and
age - and size-appropriate belt or harness. Parents and caregivers should
never:
Leave a child alone in a shopping cart.
Allow a child to stand-up in a shopping cart.
Place an infant carrier on top of the shopping cart.
Allow a child to ride in the basket.
Allow a child to ride on the outside of a cart.
Allow an older child to climb on the cart or push the cart with
another child inside.
To help parents, the AAP recommends that businesses adopt shopping cart
safety strategies and offer other assistance to help prevent injury.
This may include providing a supervised in-store child-play area; a
pick-up area or assistance in bringing purchases to a vehicle; cart
modifications to improve child restraint and cart stability; strollers
or wagons for in-store use; education and warnings about cart dangers;
and/or customer incentives, such as stickers or other give-aways, to
reward safe shopping cart behavior.
In addition, the AAP recommends that the current U.S. safety standards
for shopping carts be revised to include "clear and effective
performance criteria" for child-restraint systems and cart stability
to prevent falls and injuries due to cart tip-overs. The U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission should closely monitor and enforce
manufacturer compliance, and regularly review child shopping
cart-related injuries, according to the new policy.
The AAP recommends that child health and advocacy professionals support
revised manufacturer standards, and educate parents, families, the
public, and the media on shopping cart risks. 