Why are air bags dangerous to children age 12 and under?
Air bags inflate at speeds up to 200 mph — faster than the blink of an eye — to protect adults in a front-end collision. That blast of energy can severely hurt or kill passengers and drivers who are too close to the air bag. An infant’s head in a rear-facing safety seat is directly in front of the air bag as it breaks through the dashboard and instantly inflates. Even some forward facing child safety seats could possibly place the child within range of the air bag before it is fully inflated. Also, if a child is unbelted, or too small for the lap and shoulder belt to fit properly, or wriggling around or leaning forward, there is a danger that the child will be too close to the dashboard during that instant that the air bag begins to inflate.
