Heating and cooling systems within such a small body are also not fully regulated. While their bodies heat up faster, they can also cool off a lot slower than an adult. This can pose problems on a car ride on a hot day.
Tips to Help Prevent Vehicular Hyperthermia
If hot cars and kids is a concern for you, here are some suggestions to prevent trouble.
- Be aware of where your child is – Some fatalities have been due to the parent not realizing that the child was still in the car. If you are transporting your child to school but usually don’t, ask your spouse to call you and remind you to drop the child off at school or daycare. Place the car seat behind the passenger seat so that you can see your child in the rear view mirror.
- Don’t leave a child in the car alone at any time – Even if you are running into the gas station or back into the house for a moment, take your child with you. Heat comes through car windows and quickly heats the interior. Air conditioning doesn’t prevent a child’s body temperature from rising when the car is idling.
- Keep the car locked – Toddlers can open doors or use keyless entry devices to get into a car. Once inside, getting out may be harder to accomplish. In hot weather they may fall asleep inside without anyone else being the wiser.
- The car is not a play area – Don’t encourage your child to play in a car so they don’t get used to it.
- Check the car before leaving it – Most of us are in a hurry and hop out of the car without even looking back. Check your vehicle before moving on. This way, you can see if your child is in the backseat.
- Set reminders – If you are dropping off your child at school, set an alarmed reminder on your phone to keep you on track. You can also have someone else keep you accountable for your child when the weather gets hot.
Do you have children? Then nothing is more important to you then their wellbeing. Prevent hot cars and kids from becoming an issue with the suggestions above.