You know that there are many serious injuries that occur when people are in car accidents and are not securely restrained in their seats. You know that this happens because the initial collision between the vehicle and whatever it hits is not the only collision that occurs.

People in the vehicle also collide with the interior of the car. As well, they might collide with the road or other vehicles (or their own vehicle) if they are thrown from the car.

Fortunately, car manufacturers have a simple solution that can prevent these "second collisions." You probably are very aware that the easiest way you can protect yourself as a driver or passenger is to wear your seat belt!

A vehicle restraint system, most often simply called a seat belt, is designed so that, if worn correctly, it does several things to save lives and reduce or prevent injuries.

• Seat belts are designed to keep you in one area of the car where you will be protected by other technologies.

• Seat belts are designed to spread the force of the crash over the strongest parts of your body.

• Seat belts keep your momentum from continuing forward at a faster rate than the vehicle. In other words, the belt makes your body slow down at the same rate as the vehicle.

• Seat belts keep you inside the vehicle and prevent you from hitting other parts of the car or other people in the car.

In Alberta, the law requires that anyone over six years of age or weighing over 18 kg (40 lb.) wear a seat belt. For younger children, it is important — and also the law — that children be buckled properly into car seats and booster seats to ensure that children are safe when travelling. 

The Canadian Automobile Association has reported that up to one third of Canadian children are not properly restrained while in a motor vehicle. This leads to about 10,000 children in Canada being injured in vehicle collisions, most of which could be prevented if the children were safely buckled in the vehicle. There are some rules and regulations about the use of restraint systems for children:

• Infants up to the weight of 9 or 10 kg (18-22 lb.) should be securely buckled into a rear-facing car seat following the manufacturer's instructions exactly.

• Children between 9 and 18 kg (22-40 lb.) should be securely buckled into a forward-facing car seat following the manufacturer's directions exactly.

• Children between 18-45 kg (40-100 lb.) and who are less than 148 cm tall should have a properly fitted booster seat. The purpose of the booster seat is to ensure that the child is positioned properly to wear the seat belt securely.

Although it may seem like a very simple thing, wearing a seat belt helps prevent death and serious injury to occupants of light duty motor vehicles in potentially fatal collisions 39 to 60% of the time, according to the Alberta Centre for Injury Control and Research.

In addition to seat belts, head restraints in vehicles should be adjusted to help prevent whiplash injuries. The centre of the restraint should be level with the top of the person's ear and no more than 10 cm from the back of the person's head.