Shopping carts pose preventable threats to children

Four-wheeled hazards lurk down store aisles.

Shopping carts might seem like the safest place for children while shopping, but data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that more than 20,000 children under the age of 5 are injured by shopping carts each year.

“In addition to head and brain injuries, children visit the emergency room with cuts, bruises and even broken limbs,” Velvet Tyndall, Safe Kids Lenoir County coordinator, said. “Just because a child is sitting in a shopping cart does not mean you can assume they’re safe.

Tyndall said with the holiday season approaching, Safe Kids is trying to get to word out that parents should keep their children’s safety in mind while out shopping. She said it is only safe for children 6-months to 4-years-old to ride in the front of the cart, noting that area is only intended for children who are 15 to 35 pounds.

“Parents need to be discretionary about that,” she said. “If you have a 6-month-old that can’t sit up by themselves you need to wait until they can maintain their own upper body strength.”

Voluntary standards for shopping carts, created by the American Society for Testing and Materials International, state that all shopping carts must have a warning label depicting a safety message and that shopping carts with child seating area must have adjustable child restraint systems with child-resistant buckles or closures.

Pat Delaney, manager of the Piggly Wiggly located on Herritage Street; said shopping carts in his store are equipped with the child safety belts. He said during his two-and-a-half-year tenure at the store, he has never witnessed any injuries due to shopping carts.

“I’ve been doing this for more than 25 years and I’ve never seen anybody fall out of a cart,” he said.

Piggly Wiggly also offers carts equipped with a two-seat attachment for older children. Tyndall said parents should utilize this feature because it is specifically designed for children to ride in. She said shopping carts that include an infant carrier are also a safer bet.

Kaye Cooper was taking advantage of the two-seat contraption Monday afternoon while shopping at the Kinston Plaza Shopping Center Piggly Wiggly with her daughter, Shakeima Cooper, and grandchildren, A.J. Aytch and Symia Cooper.

“We got this cart so that the children could ride together,” Kaye said. “But you still have to keep a close eye on them.”

Tyndall said parents should also consider options such as using their own strollers and allowing children to walk alongside the cart.

“There are safer alternatives to placing a child in a cart,” she said. “But if a child must sit in a shopping cart, always keep one eye on your child and one hand on the cart.”

If a child does happen to fall out of a cart, Tyndall said parents should monitor injuries, paying close attention to symptoms such as drowsiness, vomiting and head contusions that could be signs of more serious head trauma.

“It’s better to be safe than sorry,” she said. “If (parents) have any questions they should go ahead and take their child to see their primary care provider or be seen through the emergency room.”

Sarah Campbell can be reached at 252-559-1076 or scampbell@freedomenc.com.

5 ways to avoid shopping-cart injuries:

1. Never leave your child unattended in a shopping cart and stay close to the cart at all times.

2. If you are placing your child in the shopping cart seat, always use a harness or the safety belt provided to restrain your child. If you see a shopping cart missing a seat belt or a seat belt is broken, select another shopping cart with a working seat belt, and tell the store manager so a replacement can be installed.

3. Never place your own infant carrier on top of a shopping cart. Use the infant seats, provided by the store, which are permanently attached and made part of the shopping cart.

4. Do not let your child ride in the cart basket, under the basket, on the sides or front of the cart.

5. Use the shopping carts that have a wheeled child carrier that is permanently attached and made part of the shopping cart. Some of these models look like cars or benches attached to the shopping cart.

Source: Safe Kids Lenoir County