Philadelphia doulas answer the question, "Should I use a seatbelt while pregnant?"



Sometimes mom's have fears about seat belts during pregnancy and may ask the question, "Couldn't the seat belt crush my baby?" or "what if the airbags hit my baby?"

The question of whether to wear a seat belt during pregnancy is pretty cut and dry: Protect the mom and you protect the baby. So should you wear a seat belt? YES.

The American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology conducted a recent study, "Fetal outcome in motor-vehicle crashes: effects of crash characteristics and maternal restraint"

According to their research, " Proper maternal belt-restraint use (with or without airbag deployment) is associated with acceptable fetal outcome (odds ratio = 4.5, P = .033). Approximately half of fetal losses in motor-vehicle crashes could be prevented if all pregnant women properly wore seat belts."



For more detailed information please review the study here: http://www.ajog.org/article/S0002-9378%2808%2900145-2/fulltext

The AJOG says, "These results strongly support recommendations that pregnant women use properly positioned seatbelts."

So how can we make sure that a seat belt is properly positioned?


Pull the seat belt across your body. Make sure the lap belt goes under your belly, against your hip bones. Place the chest belt between your breasts. Never put the chest/shoulder belt under your arm.