Danger from the Backseat

I was tipped off to this site via the GruntDoc blog:

As reported in the DeRidder Beauregard Daily News (which, in turn, is reporting on an article in Academic Emergency Medicine):

Passengers in the rear seats of vehicles who do not buckle up pose increased risks to themselves and to drivers, according to a recent medical study.

According to a recent issue of the medical journal Academic Emergency Medicine, a driver in a serious, head-on crash is more than twice as likely to be killed if a passenger sitting directly behind him is not wearing a seat belt. A separate 2004 study by the American Medical Association estimates that one in six crash deaths of drivers or front-seat passengers could be prevented if passengers in the back seat were buckled up.

"These studies tell us that back-seat passengers who don't buckle up put themselves and the driver and front-seat passengers at greater risk in the event of a crash," said Col. James E. Champagne, executive director of the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission. "Some people believe they're safe and do not need to buckle up because they are riding in the back seat. While a rear seat can be safer, it is by no means totally safe in a serious crash. Our advice is for every person in a vehicle to buckle up."