Teen Drivers and Safety - Reseach Shows Car Crash Deaths Increase at Age 12

Recent research shows that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for older children and teens in the United States. Resulting in more deaths for this age group than the next three causes combined, motor vehicle crashes are considered the most serious health threat for older children and teens. (According to a study released this month in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.)

Researchers examined 45,560 crashes involving 8- to 17-year-old passengers. Between 2000 and 2005, 9,807 passengers in this age group died in crashes.

"We saw a clear tipping point between ages 12 and 14, where child passengers became much more likely to die in a crash than their younger counterparts," says Flaura Koplin-Winston, M.D., Ph.D., founder and co-scientific director of the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at CHOP. "Long before these children ever receive a learner's permit, they begin to exhibit a pattern that looks more like the high fatality rates we see for teen drivers."

With passengers between ages 12 - 16 dying at a higher rate than younger children, it is necessary for adults to intervene long before a teenager receives their learner's permit. In the United States, one in four crash fatalities involve someone aged 16 to 24 years old. With the risk increasing with each teenage year, now is the time for someone to step in. Helping to bring these staggering findings to the public are The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and State Farm Insurance.

Comments

[Jenny]

Thank you for submitting your post to the Mommy Blog Carnival for April 15th. I've included it in the upcoming edition. :) Hope to see you drop by and check out the other participants. Again, thank you!