There is only so much that you can do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe in a car. You cannot pick which drivers will be on the road when you are driving to work, school, church or a store. You have to hope that other motorists are not driving drunk, are not fatigued and are not using cellphones irresponsibly when operating a vehicle.

While you cannot control the actions of others, you can model responsible driving behavior, by never driving while intoxicated, avoiding texting and driving and not being distracted by eating, reading or becoming overly focused on the topic of a conversation with your passengers. 

Moreover, you should always take the simplest of all safety precautions when getting into your car. Use your seat belts and always make certain that all of your passengers are likewise using their seat belts. And always use the proper safety seats for small children.

An Indiana woman is attributing the fact her 3-year-old daughter was safe after a rear-end collision was because she was properly belted into her car seat. A pickup truck crashed into the back of her father-in-law's new car at more than 30 miles per hour, and yet the child escaped injury, due to her car seat.

The sad fact is that driving with your children in your car probably exposes them to the greatest risk of injury they will face, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) point out that car crashes are the leading cause of death for children in this country.

It takes only seconds to see to it that all of your children are correctly belted into their seats, and those seconds could be lifesavers, should a crash occur. Ensure everyone in the car uses their seat belt, every trip, every time; your children's lives are worth it.

Source: wdtn.com, "Indiana mom credits car seat for saving child's life during accident," Lauren Lowrey, October 8, 2015