New Product for Moms-to-Be: Tummy Shield

tummy-shield.jpgWe just found out about a new product designed for pregnant women that really got our attention. It’s called the “Tummy Shield” and it’s designed to help protect your unborn baby while wearing a seatbelt in your car.

Anybody who has been pregnant before knows that, especially when you get huge in those last few months, it’s tricky to wear a seat belt because of where it fits around your belly. This product is designed to help protect your baby and the baby’s placenta in the event of a car accident. You place it in your seat and then fasten the seatbelt through the piece in the middle to divert the belt from hitting your belly directly in a crash.

We did a little research on the product online and learned that, according to The Journal of the American Medical Association, “Motor vehicle crashes account for four of five deaths that occur among unborn babies of pregnant women who experience trauma.” That’s a really scary statistic, and we all know how much time we spend in a car on a day-to-day basis. It makes sense to reduce your risk as much as possible.

According to the product website, the Tummy Shield was invented by a father of four in Australia. When his wife was 7 months pregnant with their first child, the couple was in a minor car accident when they swerved to avoid a collision and hit the curb instead. Although the mother was fine and the baby was born healthy, there were developmental delays and a doctor later concluded that it was probably caused by a brain trauma sometime during the pregnancy. That’s when the father started working on an invention that could prevent the same type of thing from happening to other babies.

Please note that we have not tried this product ourselves because — well, we’re not pregnant! But we would love to hear from any of you who may have experience using it. We do know that it’s available at The Baby’s Room in Rogers. You can also read more about it on the product website by clicking here. You can also see crash testing videos on their website.

If you have any questions about it, call Stephanie who is the owner of The Baby’s Room in Rogers. Her number is 479-631-6001. The Baby’s Room also has info about this product on their website, which you can view by clicking here.