Mother warns about the danger of car seats after her one-year-old daughter suffocated to death while napping in one that the babysitter left on the living room floor. Photo / WFAA
Mother warns about the danger of car seats after her one-year-old daughter suffocated to death while napping in one that the babysitter left on the living room floor. Photo / WFAA
A mother is warning others about the dangers of napping in car seats after her 17-month-old daughter died that same way.
In June 2015, Lisa Smith received a call while she was at work from the babysitter watching her daughter Mia who said the toddler hadn't woken up from her nap.
She later learned that Mia had been put to sleep in a car seat inside the house and had slouched forward, which cut off her airway and suffocated her, the MailOnline reported.
Now Lisa, from Aledo, Texas, said she hopes that by spreading awareness, she can educate parents and prevent other children from dying this way.
Mia's death was ruled as positional asphyxia, which is when a person cannot get enough air to breathe because of the way his or her body is positioned.
When a car seat is used in a vehicle, the seat is secured to a base at an angle where a child's airway is open, according to West Bend.
But when that car seat is not in the car and on a flat surface, it is not at the same angle and a child in the seat could slouch forward due to the weakness of their neck muscles, cutting off their air circulation.
Mother warns about the danger of car seats after her one-year-old daughter suffocated to death while napping in one that the babysitter left on the living room floor. Photo / WFAA
If the child is not repositioned soon after being found slouching, a lack of oxygen could result in brain damage and, in some cases, death.
According to a 2015 study published in the Journal of Pediatrics, researchers looked at deaths of children under the age of two that occurred in carrying devices between 2004 and 2008.
Of the 47 deaths, 31 occurred while in car seats. The researchers found that 48 percent of the car seat deaths were due to positional asphyxia.
On June 10, 2015, certified day care provider Valerie Wackerly called 911 after Mia didn't wake up from her nap.
When officer and EMTs arrived at the Smith's residence - which was in Pella, Iowa, at the time - they found Mia unresponsive and Wackerly trying to revive her via CPR.
Mia was first taken to Pella Regional Health Center before she was transferred to Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines.
The toddler passed away on June 12 and the state Medical Examiner's Office ruled the death as mechanical or positional asphyxia.
An examination later discovered that Wackerly had left Mia sleeping in the car seat in a dark room in the house, reported KCCI.
But the lower strap was not buckled and Mia slid down, which cut off her airway.
Lisa said that she had always assumed Mia napped in a crib and had no idea Wackerly was using a car seat.
Mia Smith was put to nap in car seat by her babysitter in June 2015. After she didn't wake up, she was rushed to the hospital, where she died two days later. Photo / Lisa and Chad with Mia
Wackerly was arrested and, in January 2016, she pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.
"I walk around town and see people using a car seat on the seats at restaurants or putting them on the floor at tables," Lisa said.
"I literally walk up to people and I say: 'You know, I had a daughter who was seventeen-and-a-half months who passed away and I just want you to be really careful'."
