It’s not for rest, it’s for restraint

Headrest: It’s a poorly named part of a car because it isn’t there, so you can rest your head. It’s there to restrain it.

If you have ever seen a car made before 1969, one of the most curious things about it is that the seats seem so low and empty. That’s because before then, headrests were optional and mainly found in luxury cars to be used as a place to rest the head literally. But experts discovered that headrests prevented five to 10 percent of head and neck injuries by preventing the head from whipping back in a crash.

In fact, since the headrest became a safety feature in 1969, we should have been calling it the head restraint.

This is might be one reason people use it improperly.

Headrests are adjustable so they can be positioned properly to protect the head. Here’s how:

• Raise or lower the headrest, so it reaches the top of your head or at least your ears. This is crucial because most people don’t raise their headrests high enough to prevent whiplash or neck injury. You can test it by simply tilting your head back to your headrest when you get into the car.
• Adjust the headrest backward or forward so that your head is about two inches (actually, five centimeters) from the headrest. Up to four inches (or 10 centimeters) is considered acceptable. The closer to your head, the less your head can snap back in a crash — and that’s a good thing.

However, many people find the headrest uncomfortable, especially headrests that tilt forward, which is done intentionally to keep the head close to the rest. If that is the case, try adjusting the headrest downward or upward and working with the seat tilt function.