The summer months mean fun times spent on the beach or in the pool. For parents, this is when they should be on guard for accidental drowning. While the water is always fun for both parents and kids, you can't turn a blind eye to the possible dangers that it poses. Even children who know how to swim can go through water accidents, what more those that can't. Particularly if you've got young kids, it's always a must to prioritize safety beyond fun.
Below are tips to ensure children's safety this summer swimming season.
Safety First
Nothing can be more relaxing and enjoyable than spending time on the beach or in the pool with family. This is a special time for parents to bond with their children.
However, this does not mean that they should let their guard down for any untoward incidents on the water. On the contrary, parents need to be extra mindful of their kids when they are having too much fun since it could lead to accidental drowning.
Safety should come first when it comes to swimming, so parents should take note of numerous tips before they let their kids hit the water. Carol Barnett, swim head at Shibley Day Camp in Nassau County, emphasized the importance of knowing the child's ability to swim, which is not dependent on the kid's age or size.
Parents should be confident in their kids' ability to swim. This is why it is also important that children learn how to swim at an early age. Barnett also advised a swimming buddy, as no one, regardless of age, should swim alone in case of incidents.
"[Children] should always swim with a buddy. Also, they should be taught what to do if an emergency occurs," Barnett tells Popsugar.
Adult Supervision At All Times
It is also imperative that young children must have adult supervision and that the designated adult remains undistracted or not engaged in any other activity. Kids should never be left unattended even for a second to avoid accidental drowning. Even if your kids are complete with foam toys or air-filled floatation devices, never put your kids' full trust on these. Remember that these devices can also work as well as the person using them, and if your kids don't know how to use them properly, these may only do more harm than good.
Moreover, adult supervision also means that whoever is supervising the swimming children should stay away from alcohol. If you can avoid it altogether, then don't bring alcoholic beverages with you as you swim or when you're boating. You can't risk losing your mental and physical faculties, even if it's only temporary, as there's a huge responsibility on you to make sure all kids will stay safe while in the water.
The adult should always maintain "touch supervision swimming," which means he or she can assist the child at any moment when needed.
It is also important that adults learn to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR. Knowing how to administer the emergency procedure can save a life.
Enroll In Swimming Classes
Generally, toddlers around the age of four can engage in swimming classes. In this age group, most of these students are already enrolled in Nursery or Kindergarten, hence they can already listen and understand basic instructions. Enrolling them in a swim class will also be effective in the long term.
However, just because your kids have enrolled in a learn-to-swim program, this doesn't mean that they're already safe from danger. Since even adult swimmers can drown, all the more that this danger is still very much present for your young kids.
You'll still have to keep a close watch on your children, but at least you've got a bit of confidence that your kids know the basics of floating, thus having lesser chances of drowning.
These swimming classes aren't just great for your kids' safety, but it's also a good form of cardio exercise for them as well. How many calories does swimming burn? On average, a 150-pound person burns around 400 calories per hour of swimming. That's quite a lot, especially when you first intended for swimming just to be a fun activity with your family.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that drowning is the leading cause of death for infants and children between the ages of 1 and 4 years old. According to the health institute's records, 70 percent of drowning cases in pre-schoolers happen in the care of one or both parents at the time of the incident. Meanwhile, 75 percent go missing for five minutes or less.
