Water Safety Tips You Need to Know
As the heat continues to rise, there’s really no place to be like a pool, lake, beach or the water, splashing around to cool off. Sometimes, we overlook who is confident in their swimming abilities, especially when it comes to children. For others, it can be a very frightening thought when it comes to children swimming. We usually talk about tips for quality drinking water or drinking water systems for your home. This time around, however, we want to talk about water safety in a different aspect.
Swimming Safety Tips
Here are some IMPORTANT things to remember when it comes to keeping babies and children safe when around water:
- Active supervision is the best tip of all; your undivided attention should be given to children in and around open bodies of water. An adult should always be in arms reach of a toddler or baby, no multitasking. Take turns watching the water with other adults if necessary, never walk away for any reason or any amount of time.
- Start slow with babies; babies can be introduced to water around 6 months of age, but this should happen slowly and with a trained adult. Use waterproof or swimming diapers and change them frequently.
- Educate kids about swimming safety; enroll kids in swimming lessons when ready. Make sure kids swim in designated areas only. Teach kids that open water swimming is different than in a pool. Even older kids should always swim with a partner and be sure to teach them to only swim when adults are present.
- Don’t rely on swimming aids; pool toys are fun but they should never be used in place of an S. Coast Guard-approved personal flotation device (PFD).
- Learn CPR; if you have a pool or take children swimming often, it is safer and you’ll have more peace of mind.
- Take extra steps around the pool; set rules like no running and be sure to have gates and fences. Empty refillable or portable pools without covers no matter how shallow, and install window or door alarms.
- Check the drains; educate kids about the dangers of drains, and always check for cracks or loose covers.
- Instill confidence in swimmers; even for inexperienced swimmers, proper positive reinforcement is important. But don’t overdo it – kids still need to be cautious!
Stay safer this summer by following these and more tips for swimming and water safety with your kids.
