Summer Safety: Keep your child safe while having fun this summer
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Last Updated: 01/01/90
Summer is the long-awaited time of year when children head outdoors to play,
and adults fling open windows to let sunshine and fresh air in.

But it is also the most dangerous time of the year. During summer months
children play outside more, often with less supervision than in school.
Summer-related injuries can range from a sunburn from a day at the beach
without sunscreen, to a life-threatening head trauma for a rider without a
helmet in a bicycle crash.

Take precautions
Most injuries to children are preventable and there are precautions you can
take to help your child's summer be safe and happy.

Water Safety
Drowning is one of the greatest summer risks for children ages 14 and under,
so always watch children closely when they are near water. Children age 4
and younger have the highest drowning rate.

a.. Whenever your children swim, make sure they are supervised by an adult
who knows how to swim.

b.. Watch young children carefully, even if you're not near a pool, lake,
river or ocean. Small children can drown in as little as one inch of water,
and have drowned in wading pools, bathtubs, buckets, toilets, and hot tubs.

c.. Install pool fencing and lock the gate.

d.. Teach your child to swim. The American Academy of Pediatrics
recommends that children begin swimming lessons at 4 years old.

e.. Even if your child can swim, never let him swim unsupervised.

f.. Keep children in your direct line of sight while supervising them. Be
cautious about becoming distracted with poolside reading, socializing with
guests, or listening to music with a headset. Children can drown silently
and quickly, and many have drowned while preoccupied adults were around the
pool area.

g.. When boating, have your child wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life
vest. Approximately 85 percent of boating-related drownings could have been
prevented if a life jacket had been worn. (Blow-up water wings and other
pool toys should not be used as life jackets or life preservers.) Most
states have laws that require children to wear life jackets.

h.. Set a good example by wearing your life jacket and encourage other
adults to do so as well.

i.. Be aware of undercurrents, tides and waves. Children–and adults–can be
swept away by these unexpectedly strong forces. Check for signs posted in
the area or check tide charts to know when high tide will be.

j.. Make sure water is at least nine feet deep before you let your child
dive.

k.. Learn CPR so you are ready for an emergency. Children age 13 and older
should learn CPR as well.


Summer Heat
Hot summer temperatures bring many risks for children. Plan ahead to prevent
sunburns, heatstroke and other heat-related injuries.

a.. Sun safety:

a.. Protect your children's skin by limiting the time they're in the sun
between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., when the sun's rays are strongest.

b.. Use at least 15 SPF (sun protection factor) sunscreen on your
children before they go outside, even on cloudy days. Reapply sunscreen
every two hours and after your child swims.

c.. Have your children wear sunglasses to help block UV rays that can be
harmful to eyes. Make sure the lenses block UV rays – some "kiddie" glasses
don't.

d.. Keep your children hydrated. Pack water or juice if they are going
to be in the sun or participating in physical activities and remind them to
drink even if they're not thirsty.


b.. Vehicle temperatures: Many children have been seriously injured or
died when left in a car during the summer months. Remember these safety
measures:

a.. Never leave a child alone in a car. Even with a window cracked, a
closed car can overheat in a matter of minutes.

b.. Make sure all children get out of the car when you arrive at your
destination.

c.. Keep your car–including the trunk–locked at all times, even in the
garage or driveway so a child can't sneak in and become trapped.

d.. Teach children not to play in or around parked cars, even at home.

e.. Check the temperature of the car seat surface and safety belt
buckles before buckling your child in the car.


c.. Open windows: While it's refreshing to open the windows of your home
when the weather turns warm, remember that children can fall out of open
windows–even with the screens in.

a.. If possible, open windows from the top, not the bottom, so children
can't reach the opening.

b.. Use window guards. Screens can give way under a child's weight, but
window guards will keep him from falling out.

c.. Move furniture such as couches and tables away from windows, so
toddlers can't access open windows or high voltage ends of bigscreen tv's.