Summer
Safety Tips
By
Christine Climer
Every
July, my kids head out for a week long adventure at Gran and Poppy’s
family farm. Their visit is jam-packed with all the goodies a
kid could ever want: barbecues, fireworks, swimming, hiking, boating
and more. While I’m thrilled they get to enjoy all these
activities, I also know that serious injuries can occur if proper
safety precautions aren’t taken.
According
to the Consumer Products Safety Commission, an estimated 2,300
children were treated in hospital emergency rooms for pool submersion
injuries during the summer of 2004 and each year over 8,000 people
are injured using fireworks.
So
whether your family will be boating out on the lake or enjoying
fireworks or just hanging out at home this summer, the American
Academy of Pediatrics offers these summertime safety tips to keep
your family out of the emergency room:
Fireworks
Safety
• Fireworks can result in severe burns, scars and disfigurement
that can last a lifetime.
• Fireworks that are often thought to be safe (like sparklers)
can reach temperatures above 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit and can
burn users and bystanders.
• The AAP encourages parents to attend professional fireworks
displays instead of using fireworks at home.
Swimming
Safety
• Even good swimmers need buddies. Make sure your child
knows never to swim alone.
• A lifeguard or another adult (preferably one who knows
about water rescue) needs to be watching children at all times.
• Make sure your child knows never to dive into water except
when permitted by an adult who knows the depth of the water and
who has checked for underwater objects.
• Never let your child swim in canals or any fast-moving
water.
• Ocean swimming should be allowed only when a lifeguard
is on duty.
• Younger children should be closely supervised while in
the water. Use "touch supervision," keeping no more
than an arm's length away.
• Never leave children alone in or near the pool, even for
a moment.
• Install a fence at least four feet high around all four
sides of the pool. The fence should not have openings or protrusions
that a young child could use to get over, under or through.
• Make sure pool gates open out from the pool, and self-close
and self-latch at a height children can't reach.
• Keep rescue equipment (a shepherd's hook — a long
pole with a hook on the end — and life preserver) and a
portable telephone near the pool.
• Avoid inflatable swimming aids such as "floaties."
They are not a substitute for approved life vests and can give
children a false sense of security.
• Children may not be developmentally ready for swim lessons
until after their fourth birthday. Swim programs for children
under 4 should not be seen as a way to decrease the risk of drowning.
Boating Safety
• Children should wear life jackets at all times when on
boats or near bodies of water.
• Make sure the life jacket is the right size for your child.
The jacket should not be loose. It should always be worn as instructed
with all straps belted.
• Blow-up water wings, toys, rafts and air mattresses should
never be used as life jackets or life preservers.
• Adults should wear life jackets for their own protection
and to set a good example.
Lawn Mower Safety
• Try to use a mower with a control that stops the mower
from moving forward if the handle is let go.
• Children younger than 16 years should not be allowed to
use ride-on mowers. Children younger than 12 years should not
use walk-behind mowers.
• Make sure that sturdy shoes (not sandals or sneakers)
are worn while mowing.
• Prevent injuries from flying objects, such as stones or
toys, by picking up objects from the lawn before mowing begins.
Have anyone who uses a mower wear hearing and eye protection.
• Do not pull the mower backward or mow in reverse unless
absolutely necessary, and carefully look for children behind you
when you mow in reverse.
• Always turn off the mower and wait for the blades to stop
completely before removing the grass catcher, unclogging the discharge
chute or crossing gravel paths, roads, or other areas.
• Do not allow children to ride as passengers on ride-on
mowers.
All-Terrain Vehicles
• Off-road vehicles are particularly dangerous for children
younger than 16 years, who may have immature judgment and motor
skills. Children who are not licensed to drive a car should not
be allowed to operate off-road vehicles.
• Injuries frequently occur to passengers; therefore, riding
double should not be permitted.
• All riders should wear helmets, eye protection and protective
reflective clothing. Appropriate helmets are those designed for
motorcycle (not bicycle) use and should include safety visors/face
shields for eye protection.
• Parents should never permit the street use of off-road
vehicles, and nighttime riding should not be allowed.
• Flags, reflectors and lights should be used to make vehicles
more visible.
• Drivers of recreational vehicles should not drive after
drinking alcohol. Parents should set an example for their children
in this regard.
• Young drivers should be discouraged from on-road riding
of any two-wheeled motorized cycle, even when they are able to
be licensed to do so, because they are inherently more dangerous
than passenger cars.
Sources
http://www.aap.org/healthtopics/safety.cfm
http://www.aap.org/family/tippslip.htm
http://www.aap.org/family/tipplawn.htm
http://www.aap.org/family/tipppool.htm
http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;105/6/1352
For
more summer safety tips, visit the CPSC’s library: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/pub_idx.html
© Christine Climer
