Protect Your Child From Drowning
The best way to teach your child safe water behavior is to practice it yourself.
By Connie Brichford
Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass,lll, MD, MPH
Drowning is the second most common cause of accidental death for youngsters under 14. This statistic is all the more tragic because drowning can be prevented. If you learn the basics of water safety, you can help reduce your child’s chances of drowning.
Child Drowning: Prevention Tips
Ken Haller, MD, an associate professor of pediatrics at Saint Louis University School of Medicine in Missouri, says the most important thing that parents can do is “model safe behaviors themselves.” This includes refraining from alcohol use while boating or supervising children in water, wearing a life jacket while boating, and following rules and lifeguard instructions at the water areas where you swim.
There are many other safeguards as well. These include:
Guard against hazards. While swimming pools and lakes are obvious lures for children, most infant drownings occur in the home, in the bathtub, or in open buckets (they fall in, head first, and are unable to pull themselves out of the bucket or pail). If you do have a swimming pool and you notice that your child is missing, always check the pool first.
Supervise all swimming. To minimize child-drowning risks, Dr. Haller says, “All swimming should take place with an adult supervising. Ideally, the pool or beach would also be supervised by a lifeguard.” Even with a lifeguard present at public swimming areas, children should be attended by an adult who knows them.
Practice active supervision. Let the phone ring, the washing machine buzzer go off, and ignore the doorbell when you're supervising children in the bathtub or the pool. Adults in charge of children swimming need to be pool-side the whole time, not just checking in on them. A 10-year study of childhood drowning and near-drowning found that inadequate adult supervision was a factor in many cases; adults usually said that they left the child “only for a minute.” Make it clear to your kids that they are not allowed to go near the water without you or another adult there to supervise. If you must answer the phone, take the kids out of the pool. Better yet, bring a cordless phone with you to the pool; you’ll have it handy in case of emergency.
Take every safety precaution if you own a swimming pool. This includes installing alarms at doors and windows around your house as well as in the pool to alert you if kids are going outside without you. Install and maintain the proper fencing and gates around the pool area.
Supervise all kids, even those who have taken swimming lessons. While swimming lessons are a great way to introduce children to water and teach them the basics of water safety, they do not guarantee safety. A recent study in Washington State reviewed 67 child drowning deaths and found that 17 of the youngsters supposedly knew how to swim, and four had had swimming lessons.
Child Drowning: Swim Lesson Guidelines
Even though learning to swim doesn’t provide absolute protection against drowning, it can minimize risk. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Policy recently revised its guidelines to recommend swimming lessons for children as young as age 1. The AAP continues to urge parents to provide lessons for kids age 4 and older, but is now more open toward instruction for younger children. The AAP guidelines do not preclude participating in aquatic classes like those offered by the Red Cross for ages 6 months and up.
Child Drowning: Preparing for Emergencies
Know CPR and first-aid training. “If you own a pool, it’s important to get trained in CPR — cardiopulmonary resuscitation,” says Haller. “Even a few minutes without oxygen can make a huge difference to a drowning victim.” A person who does not breathe in any oxygen for several minutes will experience brain damage, and if they are without oxygen for seven minutes or more, they are not likely to recover, he says. “The longer it goes, the greater the effect on the brain.” If you own a swimming pool, the time you invest in CPR training can mean the difference between life and death for your children or their friends.
Call 9-1-1. Every minute counts, so call 9-1-1 immediately if you find someone under water. If you know CPR, administer it while someone else makes the call. Haller stresses that just a few minutes can determine if a drowning victim survives, and can have a huge impact on the extent to which they recover.
Children generally follow their parents’ lead. If you take the right steps to ensure water safety, odds are, they will, too. Remember, drowning is the second most common cause of accidental death in kids under 14, but it can be prevented with diligence.
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