Water Safety

What is the best way to keep my child safe around swimming pools?

An adult should actively watch children at all times while they are in a pool. Use "touch supervision." This means an adult is never more than an arm's length away, or is able to touch the child, at all times. Remember, supervision by an older child, and even the presence of a pool lifeguard, isn't a safe substitute for adult supervision.

Pool rules

If you have a pool, insist that the following rules are followed:

Pool fences

To prevent a small child from entering the pool area on his own, there should be a fence that completely surrounds the pool or spa. Combined with the watchful eyes of an adult, a fence is the best way to protect your child and other children who may visit or live nearby.

A pool fence should be climb-resistant and should not have anything alongside it (such as lawn furniture) that can be used to climb it.

Pool fences should also

Additional protection products, when used with a 4-sided fence, are also important; however, these are not substitutes for adequate fencing. These may include the following:

Swimming lessons

Children are generally not developmentally ready for formal swimming lessons until after their fourth birthday. Also, swimming lessons for infants and toddlers do not necessarily make them safer in or around the water and are not a recommended means of drowning prevention at these ages.

If you want to put your small child in a swimming program, choose one that doesn't require him to put his head under water (swallowing too much water can make your child sick). Also, find a program that lets you swim with your child. Once your child is ready (generally after his fourth birthday) he should be taught how to swim. However, remember that teaching your child to swim does not mean he is safe in the water. Even a child who knows how to swim can drown a few feet from safety. Also remember that even a child who knows how to swim needs to be watched at all times. No one, adult or child, should ever swim alone.

Older children and teens are also at risk from drowning, even if they know how to swim. They often drown while swimming in unsupervised places such as water-filled quarries, rivers, or ponds. Although many teens can swim well, they often encounter risky situations that they might not recognize, such as rough currents, surf, and sharp rocks. Alcohol is also a factor in many drownings among teens.

Diving

Serious spinal cord injuries, permanent brain damage, and death can occur to swimmers who dive into shallow water or spring upward on the diving board and hit it on the way down.

Keep safe by following these simple common-sense diving rules.