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Drowning Prevention

Drowning Prevention

  1. Never leave a child under age 4 unattended in the bathtub or a wading pool. If you need to answer the doorbell or phone, grab a towel and take your child with you.
  2. Watch children and never leave them alone around water, including wadding pools, swimming pools, spas or hot tubs, ponds, lakes, streams, or any other open water. (More children drown in backyard swimming pools than at beaches or public pools.)
  3. Make sure that neighborhood pools are totally fenced off and the gates are kept locked.
  4. Try to arrange swimming lessons for your child before age 8. (Children are often ready by age 4.)
  5. Infant water programs should teach water “fun,” not “swimming.” Children cannot be made “water safe” before age 4. The American Academy of Pediatrics is opposed to organized group swimming lessons under 1 year of age.
  6. Infant programs that encourage submersion of the head for more than a few seconds should be avoided because some babies swallow enough pool water to cause seizures and brain damage.
  7. Caution children of all ages to check the depth of the water before diving in and to avoid any diving in the shallow end of a pool.
  8. Caution children not to overbreathe as a way to stay underwater longer. This practice can lead to passing out underwater.
  9. Teach even the accomplished swimmer to never swim alone. Always swim with a buddy.
  10. If you own a pool or hot tub AND your young child is ever missing, always look there first.
Written by Barton D. Schmitt, MD, author of “My Child Is Sick,” American Academy of Pediatrics Books.
Pediatric Advisor 2015.1 published by RelayHealth.
Last modified: 2012-05-15
Last reviewed: 2014-06-10
This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information is intended to inform and educate and is not a replacement for medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.

Copyright ©1986-2015 Barton D. Schmitt, MD. All rights reserved.

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