Kids' Wellness Matters Podcast Ep. 15: Water & Swimming Safety

In this summer bonus episode of Kids’ Wellness Matters, Dr. Nina Alfieri and Dr. Rob Sanchez discuss water and swimming safety tips for families and give advice for multiple layers of protection to prevent drowning.

Show Notes

• Drowning is leading the cause of death among young children, but there is much that can be done to prevent tragedies in the water. 
• Children can start taking swim lessons around age four to develop water skills and reduce drowning risks.
• Implement multiple safety measures, including pool fencing, life jackets, and teaching children water safety rules.
• Parents should learn CPR, recognize drowning signs, and understand the limitations of floaties compared to life jackets.

Transcript

[00:00:00] Dr. Rob Sanchez: Swimming is a fantastic source of fun and fitness for children, but anytime your family is gathering near or in a swimming pool or an open body of water, safety needs to be your number one concern. According to the CDC, drowning is the leading cause of death for children one to four years old.

[00:00:19] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Today we're going to share some tips to keep in mind as your family is having fun in the water this summer.

[00:00:24] Dr. Rob Sanchez: So Nina, we know that there's definitely important options to try and keep kids safe. Swimming lessons are something that comes up. What are some of the things that you'd like to talk about with families about swimming lessons and how they can help their kids?

[00:00:35] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Swimming lessons are a yes for me. So, you know, some children start swimming lessons super, super young. That's great. Almost all kids are developmentally ready around age four. In general having some sort of swimming training or some sort of comfort in water can be life saving. So we do recommend that families look into swimming lessons to reduce the risk of drowning.

[00:00:56] Dr. Rob Sanchez: And you can find swim classes in all sorts of places. Your local park district, there could be private locations. If your city or town has a YMCA go and check them out. Ask about children's swim classes. Those are all opportunities, and not just during the summer. A lot of times if they're indoor pools, they can offer those year round. And one thing I sometimes point out with some of my families is if you have a child with special needs, definitely look for swim classes and programs that might cater to those needs. So for example, if you have a child with autism, the national organization, Autism Speaks, has a website with resources online about swim classes in your area that may be designed for children with autism. So regardless of your child's age, ability whatever their needs may be, definitely take a look out for those swim classes because not only are they a wonderful skill to learn, but as Nina mentioned, they can really be life saving.

[00:01:43] Dr. Nina Alfieri: In addition to thinking about swimming classes, what's really critical is close and constant supervision when kids are in or around water. Kids can drown in even as little as an inch of water. We always think about these really dramatic drowning scenes in movies. That's actually not how drowning usually happens. It's usually these uncontrolled situations where kids have gained access to water, drowning is actually very quiet. You know, we don't necessarily see all the flailing and screaming that you see on TV and I think that's really important. So What do you recommend for parents supervising their kids in water this summer? 

[00:02:18] Dr. Rob Sanchez: The most important thing is making sure that we never let kids swim solo and that we have layers of protection to keep them supervised and to keep them safe. And that's even if lifeguards are around.So close and constant attention to your child or any other children that you might be supervising. And you don't want to have simple distractions get in the way. So that might be a time to put your phone away. You wanna make sure that you're keeping your child in your vision And there could be other ways too, right, Nina?

[00:02:44] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Yeah, I think one thing that can really implement a very intentional layer of water protection is instead of spreading out responsibility amongst 12 parents who are only sort of watching. It's actually way better to have one or two parents who are fully on and fully watching, and you're really passing that responsibility along. So some parents will do like a bright pink hat or, you know, a whistle around their neck or some sort of visible object that they pass from one parent to another, as they hand off the constant attention. And I know that sounds really cheesy, but what that does is allow really intentional on periods where a parent is fully watching the water. And again, it's much better than a bunch of parents who are on and off the phone or in and out of conversation. It allows more people to have fun, honestly. And it really provides a more intentional layer of protection to do it that way.

[00:03:33] Dr. Rob Sanchez: Other things that are important is to really just implement other types of barriers and ways to keep your kids safe around water. So, starting early, making sure that children understand that they always have to ask permission to go near water. And then depending on their water environment, you can take specific precautions. So if you have a pool, make sure that they're fenced in and have adequate barriers and four sided fencing, separating the water from the house. Those are all things that are really key. And here in Chicago there's lots of different beaches along Lake Michigan, but, you know, beaches exist across the country and other types of areas. It's so important to always stay in a life guarded area, especially like watching the water, making sure that the water and the tides aren't too heavy or intense and that it's safe to swim in. But always, you know, making sure that you're keeping that close eye on your child as well.

[00:04:17] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Absolutely. And you know, I think that one way to ingrain the idea of roles around water with kids is read books. I know there's a great Daniel Tiger book that we actually read with our older one way before she even went to a swim pool. And it was really great because, at the very beginning of the book the mom is telling Daniel Tiger that there's only a couple rules around the pool. One is don't run around the pool, and the second is, ask before you get in the water. You always need to ask a grown up. And I think keeping it simple and teaching your kids these really important safety rules and frequently reinforcing them can be really helpful.

[00:04:50] Dr. Rob Sanchez: Always a big fan of books and educating our children is so important about these kind of water safety tips. But also it's important that we educate ourselves. You can look for CPR classes or first aid and some of the basics, and we can educate ourselves that way we can feel prepared should something happen. And then it's also important that we discuss and talk about the signs of drowning. So that could be the head being low in the water, a head tilted backwards with mouth open. Hair hanging over the forehead or eyes or a body in like a near vertical position with no leg movement. Those are all things that we can keep in mind to know that we can educate ourselves about what are those warning signs and also what we can do should something like that happen.

[00:05:29] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Rob, what are your thoughts on life jackets and floaties?

[00:05:33] Dr. Rob Sanchez: So super important, right? Life jackets are key. Especially if you're out on the water if you're near bodies of waters like lakes or rivers, super important for us here in Chicago, but all around. And so, Life jackets are super key. I've not always been the best swimmer, so I tend to use one. How do you try and approach it with your family?

[00:05:50] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Yeah, I definitely think life jackets are really important, and I think, you know, they get confused a lot with floaties. I think it's important that people know floaties aren't made to prevent drowning. And in fact, there's a school of thought that kids who are constantly in floaties actually don't necessarily learn to tread water and may kind of rely on floaties. And when they find themselves in a situation where they're, not in their floaties, may not know what to do in water. So there's some thought that there's an advantage to really spending time in water without floaties. And it's not to say that they're dangerous on their own. It's just considering that floaties sometimes can be a replacement for kids really learning how to swim. So just being thoughtful about that. The other thing is just that life jackets and floaties are layers of protection, but really you know, a life jacket won't save you if there's a dangerous undertow. It's a layer of protection that's important and helpful, but we still need to kind of layer it with all of the other water safety tips, like paying attention to when it's safe to swim, making sure that they are fitted properly, et cetera. And keeping as many of those layers of protection as we can, can help ensure that you and your family have a great time. And there's so many fun things to do with water. Water tables are a great way to expose your kids to water and having fun, splash pads are so fun. Splash pads are basically concrete playgrounds that have water spraying out of them in various ways. And they're very purposefully designed actually to have a lower chance of drowning because there's not areas where water is collecting. So, you know, that's something to look out for as you're having fun in the parks this summer is to look out for those splash pads because kids absolutely love them.

[00:07:24] Dr. Rob Sanchez: Well, we really hope that these tips are helpful as you plan your next trip to the beach or the pool this summer. And we hope that everyone has such a fun summer in the water.

[00:07:36] Dr. Nina Alfieri: Stay safe and stay well.

Additional Resources 

For our patients who receive care from Lurie Children’s primary care clinicians, look for water safety information in the "Education" section of your MyChart account after a visit. 

Sign into MyChart