Drowning Prevention in Children

Drowning is one of the leading causes of death in children under 4 years of age. Most child drownings happen when the child was seen within the past 5 minutes and was safe.

Follow these guidelines to help prevent drowning accidents:

• Never leave a child under 4 years of age alone near water or in the bathtub, even for a moment. Drowning can happen in seconds. If you are bathing a baby or small child and the telephone or doorbell rings, either wrap the child in a towel and carry him with you or ignore the interruption.
• Constantly watch small children when they are near water, such as a swimming pool, lake, or river. Never allow kids of any age to swim alone. An adult should always be within arm's length of the child.
• Teach children to swim starting at the age of 4. Children less than 3 years old should not be given swimming lessons, but they can be taught water safety.
• Be aware of small bodies of water that might attract your child's attention, such as fishponds, construction sites, spas or hot tubs, ditches, fountains, rain barrels, watering cans, wading pools, or buckets. Keep toilet lids closed, or lock bathroom doors. Do not leave children alone near any source of water.
• Enforce pool safety rules, such as no running near the pool and no pushing others underwater. Keep a safety ring and rope at the pool side.
• Do not allow children who cannot swim to use inflatable toys or mattresses to keep afloat. The toy may suddenly deflate or a child may slip off into the water.
• Be sure home swimming pools are completely surrounded by a secure fence at least 4-feet tall with a self-closing, self-locking gate. Gate latches should be out of the reach of children.
• Use only power pool safety covers that are approved by the American Society of Testing and Materials. Other pool covers can fill with water and children can be trapped underneath.
• Do not allow young children to use spas and hot tubs. Young children can easily drown or become overheated in them.
• Do not store toys in or near pools. A child trying to get the toy may drown.
• Above ground pools should have the ladder or steps secured and locked.
• Make sure children always wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket when swimming in deep water or riding in a boat.

Disclaimer: This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information provided is intended to be informative and educational and is not a replacement for professional medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.

HIA File main4656.htm Release 13/2010