Water Safety

I was catching up on a blog today http://mcnultyquads.blogspot.com, which for the record I love to read because their four children are absolutely ADORABLE!  However, a post from a week ago bothered me on a safety level.  Now, I'm NOT saying this family put their children in harms way.  Let me just get that out there first.  It bothered me on a Lifeguarding Safety level.  There was a photo of four very cute kids playing in the pool with little floaties around their mid sections.  They looked like they were having a blast.  I know from previous posts on this blog that the kids are taking swimming lessons but are not "swimming" yet, and by that I mean they are still learning how to put everything together.  I also know from previous posts that the mother was a swimmer as a child so I'm fairly confident that she's water-safety-conscious.

I realize that this photo may have been taken in the shallow end of the pool, and that the children may have been able to touch the bottom here, but in the scenario that they are not in a shallow area and able to touch the bottom - my warning to ALL parents out there is as follows:  NEVER LEAVE YOUR CHILD UNATTENDED IN ONE OF THESE FLOATIES.  EVER.  These are cheap, plastic floaties that are made for fun and NOT for safety.  They can rip, they can pop, they can develop a minuscule hole in the seam, and if a child who cannot swim is in one of these when that happens they will sink like a rock. 

I want to put it out there again that I am in no way saying this mother is putting her kids in harms way.  I'm sure that there were a pair of eyes on each child, and a responsible person within arms reach of all four of these kids while they were in the pool - I just felt a need to put this warning out there.

You may be asking yourself, "and just what is her criteria for considering herself such a safety guru?"  That's fine.  Skepticism is OK with me, and I'll tell you why.

• I've been in water my entire life. 
• I was a competitive swimmer from the age of 5 to the age of 16, and many of those years were year round swim clubs.
• I've taught swimming lessons to children of all ages (even taught some adult classes) for about 10 years
• I was a lifeguard for about half of those years.  I've never personally had to rescue anyone but I've been around and assisted when other lifeguards have.

The sad fact is that 3 of the 4 rescues that I've witnessed/assisted in were of children who were left unattended while wearing some sort of novelty floatation device.  Some people don't realize that these are not coast guard approved life saving devices and if a child is not monitored properly they can be injured.

My personal favorite, as a former lifeguard, is when parents bring their kids to the pool and think that they can let their children roam free while they sit on a chair and read a book or chat with a friend.  They think "Oh, the lifeguard is here.  They'll keep an eye on Little Johnny."  WRONG.  The lifeguard on duty is NOT YOUR BABYSITTER.  If you'd rather read or tan or chat then watch your child - bring a babysitter with you.  If your child is under the age of 13 or cannot swim and is any age you need to be the person watching your child.  The lifeguard has 40 or more people to keep an eye on.  He/She cannot devote all his time to Little Johnny because you can't be a responsible adult.

If you're reading this, and you have a child who cannot swim and uses one of these floaties, and you'd like to know what else your child can use - go to: www.kiefer.com  They have a great selection of floaties and life jackets for all ages.  They do carry some items I'd steer clear of.  Mainly anything that is inflatable.  To me inflatable = possibility of popping. 

Anything that is solid foam (or foam type material) is a good bet.  They can get chunks taken out of them and will still float.  I can't tell you how many noodles a pool goes through in a season because little ones like to bite them, but they last until they rip in half!  By the way, noodles are a GREAT item.  If your child is old enough to understand they need to hold onto it they're a fantastic device.  Even with the noodles though, a child who cannot swim needs a secondary devise.  I recommend the Kiefer Aqua-Cell Swim Belt.  They have removable squares of foam that you can add or remove depending on how much assistance your child needs.  I also recommend the Kiefer Swim N Play Trainer which also has removable squares of foam.  And finally, you can't go wrong with a life jacket.  They even make suits for boys and girls that have a built in life jacket.  As a swim instructor I hate these because they don't allow the child to be in the proper position for learning to swim (ie: Face down), but are good for playing at the pool.

Wow.  I think this is way longer than I wanted it to be.  I didn't mean to go on so long!  If you have any comments feel free to leave them!