Top US Professor Warns Drowning is Often Silent - Here's How to Protect Your Child

Heading to pools, lakes and beaches for the summer is a no-brainer. But if travelling with kids, safety concerns should be at the top of one's mind. Emmy Sasala, a trauma prevention coordinator with the Pediatric Trauma Injury Prevention program at Penn State Health Golisano Children's Hospital, shares simple but important pointers for parents and caregivers to keep the kids safe around water. Sasala addresses the first and immediate concern - drowning - right away: "Water, while it can be fun and refreshing and a great way to make memories and spend time with families, we do need to respect water and the dangers that it can pose. Especially with children who might not have experience around water or may not know how to swim. One of the biggest

risks, obviously, is drowning. And unlike what families might have, maybe seen in a TV show or movie, drowning is usually silent. And, someone who is actively drowning usually really can't alert those around them that they're in trouble. So it's very important that we are aware of ways that we can keep our children safe around water. Different things we can do to, make sure that we're being as vigilant as possible and making it still a fun and enjoyable experience."That being said, she is pretty clear on how there is no one measure when it comes to preventing drowning - except for watching the child like a hawk; which is exactly what makes multiple safety precautions essential: "We recommend layers of protection. Specifically, if you have a home pool, we suggest a four sided fence with a locking gate. Completely around that pool. Any time, child is around water, an adult should be actively supervising, avoiding distractions, making sure that they're able to really focus on that child. And actually, the best thing is to be engaged with your child and in the water. But certainly that an active adult supervision is important even when lifeguards are present."

Top US Doctor on How to Keep Kids Safe Around Water this Summer

Not just pools, Sasala also shares some pointers for natural bodies of water which can introduce additional hazards - obvious in theory, but something families may tend to overlook in the moment owing to the happy chaos of vacations: "Open water or natural water certainly can pose additional risks. Just because a pool typically is a little more of a controlled environment in terms of water temperature and things going on around it, but open waters can have things like, the water temperature itself can affect swimming ability. The weather can affect things like the currents or the tides. So there could even be things under the water. If visibility isn't great through that water, that could be a risk. So definitely open or natural waters do tend to pose more of a risk to anyone."Temperature here is a key factor, because colder water can also affect the body's ability to respond. She adds, "When the water temperature is is cooler, it does just have an effect on our bodies that maybe, you know, we're a little slower to respond or don't have the stamina that we would have in more comfortable water temperatures."Also Read: Top US Expert Shares A Promising New Approach To Treat Alzheimer's And Parkinson'sNext Sasala highlights the importance of having the correct kind of gear on, even if parents have planned splash-hour as fun, down time: "Especially when we're talking about those open or natural waters wearing a (US) Coast Guard approved lifejacket, one that is properly fitted and fully secured is imperative. Whether you're on the shore or a dock near the water. Definitely. If you're in a boat, it shouldn't just be in the boat with you. It should be worn and fully secured. And certainly if you plan to be in that open water as well."As mentioned earlier, there really is no antidote that compares to always having eyes on your child. As per Sasala, active adult supervision ranks the highest when it comes to safety measures for kids around water. Stressing that children should never be near water without an adult any which way, she explains: "Saying this and being the example of ensuring that that child does not go near or in water without an adult. That should be a message that repeated over and over. I also definitely want it to make mention that even when you're being as safe as possible during those plans, when times the majority of toddler drownings happen during non swim times, or when the child wasn't expected to be near water. So really having things like barriers around water, having, you know, teaching those water safety skills about to a toddler or a young child never going in or near water without an adult being with you is very, very important." She also presses on the need for similar safety measures for individuals with autism, intellectual disability or generally anyone who has extra support needs. Finally, parents will definitely find themselves more at ease knowing their child can handle themselves in water sans any support. And the only thing ensuring that is swimming lessons - though she does make it a point to highlight how supervising the child must never be taken lightly: "Swimming lessons are a great idea. You can start them fairly young and in a sometimes even infants. Or definitely toddlers. Again, sometimes those start with just safety skills around water. But then certainly building on skills for a child, or adult, if you haven't learned yet. It's never too late to learn how to swim. It's just a great life safety skill," she says, adding, "But even if someone has had swimming lessons and doesn't know how to swim, that doesn't mean you no longer need to supervise. Or at the very least, be with a buddy in the water. So, swimming lessons are definitely an important piece in keeping your child safe."