Swimming Safety

Summer is here! Beautiful sun and weather are perfect for swimming in those pools!

However fun swimming can be, there are some hazards to be mindful about. Here are some important safety tips and information you need to know to keep you and your kids safe this summer.

Drowning. This kills more kids in the 1-4 year old range than anything else, even more kids under 1 year old. Not only that, but it is the leading cause of unintentional death in kids 1-14 years old. This is more than pedestrian injuries per year! Here’s how to prevent this:

• Make sure there is a barrier, like a fence, with a self-closing gate around the pool

• Always have kids wear some kind of life jacket when swimming

• Teach kids how to swim as soon as they are able to

• Learn CPR and how to rescue those who are near drowning – there are many classes

  available for these around local communities

• Always and I mean ALWAYS supervise your children closely at all times – I cannot stress

  this enough, because it is when you aren’t looking that accidents happen

Disease. Drowning is not the only hazard. More often than not, these happen in the public pools. According to the CDC, diseases from pools have increased in the recent years.

• Don’t go in the pool if you have had diarrhea recently or have diarrhea – just one

  diarrhea incident in the pool can release millions of germ particles like cryptosporidium

  (Crypto for short) and E.coli. Even with chlorine, crypto can survive in the water for up

  to 7 days! Share the fun, not the germs.

• Make sure pH of water is at optimum levels – you can do your own self-test by using pH

  test strips

• Tell kids not to swallow water

• Do not pee in the water – take kids on bathroom breaks and check diapers every hour

Here is a great resource from the CDC for safety tips and information. Stay safe and remember to splish, splash and have a blast this summer!

About the Author

Lucy Pun is a board-certified family physician offering direct primary care, as it allows her to develop valuable relationships and spend quality time with her patients. Passionate about education, empowerment of individual patient needs, and general medicine, she continually pursues helping individuals be in charge of their own health. With a history of being the medical caretaker of her family and working in child development previous to residency, she enjoys assisting patients of all ages.

Lucy received her medical degree from Western University of Health Sciences and completed her residency at PIH Health Hospital in Downey. As a board-certified physician in Family Medicine, Lucy prides herself in providing the best care to every patient she meets.