Mercy Pediatrician Dr. Ashanti Woods Details Child Safety Tips for Summertime Swimming

Why is drowning often a silent event? What happens to a person/child that causes them to drown with lifeguards and other people present? 

• A newer definition for drowning provided by the World Congress on Drowning is "primary respiratory impairment from submersion in a liquid medium." 
• Drowning is often a silent event because one of the causes of drowning, aspiration (or swallowing of liquid that goes to the lungs instead of the stomach), commonly takes place underwater, often following an unsuccessful attempt by the swimmer to hold his or her breath.  Also, another significant contributing factor to drowning is the lack of supervision or lack of awareness by adults, lifeguards, and swimmers themselves.  
• Distraction, lack of awareness, poor swimming skills, and underwater injury (heart attack) are causes of swimmers drowning even when people are present.

Why do proficient swimmers drown? What happens to cause this?

• Proficient swimmers drown usually due to misjudgment or underwater injury.  What happens medically in the swimmer is a decrease in oxygen and increase in acid within the body.  This increase in acid can lead to passing out or even cardiac rhythm changes (heart attack) -- again, underwater.

Why are water wings not enough to protect a child in the water?

• While floatation water devices are a nice gesture to promote fun in the pool, proficient swimming skills, a life-jacket, and adult supervision are the best methods to ensure water safety.  Water wings, or inflatable armbands, do not provide the buoyancy that promotes prone (face-down) swimming.  In other words, water wings can give a false sense of security to a young child.  Also, these floatation devices, which are slid onto the child's arm (and can therefore slide off), provide buoyancy for one's periphery (the arms), while one's trunk and lower extremities (bulk of the weight) go unsupported. Therefore, when a child is using water wings, close supervision is still needed.

What is the best thing parents can do to make sure swim time is a safe time?

• Invest in swimming classes for your children and for adults who do not know how to swim, lifejackets for all children (yes, even for pool swimming), buddy system at water parks, and parents and teenagers should make a priority to learn CPR in the month of May every single year.  Rapid response CPR saves lives -- seconds count.  Have a cell phone handy near any area where swimming will take place.

--Dr. Ashanti Woods, Attending Pediatrician, Mercy Medical Center