The dangers of floats and sleeves for babies and children
It's a usual sight: you go to the pool or even to the beach, and lMost children carry floats or sleeves. However, this action is not at all safe: you should avoid it and, if you take it, never trust yourself and do not stop maintaining the basic security measures, such as not losing sight of them at any time. We tell you why.
The hoses and floats they are not really used for children to learn to swim, but for them to float and can be 'more independent' in water. However, they entail many dangers: they produce an effect of "tranquility" in the parents that it is not real, but that it can make parents forget us, believing that the child is safe, and nothing is further from reality.
In addition to the risks that we will now explain, this class of products they can be very uncomfortable if they are not well chosen, what makes children can not enjoy time in the water. This happens especially when they are not floats or hoses of their size or they are very inflated.
Float risks
Several experts warn that with the floats there are many possibilities that the child turns around and lies face down without being able to get back up and put in the original position. In addition, another risk is that the float, being plastic, is punctured and loses air, so the child will stop floating and can drown.
The dangers of the sleeves
The floats are not the only instruments in the pool that represent a great risk for children: they are joined the sleeves. These gadgets are useful for the child to learn to swim, but be careful: if the child raises his arms, the sleeves come off easily because both are wet and the plastic "slips".
That is why it is so important that the sleeves are consistent with the size of the child and of good quality. Also, it is not advisable to leave children unattended in the pool while they are with them: they can give excessive confidence that it ends in drowning.
Other options to 'float' in the water
If I do not have to use floats or hoses, what other options are there? Accustomed to the products of "all life", sometimes we wonder if there are other possibilities, but there are:
-The "churro." Known with this curious name, the "churro" is a polystyrene cylinder that is used for children to learn to swim. In addition, with it you can organize many games in the pool and gives autonomy to the little ones.
-Polystyrene sleeves. This kind of product is not punctured or inflated, because they are made of polystyrene. The best thing about these sleeves is that they are usually made with several discs that They can be removed as your child learns to swim.
-Lifevest. From the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality it is recommended that those who can not swim use life jackets to bathe or practice water sports: "Always put a life jacket on your children if they can not swim, are small or have some disability , when they are going to get in the water or are playing near it. Inflatable floats are not recommended"they explain.
Safety recommendations in swimming pools
Health advised last year to ensure that the pool where we go as a family has the appropriate security measures (lifeguard, perimeter fence) so that young children can not freely access, but remember that the monitoring of minors is "your responsibility "and that of the lifeguard is the aquatic rescue when necessary.
Thus, it is necessary to monitor minors at all timeswhen they are in the water or playing near it and not delegate this responsibility to an older child. In fact, remember that many drownings occur in the family environment (bathtubs, private pools and inflatable pools)s) and that a baby can drown in 30 centimeters of depth.
For children, the Perimeter fencing of the pools is very safe, since it completely isolates the pool, and remember that it must have a fence 1.2 meters high and that it is not possible to climb. On the beach, asks to respect the meaning of the flags and never bathe if it is red, and always take into account the instructions of the lifeguards.
Angela R. Bonachera
