Summer Safety Tips

It’s here, Summer!! The season that makes for long days and long lasting memories. The time for children to step out of their daily routines and enjoy their childhood! Everyone can recall those long Summer days spent playing out doors, swimming or even camping. In order to make these memories enjoyable and a positive experience for all, there are important things to remember about keeping our children safe. Here are some quick tips on Summer safety.

First, sun safety. For children younger than 6 months of age, avoid direct sun exposure. Make sure that your baby has lightweight clothing that covers their skin. Use sunscreen SPF 15 applied to sun exposed areas. Children older than 6 months also need to wear SPF 15 or 30 sunblock that states it is broad spectrum, covering for UVA and UVB rays. Sunscreen needs to be applied 15-30 minutes before going out doors and re-applied every 2 hours at least when swimming.

Second, water safety. Make sure that all children who are swimming are under the direct supervision of an adult. The adult should not be distracted and should be within reach of children particularly those children younger than 5 years of age. Use of floaties or other swim devices are not typically recommended as these may give a false sense of security.

Third, playing out doors. If children are playing and active outdoors, remember to have them drink plenty of water and maintain adequate hydration. Remember the use of bug repellents. Bug repellents with DEET are considered the best defense against biting insects. Insect repellents should not be applied to children less than 2 months of age. Other agents, made from essential oils found in plants may also be as effective, but they usually need to be applied more often and more studies are still needed.

This information above was obtained from Healthy Children.org website and if you have specific questions about sun safety, water safety or insect repellents, I’d encourage you to take a look at their website and search for these topics as there are plenty of helpful tips!