May is National Water Safety Month
There is a list of basic life skills all parents instinctively know they must teach their children to keep them safe and healthy. It includes habits like looking both ways before crossing the street, washing your hands with soap and water and eating the right amount of fruits and vegetables every day.
For too many parents, safety in and around water is not on the list; and that’s something we need to change. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death in children ages 1-4 nationwide it’s the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14. According to the USA Swimming Foundation study in 2017, Florida leads the nation as the state with the most child drownings in 2017.
The problem is particularly acute among minority communities. For example, African American children ages 5 to 14 are three times more likely to drown than their white counterparts. The disparity is partly due to the lack of swimming experience among these children.
According to the same national research study conducted by the USA Swimming Foundation along with the University of Memphis and University of Nevada-Las Vegas, 64 percent of African American children and cannot swim, compared to 45 percent of Hispanic children and 40 percent of Caucasian children. Additionally, 79 percent of children in families with household income less than $50,000 have no/low swimming ability.
The Y is committed to reducing water-related injuries, particularly in communities where children are most at risk. During National Water Safety Month, the Y offers Safety Around Water, a program to engage parents about the importance of water safety skills and provide more children access to water safety lessons.
To learn more about the YMCA of the Suncoast’s Safety Around Water program and all swim lesson programming, please visit www.ymcasuncoast.org/swimming.