Ten Easy Ways to Keep Your Kids Healthy and Safe This Summer

Summer fun is a-coming and frankly nothing could make us happier. We are truly ourselves when the temperatures rise and footwear becomes optional. But we have kids so we know that the number one key to summer fun is keeping everyone out of the ER or sickbay. Here are the best ways to keep your kids healthy and safe to let the summer fun roll–with as few bumps and bruises as possible.

Want to keep your kids and family safe and healthy all summer long? We have 10 easy ideas | Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

1. Teach your kid to be safe around water.

Erin was a swim instructor and lifeguard for seven years. The very best thing you can do for your kids if you plan to even look at water this summer is make sure everyone can swim. Find a reputable place for some lessons and then commit the time and resources to get this one done.

But we have a caveat to this very sage advice: real lessons shouldn’t start until age 4. Swimming lessons are not a replacement for common  sense and they can give a false sense of security. By all means, have your kids take lessons as early and often as you are able, but know this truth: just because your child can swim a little and very young kids can swim, it does not mean they have enough stamina to swim out and then back to safety, a key marker of a competent swimmer.

Keep kids safe near water. This and 9 other tips for  keeping kids healthy and safe this summer--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

Other ESSENTIAL water safety tips:

  • Make a hard and fast rule that no one enters ANY body of water (even backyard kiddie pools) without a buddy. Accidents happen even to great swimmers, even in inches of water.
  • No diving into unknown or shallow water. Period.
  • Teach them what to do when they are caught in a riptide. In this case, what you don’t know could most definitely kill you. The threat is real: on average, more people die from riptides than hurricanes or tornados. Lest we not forget that Anne Hathaway almost drowned in Hawaii last summer after getting caught in a riptide, but kids don’t need to be scared so much as prepared. You will never outswim a riptide, but you can outsmart it.
  • Never leave a swimming child unattended. We both have kids who have spent a season or five on a swim team and would easily qualify as strong swimmers. There is no way we would let any of our kids ever swim unattended. We’ll say it again: accidents happen even to great swimmers, even in inches of water.

2. Be sun safe.

Be sun safe. This and 9 other ideas to keep your kids healthy and safe this summer--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

Barbecued kids are the exact opposite of fun. Unless you want to follow a fantastic day of fun in the sun with a rigid schedule of aloe applications and whining, heed this advice. Invest in copious amounts of sunscreen, purchase hats for everyone, and spend a small fortune on swim shirts if you plan to spend any decent time on a shore (and you should, you really, really should). Everyone knows pasty is the new black, and your kids’ future dermatologists will thank you.

3. Make sure they know their digits.

When Erin’s reformed wild child was younger, she was lost a lot—on beaches, at amusement parks, and in the neighborhood. Those moments when that cute little redhead was out of sight were terrifying and the only thing that tempered Erin’s fear was the knowledge that her daughter was fully prepared to give her parents’ names and phone numbers to any police officer, lifeguard, or kindly adult who found her first. Teach your child your proper full name and phone number. If you have an escape artist who can’t quite speak up yet, these Travel ID Bands are great when you are out and about.

4. Keep them hydrated.

We spend a lot of time hiking with our kids, and we have internalized this truth we stole from scouting: a dehydrated kid is a dead kid. Brains are 80% water, so not drinking enough water doesn’t just make you thirsty, it impairs your judgment. That’s when accidents happen. Make this a family rule: nobody walks anywhere without a water bottle.  Learn to recognize the signs of dehydration and get out of the sun and hydrated as soon as possible.

5. Know the basics of first aid.

Fun doesn’t have a dark underbelly, so much as an inconvenient truth: doing awesome fun stuff sometimes means kids are going to get hurt. Good moms and dads know when a boo-boo needs 911. It also helps to make your family a traveling First Aid Kit and leave it in the minivan for all your on-the-go medical needs.

First aid is a big part of staying safe in the summer. Know when to call 911---Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

Dr. Ellen is never really off duty, even when on vacation.

First Aid can also get crafty. We are big fans of the homemade flexible ice-gel pack. All you need is a half-cup of water and a half-cup of alcohol in a sealable bag. Freeze for 2 hours. You are good to go for all your ice packing needs.

6. Protect them properly.

Make sure your kids are safely outfitted for whatever they are doing. If they are biking, make sure they have helmets that fit. If they are hiking, make sure that they have shoes that fit. Make sure they are properly padded and all equipment is in working order before they hit the surf, sand, or pavement.

7.  Know your local critters.

There’s a story behind that snake bite kit Ellen carries, but it doesn’t hurt to remember that knowing your way around your great outdoors before you wander into it is a smart move.

  • Teach kids to identify some local foliage especially poison ivy, oak, and sumac to avoid spending a small fortune on calamine lotion.
  • But also check to see if your area has any venomous snakes or spiders.
  • It also bears noting that smaller critters can pack a punch. Mosquitos and ticks are notorious suckers of summer fun because of the diseases they carry. Learn to recognize the signs for  West Nile virusRocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Lyme’s disease. Three of Erin’s family members have had Lyme and only one of them presented with the rash. Keep an eye out for flu-like symptoms in summer months and ask for a simple blood test to rule out the possibility.

It’s the wild animal world, and we’re all just traipsing through it. Keep you and yours out of harm’s way by knowing which critters need a little wider berth.

Know your local critters. This and 9 other ideas to keep your kids healthy and safe this summer--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

You never know who might want to share the beach with you.

8. Never leave a kid in a car.

This seems ridiculous to have to say out loud, but every summer we both are astounded by the number of cases we read about in the paper. Never do this. Ever. That is all.

9. Teach the buddy system.

Better than “no man gets left behind”, this is “no man goes it alone.” Kids and adults are safer traveling in twos . . . or fours or a whole herd. In any case, teach your kids to bring a friend not just for the memories and extra fun but for safety’s sake.

Always bring a buddy. This and 9 other ideas to keep your kids healthy and safe this summer--Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

10. Fire up the old library card.

This is for their protection and your sanity. Video games all day is a surefire way to make everyone teeter on the edge of family dysfunction. A trip to the library won’t just engage their minds, but it might inspire projects that will keep them quiet for hours. This should give you a little time to catch up on your own reading, a just reward for all your awesome and safe summer funning.

Have a safe, healthy, and super fun summer!

Erin and Ellen

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