Water Safety (Recreational)

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Latest News

Learn More

• Related Issues

See, Play and Learn

• Health Check Tools

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Playing in the water - whether swimming, boating or diving - can be fun. It can also be dangerous, especially for children. Being safe can help prevent injuries and drowning. To stay safe in the water

• Avoid alcohol when swimming or boating
• Wear a life jacket whenever you're in a boat
• Don't swim alone, or in bad weather
• Learn CPR
• Learn to swim and teach your children to swim
• Supervise your children when they are in the water
• Prevent sunburns - use plenty of sunscreen

Start Here

• Healthy Swimming/Recreational Water (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Summer Water Safety Guide (American Red Cross) - PDF
• Water Safety (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Latest News

• Shield Yourself from 'Swimmer's Ear' (07/08/2017, HealthDay)
• Swimming Lessons: for Starters, Watch Out for Germs in The Water (07/05/2017, HealthDay)
• Guard Against This Little-Known Swimming Danger (06/08/2017, HealthDay)
• More News on Water Safety (Recreational)

Related Issues

• "Swimmer's Ear" (Otitis Externa) Prevention (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Cercarial Dermatitis (Swimmer's Itch) FAQs (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Diarrhea and Swimming (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Diving Medicine: Frequently Asked Questions (Divers Alert Network)
• Hot Tub Rash (Pseudomonas Dermatitis/Folliculitis) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• I've Been Stung: What Should I Do? (Divers Alert Network)
• Leptospirosis Risk in Outdoor Activities (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Risky Drinking Can Put a Chill on Your Summer Fun (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism)
• Scuba Diving Safety (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Swimming Pools and Molluscum Contagiosum (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Health Check Tools

• Water Safety Quiz (American Red Cross)

Statistics and Research

• CDC Study Finds Fecal Contamination in Pools (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Inhalational Chlorine Injuries at Public Aquatic Venues - California, 2008-2015.
• Article: Toward a better guard of coastal water safety-Microbial distribution in...
• Article: Fatal Drownings in Fiji.
• Water Safety (Recreational) -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• American College of Emergency Physicians
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish

Children

• Swimming (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Swimming Pool Safety (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Water Safety (Nemours Foundation)

Patient Handouts

• "Hot Tub Rash" and "Swimmer's Ear" (Pseudomonas) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF Also in Spanish