All children should learn to swim at an early age. However, there is no consensus as to the optimum age to start; guidelines vary from six months, and sometimes even younger, to four years. In addition, there are health issues to consider regarding placing infants in public pools. ♦ The number of young children taking […]
Children/travel/common mishaps
August 25, 2016 by
When traveling with children safety is no accident, especially when you’re overseas. At home, you intuitively sense hazardous situations. Away from home, you must retrain your brain to be on the lookout for hazards in new surroundings and during unfamiliar activities. 1. When checking into a hotel room, crawl around on your hands and knees. […]
Family Outings/Lightning strikes
August 9, 2016 by
Your family is picnicking in a rural park about a half hour from where you parked your car. A thunderstorm sneaks up on you. What do you do? 1. The risk of being struck by lightning in the US is small: one to two per million people per year. However, this adds up to more […]
Update: Family travel/Overseas/Motor vehicles
July 24, 2016 by
Well-planned family trips to other countries are “surprisingly” safe and healthy, say surveys by travel medicine professionals. If problems do occur, they are more likely to be due to accidents rather than illnesses – even though there is far more information available on keeping kids healthy than on preventing accidents. The leading category of accidents […]
Caution at amusement parks
July 11, 2016 by
Some amusement park rides are not amusing. Every year about 9,000 children under the age of 14 years get an extra ride – to the emergency room. Many more mishaps are treated at first aid stations, by private physicians or by parents. Rides intended for children younger than four years of age account for about […]
4th of July Fireworks Safety
July 1, 2016 by
Watching fireworks is a traditional family activity all over the world and great fun. But setting off fireworks should never be a family activity and is anything but fun for the thousands of people injured each year. Moreover, all fireworks, professional-sponsored ones and the so-called backyard types, are associated with little known hazards that may […]
Should Children Miss School to Visit Disney World?
June 26, 2016 by
Taking children out of school for family vacations is illegal in many (probably most) school districts in the US, Canada, Great Britain and Australia. Most school districts have specific policies regarding absences for reasons other than illness. Some districts allow a limited number of days (usually fewer than four) for such activities – if permission […]
Children getting lost / Prevention / Reuniting
May 25, 2016 by
Do your kids know when to hug a tree? 1. When planning family travel and outdoor activities, include telling young children what to do if they lose sight of you. (Avoid the word “lost;” It seems to scare children.) Generally, young children panic when they don’t see you and realize that they are in an […]
Update: Zika virus/infants and children/travel
February 12, 2016 by
(Last week’s article is repeated at the end of this article. It may be helpful to read that article first.) February 11, 2016. To stay current with the latest on the Zika virus you’ll need to constantly process new and often conflicting reports peppered with words and phrases such as “possibly”, “apparently” and “the latest information […]
Halloween/Children/Health and safety
October 17, 2015 by
For kids, Halloween means trick-or-treating, wearing costumes, carving pumpkins, and listening to scary stories. For pediatricians, Halloween means informing parents that pirate-type baggy costumes can catch fire if children come too close to jack-o’-lanterns lit with candles, that carving pumpkins is not child’s play, and that face paints may cause rashes. 1. Halloween is a […]
