We all know the dangers and fun of mixing children and water and yet children continue to drown. In fact, in 1998 greater than 1500 children drowned in the USA. 93% of these were accidental and non-boating drownings. Researchers wanted to know where children drown in an effort to better plan prevention.

They found that:

Domestic sites -- 9% of total deaths, greatest risk for infant deaths (tubs, buckets)

Fresh water -- (rivers, streams, lakes, creeks, ponds) 47% total deaths, greatest risk for children 5 to 19 years old

Pools -- 32% total deaths, greatest risk for toddler deaths

Salt water -- 4% total deaths

Other information also came out of this study:

1. Infants (16%) and toddler still drown in buckets despite warnings. They are top heavy and can not right themselves once fallen. They then drown in as little as 2 inches of water.
2. Black adolescent boys were 12-15 times more likely to drown in swimming pools than other racial groups. Surveys published in 1977 and 1994 revealed 62% of blacks self-reported limited swimming ability.

The topic of child deaths is always difficult. No one anticipates a day of fun will end in tears when drowning is involved. I don't think this study was a surprise, but it does hit home that there are certain areas that our children need more parental attention. It also helps us watch certain age groups more closely in certain types of water.

Since the institution of water babies and water safety for preschoolers, drownings have not gone down. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children not take swimming lessons until after age 5 for this reason (okay, I don't agree with the AAP's stand on human embryo research, but I do agree with their swimming recs.). Children under this age are not physically ready for its rigors, and parents get a false sense of security when toddlers swim. The truth is even if your child knows how to swim, s/he should not do it unattended -- at any age. Only fish have gills, so if there is a chance your child could go under water you need to be there to pull them up, as in a tub, or put on a floatation device to keep them up, as in larger bodies of water. It only takes one breath, literally several seconds, for drowning to happen once your child's head is under water.

There is another area in which children drown that this study did not comment. I am referring to cultural pools. These bodies of water are even more dangerous than real water in that they can strip a person of their souls if they are not careful. Am I being melodramatic? Yes, a little I suppose; however, I am serious when I say that we must be careful when teach our children to swim in lakes and rivers, but let them drown in our culture.

We take more caution sometimes checking out a swimming pool and life guards than we do questioning what content a movie or song has. We dismiss the effects of violent, sexual, or immoral content on our children's developing brains (by children, I refer to those birth to 100 year old), and then wonder why our society is full of "out of control teens," gang warfare, and disintegrating families.

We are specifically cautioned by God to guard our thoughts, take every thought captive, let no evil come before our eyes, think on what is pure, good report, and noble, etc, etc… The Bible is full such cautions for a reason. Even though we have to legs for locomotion, we don't always swim well. Plain truth is it is easy for us to get in over our heads and we don't readily ask for help.

Dr. Jane