It only takes a few seconds for a drowning incident to happen, and sadly, kids are often the victims of drowning. Unfortunately, the danger is greater on holiday with the added exposure to swimming pools, the sea or at lakes or rivers during warmer weather.
But you may not be aware of one simple thing that you can do when you buy your child’s next swimsuit, and it could save their life.
Kids Swimsuits and Water Safety
We are all about water safety here at MyKidsTime, we work with partners such as Water Safety Ireland to bring advice and tips to parents on the topic.
Water-related tragedies happen quickly, silently and sometimes in just inches of water.
Please take a few minutes to read over some of our other water safety resources, it’s only a few minutes of your time but it could save a child’s life.
Then read on to find out a simple tip for when you buy your child’s next swimsuit.
Why Kids Swimsuits Matter For Water Safety
What you may not be aware of is that darker coloured swimsuits are much harder to see in water. Aquatic Safety Connection did some tests and the results are eye opening.
Swim Suit Colour Tests in the Pool:
Swim Suit Colour Tests in a Lake:
Their Facebook page is well worth following as they share lots of good advice and tips.
Why Your Child’s Swimsuit Needs to be Brightly Coloured
When it comes to kids’ swimsuits and water safety, it’s safe to say that the brighter and more contrasting the colour the better.
The colour of the swimsuit could help save their life. Whether it’s at the pool, during swim lessons, on a lake or by a river, the more brightly coloured swim gear is much easier to see at the bottom of the pool or under water.
What to Look For When Buying Your Child’s Next Swimsuit
Opt for buying bright coloured swimgear. Avoid blue, navy, black, or even green swimsuits that could match the colour of the water too closely.
Instead look for lighter and brighter, more contrasting colours to where you plan to swim or be in the water with your child – yellow, coral, pink, hot pink even red swimsuits for your child.
Also be aware that other factors will impact results in different environments. Consider: water colour, bottom of the water colour, visibility, weather, lighting etc.
And do remember that while bright and contrasting colours help visibility, it actually doesn’t matter what colour swimgear your child is wearing if you aren’t actively supervising and watching them.
This is a brilliant graphic by Kristen Cook for ISR Austin:
About the Author: Emily Manning
