| Every year, thousands of people in the United States | | | | - Lack of swimming skills |
| suffer from a fatal drowning accident. In 2005, there | | | | - No life preserver |
| were a reported 3,582 unintentional drowning deaths in | | | | - Failure to follow swimming pool rules In general, |
| the US. This number doesn't even include | | | | children and males are more likely to drown than adults |
| boating-related deaths (including drowning), of which | | | | and females. Children most commonly are put at risk |
| there were 710. Given these statistics, it comes as no | | | | when there are not barriers or supervision in place. |
| surprise that this type of accident has been cited as | | | | They often lack the familiarity with the water, strength, |
| one of the top five causes of accidental death in this | | | | and coordination that adults have. Adults, on the other |
| country. | | | | hand, typically drown as a result of the inhibiting effects |
| How do we define drowning? | | | | of alcohol use. |
| Drowning occurs when the lungs are filled with a liquid, | | | | Protect Yourself and Your Children |
| so that the victim cannot breathe or absorb oxygen, | | | | Drowning is almost always preventable. If you take the |
| and therefore subsequently suffocates. Though we | | | | following steps, you can effectively safeguard yourself |
| most commonly associate death with drowning, it does | | | | and your family against dangerous drowning situations: |
| not always result in a fatality. Drowning survivors often | | | | - Know how to swim |
| suffer injuries related to lack of oxygen to the brain, | | | | - Always make sure that children are supervised by |
| which include loss of memory, mental disability, and | | | | an adult when they swim |
| other permanent impairments. | | | | - Never go swimming alone, especially in an open |
| Risk Factors | | | | water setting |
| There are a number of risk factors associated with | | | | - Don't consumer alcohol or other mind-altering drugs |
| drowning: | | | | before swimming |
| - Consumption of alcohol | | | | - Don't rely on floating toys (like noodles) to keep you |
| - Lack of barriers | | | | afloat |
| - Lack of supervision | | | | - Make sound judgments when engaging in water |
| - Fatigue or cramping | | | | activities It is also recommended that adult swimmers - |
| - Medical disorders, such as seizures | | | | in particular, those with children - learn how to |
| - Falling unexpectedly into water | | | | administer CPR in the case of an emergency. |
| - Suffering an injury while in the water | | | | |