If you have a swimming pool, if your family spends a lot of time around water or if you simply want your infant to have basic water survival skills, you might want to sign him up for swimming lessons. But whether you do lessons or not, following some water safety tips will reduce the chances that your infant will ever need to keep himself afloat.
Lesson Readiness
The American Academy of Pediatrics doesn't recommend formal water safety programs for infants under 1 year old, but new evidence from a March 2009 study in the "Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine" supports the idea that children between ages 1 and 4 might be less likely to drown if they have formal instruction. Your child's emotional development, physical abilities, level of exposure to water and health should inform your decision about whether to enroll her in swimming lessons after age 1. BabyCenter.com says that you can join a parent-and-child swimming class when your infant is about 6 months old, but these classes are more for socialization and encouraging your infant to feel comfortable in the water.
Choosing a Course
Choosing the right class for your tot depends on his developmental level and your reason for enrolling him. A toddler who can follow directions and is physically developed enough to coordinate kicking and paddling simultaneously might be able to take a formal swimming class that teaches him basic strategies such as dog paddling and floating, according to the website WhattoExpect. However, if you determine that he isn't ready, organizations such as the American Red Cross and the YMCA offer swimming-readiness courses that can help him adjust to water and give you safety instructions for the time being.
Pool Protection
Whether or not your infant can swim, she should never be in or around a pool unattended. Keep any pool of water--even small child-sized pools--fenced in to prevent her from falling in and consistently ensure that you close the gate behind you when you exit the pool area. Also make sure the fence has no openings that she could fit through. The fence should self-close and latch higher than your child's reach. Finally, invest in a set of pool rescue equipment, including a life preserver, portable phone and shepherd's hook.
Water Hazards
According to BabyCenter , an infant or toddler can drown in less than an inch of water. As a result, you should watch your young child like a hawk, not only when he is around pools, but whenever he is around any sort of water, including buckets, toilets, bathtubs, sinks and puddles. If possible, remove any water from the area where he is playing.
In an Emergency
Although you probably never will have to perform CPR on your infant, taking an infant and toddler CPR course can serve as extra protection just in case. If you discover that your infant has been under water for so long that she doesn't come up coughing or sputtering, BabyCenter recommends lifting her from the water, carrying her with her head lower than her chest, removing wet clothing and wrapping her in a dry and warm blanket or towel, then calling 911 or heading to the nearest emergency room. If your infant is not conscious or breathing, perform mouth-to-mouth and nose resuscitation, and if she isn't breathing and has no pulse, begin infant CPR.
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