Just When You Thought It Was Safe - Big Y® World Class Market®

The latest tips to keep you and your family safe and sound all summer long.

It’s a beautiful day and you and your family are just raring to go outside and soak up the summertime fun. But as summer arrives, so do many hazards that can put you and your family at risk. Enjoy the outdoors while playing it safe this summer with these simple summer safety tips.

• It's the Little Things That Can Get You

Your family may enjoy hiking through the woods, but one thing you need to watch out for is deer ticks. They live in wooded areas and can be about the size of a pinhead. Their bite can infect you with Lyme disease — a nasty infection that causes flu-like symptoms, including nausea, headache, stiff neck and muscle and joint pain. To avoid bites, use insect repellent containing DEET and wear tightly woven, lightly colored, long-sleeved shirts and pants and pull your socks up over your pant cuffs when in heavily wooded areas. If you see a tick on your child, don’t panic. Use fine-tipped tweezers and grasp the tick close to the skin, then pull steadily upward and away from the skin. Avoid crushing the body, and don’t worry if the mouthparts remain embedded. Clean the area with soap and warm water or alcohol.

• Use Your Head - And Protect It

Summertime is bike-riding time. And along with the fun comes the potential for injury.

At some time or another most kids will take a spill from their two-wheeler. Although most of these accidents cause minor scrapes or bruises, a bad fall can cause severe injury if your child is not wearing a bicycle helmet. The best bet? Insist that your child wears a bicycle helmet any time and anywhere he rides. And to bring the point home, set a good example by wearing one yourself. It can make the difference between a few tears and a very serious injury.

• Leaves to Leave Alone

Those beautiful roadsides, woodlands and parks you visit this summer may be harboring a most annoying nuisance — poison ivy and poison oak. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the appearance of these leaves before heading out. With just one touch, a red, raised, itchy rash may appear. Make sure not to touch any other part of your body to avoid spreading the oily resins that cause the rash. Instead, treat the exposed area immediately with rubbing alcohol, then wash skin with water. If a rash does develop, soak in bath water mixed with baking soda or oatmeal packets to help reduce itching.

• Keep a Clean Ear

Swimming is always a popular summer pastime, but it has its own host of safety hazards (see our sidebar). Getting water in your ears is just one of them. This can cause swimmer’s ear — a painful inflammation of the ear canal. Fight back. Have your kids wear ear plugs when they swim.

If water does get into their ears, simply place a few drops of rubbing alcohol in the canal to dry them out, then tip the head to drain.

• Don't Dry Out

One of the most common summer safety concerns is dehydration. During hot, sunny days spent playing outside, it’s easy for kids to forget to take a break for a little thirst-quenching. In fact, by the time they feel thirsty, they are already mildly dehydrated! Kids’ bodies don’t release heat as efficiently as adults’ bodies do, and a mild case of dehydration left unchecked can lead to a more serious case of heat stroke (and a trip to the hospital). Your solution? Make them pause their play every half hour or so for a quick gulp of water, juice or sports drink.

Keeping an eye out for common summertime injuries and ailments will help you prevent them.

And keeping it safe will keep your whole summer filled with nothing but fun.

• Swimming Safety

Quick Guidelines to Enjoy One of Summer’s Favorite Pastimes — Safely

On summer’s hot days, it’s always great fun to cool down with a swim. But whether you’re at the pool or at the beach, it’s important to be aware of the specific safety hazards involved. It’s easy to keep your family swimming safely with just a few precautions.

Keep Them Close
No matter how confident you are in their swimming skills, be vigilant about watching your children while they are in the water. Young children can drown in as little as two inches of water — so even if you are in the shallow end or the wading pool, keep them under constant supervision. Don’t back down if older kids feel like you are being overprotective of them. Seek out good flotation devices, like government-approved swim vests — many favorites, like water wings (the inflatable rings that fit over a child’s arms), are not effective protection against water accidents.

Once you know the basics, there are simple guidelines for both the beach and the pool that you can follow to make sure that everyone has a safe, fun time while swimming.

At the Pool:

• Don’t let kids run around the edges of the pool. It’s too easy to slip, get hurt and fall in.

• Explain to older kids that it’s never a good idea to dunk people or try to throw them in the pool. Horseplay like that is certainly tempting and may seem like a lot of fun, but it’s too dangerous — and it’s a fast way to destroy a marginal swimmer’s confidence in the water.

• It is extremely dangerous to dive in areas that are too shallow. Point out to your children the sections of the pool that are markeddeep enough to dive.

• Make sure that kids know how to get a lifeguard and an adult if there is an accident.

At the Beach:

• Never let children swim alone in open waters or areas that are not clearly marked safe for swimming. Sudden changes in water conditions could make a calm swimming area unexpectedly rough and dangerous.

• Make sure your child wears protective footgear (like aqua socks). Lakes and ponds can have glass, jagged rocks or even trash on their bottoms.

• If there are pilings or piers nearby, don’t let kids swim near them. A wave could cause them to collide!

• It’s especially important to pay attention to currents and tides. Teach kids not to stand with their backs to the water — a sudden wave could knock them over. And if they find themselves caught in a current or undertow, they should swim parallel to the shore or tread water and call for help until someone reaches them.