Seven Things Parents Must Know About Swimming

  1. 1. Learn to swim yourself. Parents who don't swim or don't know how to swim often raise kids who can't swim. Make it a family activity. Kids do as we do, not as much as we say.
  2. 2. The Power of the Shower. Don’t mistake this for the bath! Shower your child often and make it fun. The more water on the hair and face, the better. The shower is the most underutilized swimming aid in the world. Parents just don't think to use it and it will work wonders for your child's swimming progress.
  3. 3. For children under three years old, group lessons are better than privates. Group lessons will do more for your child's intellectual and social development than privates. Not only do they cost less, but your child will have the benefit of more social and intellectual interaction. Children at this age learn through music and song, which is challenging to incorporate into private lessons.
  4. 4. Familiarize yourself with the Griffith study. Children who are swimming at an early age are reaching key
    learning milestones up to 15 months earlier than their non-swimming peers. You can see the videos and study results on our website at SwimmingLA.com. We have an entire page devoted to the Intellectual Benefits of Early Age Swimming.
  5. 5. Secondary Drowning (or Dry Drowning) is extremely rare. Dr. Larry Kagan of Westside Pediatrics: “That’s the problem with Dr. Google. People have access to so much information that they scare themselves. These things are actually so rare that it’s not even worth worrying about. The likelihood of this happening is super, super low. With that said, always consult a doctor after a near drowning event.” WebMD: “Dry drowning and secondary drowning are not common. Both probably amount to only 1%-2% of drownings.”
  6. 6. Saltwater pools do contain chlorine. Saltwater chlorination is a process that uses dissolved salt as a store for the chlorination system. The chlorinator uses electrolysis to break down the salt (NaCl). The resulting chemical reaction eventually produces hypochlorous acid (HCIO), and sodium hypochlorite (NaClO), which are the sanitizing agents already commonly used in swimming pools. As such, a saltwater pool is not actually chlorinefree; it simply utilizes a chlorine generator instead of direct addition of chlorine. Saltwater pools lack chloramines, referred to as combined chlorine. Chloramines are the irritants which give traditional pools the stigma of burning eyes and caustic smell.
  7. 7. There is no such thing as a watersafe child! No matter how confident you think your child is in the pool, they still need constant supervision at any age.