Summer means two things: blazing heat and bored children. But fortunately, swimming pools are there to kill both birds with one stone. The frightening flip side is that since 1999, an average of more than 815 children age 14 and under have died each year from drowning. In fact, drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury-related death in children age 14 and under. And of course, other children suffer lifelong injuries in near-drowning incidents. So cool off safely this summer. Don't let young children swim unsupervised. An adult trained in CPR should never be more than an arm's length away. If your home has a pool, make sure it is fenced on all sides, which will reduce the risk of drowning from unsupervised swimming by more than 80%. And after you are done swimming for the day, remove all pool toys from the area so children won't be tempted to return to the pool unsupervised. Many local organizations offer swimming lessons this time of year and besides increasing your child's safety, adults can always benefit from a refresher course, too. I'm Vanessa Oubre and that's my take. What's yours?
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