Swimming lessons lower risk of drowning in toddlers

Bethesda, March 2: The long debated issue of enrolling toddlers for swimming lessons has been put to rest. A new study declares that formal training in the sport cuts the risk of death from drowning, thereby quelling the fears of concerned parents.

The author of the study, Dr. Ruth A. Brenner, of the Division of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention Research at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, said, "From our calculation, we are confident that swimming lessons do not increase drowning risk in this age group and is likely to have a protective effect.”

The study, conducted by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, discussed on the association between drowning and swimming lessons. The researchers spoke to the families of 88 children who drowned between 2003 and 2005 and the families of 213 children in the control group who were of the same age, gender and lived in the same county.

Analyzing the data the researchers discovered that only two of the 61 who had drowned (3 percent) in the age group of 1-4 years had taken formal swimming lessons, compared with 35 of the 134 controls (26 percent).

Parents also acknowledged that children who drowned were not good swimmers. Only five per cent were able to float on their back for 10 seconds, in comparison with 18 percent of the controls group.

According to the researchers, the relation between formal training and drowning was not statistically significant among children aged five to 19 years.

The authors reflected: "Previous concerns have been raised about the potential for swimming lessons to increase the risk of drowning, either through increased exposure to water or through decreased parental vigilance as parents become more confident in their child's swimming ability.”

Brenner stated, "In our study, many of the children who drowned, particularly in the older age group, were relatively skilled swimmers. Parents and caregivers who choose to enroll their children in swimming lessons should be cautioned that the most proficient swimmers can drown.”

Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury and death in kids, with nearly 200,000 casualties each year. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages parents to teach their children to swim by 5 years of age to reduce these risks. They feel it is vital for children to understand that panicking in a water incident will only hurt their ability to be safe while retrieving help.

Researchers felt that swimming alone would not prevent drowning, a complete prevention program like securing pool fencing and adult supervision is also essential.

Frederick P. Rivara, of the University of Washington, Seattle, and editor of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine said "This widely anticipated case-control study found that formal swimming lessons were strongly associated with a lower risk of drowning for preschool children aged 1 to 4 years. This is the age group at greatest risk of drowning and for which the idea of swimming lessons has been most controversial."

The study was published in the March issue of Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.