A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine 
National Institutes of Health
Water Safety (Recreational)
Playing in the water - whether swimming, boating or diving - can be fun. It can also be dangerous, especially for children. Being safe can help prevent injuries and drowning. To stay safe in the water
- Avoid alcohol when swimming or boating
- Wear a life jacket whenever you're in a boat
- Don't swim alone, or in bad weather
- Learn CPR
- Learn to swim and teach your children to swim
- Supervise your children when they are in the water
- Prevent sunburns, use plenty of sunscreen
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Start Here
- Summer Water Safety Guide(American Red Cross) - PDF
- Water Safety(Nemours Foundation)
- Also available in Spanish
The top row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Basics
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Learn More
, and
Multimedia & Cool Tools
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For group Basics
For group Learn More
For group Multimedia & Cool Tools
The bottom row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Research
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Reference Shelf
, and
For You
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For group Research
For group Reference Shelf
For group For You
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Overviews
- Healthy Swimming/Recreational Water(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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Specific Conditions
- Diving Medicine: Frequently Asked Questions(Divers Alert Network)
- Life Jacket Wear / Wearing Your Life Jacket(U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety)
- Pool and Spa Safety Publications(Consumer Product Safety Commission)
- Rip Currents: Break the Grip of the Rip!(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
- Scuba Diving Safety(American Academy of Family Physicians)
- Also available in Spanish
- Water Safety and Swimming Lessons for Children(American Medical Association) - PDF
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Water Safety For Familes With Children With Special Needs
(Safe Kids Worldwide)
- Where Is It Safe to Swim?(American Red Cross) - PDF
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Related Issues
- "Hot Tub Rash" and "Swimmer's Ear" (Pseudomonas)(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
- "Swimmer's Ear" (Otitis Externa)(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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Barotrauma(InteliHealth, Harvard Medical School)
- Beaches: Dos and Dont's(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Boating under the Influence(U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety)
- Carbon Monoxide (and Recreational Boats)(U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety)
- Cercarial Dermatitis (Swimmer's Itch) FAQs(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Diarrhea and Swimming(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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Health Check Tools
- Pool Safety: Safety Steps for Kids & Parents(Consumer Product Safety Commission)
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
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Directories
- Beach Advisory and Closing On-line Notification(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water)
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Organizations
- American College of Emergency Physicians
- Divers Alert Network
- National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety
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Statistics
- Boating Accident Statistics(U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Boating Safety) - PDF
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Children
- Beach Kids!(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Children's Swimming: Keep Health Risks at Bay(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Life Jackets and Life Preservers(American Academy of Pediatrics)
- Swimming(Nemours Foundation)
- Water Safety and Young Children(American Academy of Pediatrics)
- Water Safety for Older Children(American Academy of Pediatrics)
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Teenagers
- Water Safety(Nemours Foundation)
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Patient Handouts
- "Hot Tub Rash" and "Swimmer's Ear" (Pseudomonas)(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
- Where Is It Safe to Swim?(American Red Cross) - PDF
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