Diving, Swimming and Boating
Each year people drown while swimming, boating, or playing in the water. As many as half of all drownings take place during the months of June, July and August. To prevent serious injuries such as drowning, be sure to:

• supervise young children when in the tub, swimming pool, or lake
• make sure there are no dangerous objects under the water and that it is deep enough for diving
• teach your children to swim
• never drink alcoholic beverages when swimming, diving or boating
• learn CPR
• always wear life preservers when boating, even if you can swim
• never swim alone
• enclose home pools with a fence

Camping/Outdoors

• always bring a first aid kit
• be cautious when exploring, chopping wood, or building fires
• wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants and use insect repellent to avoid insect bites

Insect Bites

• avoid perfumes, bright colored clothing, and food, in areas with bees since this attracts them
• check for ticks, chiggers, etc. every day
• wear insect repellent, long sleeved clothing, and perhaps a headnet
• if you spot an insect or a tick, gently remove with tweezers and swab the bite with rubbing alcohol. Remember that tick bites can cause Lyme disease or Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Both of these diseases must be treated by a physician.

Symptoms of Lyme disease:

• a bulls-eye shaped rash 5-20 inches in diameter. It is white in the center and bright red on the outside.
• flu-like symptoms, a feeling of weakness or discomfort, sore throat, dry cough, stiff neck, swollen glands, and photosensitivity.

Symptoms of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever will usually appear seven to ten days after the bite and include headache, fever, and rash on hands and feet.

Whether your favorite outdoor activity is swimming, sailing, or simply relaxing in the sun, you probably enjoy longer days and warmer weather. Unfortunately, the number or unintentional injuries increases so much during the summer months that the period from Memorial Day through Labor Day is often called "trauma season."

Sun Tips

• Wear a hat, light colored clothing, and a water proof sunscreen with a ''sun protection factor''-or SPF- of 15 or more, which will protect most skin types. It is especially important to take these precautions between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. when the sun is strongest.
• If you become overheated, sit in the shade and try to keep your skin cool and moist.
• Check with your doctor before sunbathing if you take any prescription drugs. Some medicines can increase your risk of sunburn, or interact with the sun to cause rashes or other side effects. Remember that once skin is sunburned it is more sensitive to further exposure.
• When participating in outdoor activities, drink enough water or other liquids to avoid dehydration. Avoid alcoholic beverages.

Biking

Approximately 1,000 children under age 16 die in bike accidents each year and more that 75 percent of bike-related deaths and one-third of all treated bike injuries involve head injuries.

• Always wear a bike helmet.
• Drive on the right with traffic.
• Avoid riding at night, but if you must then wear brightly colored or reflective clothing.
• Make sure your bike is the correct size. You should be able to straddle the bike with both feet on the ground.
• Young children should use coaster brakes—the kind that brake when you pedal backwards. Before using handbrakes, hands should be large enough and strong enough to use the levers.