Healthy and Safe Swimming Communications Toolkit

Each day, approximately two children less than 15 years old die from drowning. Drowning is the leading cause of injury-related death for children 1–4 years old.

For more info, visit the Unintentional Drowning: Get the Facts website.

• Make sure everyone has basic swim skills and water safety awareness.
• Use U.S. Coast Guard–approved life jackets as directed.
• Provide continuous, attentive supervision close to swimmers.
• Know how to recognize and respond to a swimmer in distress and how to perform CPR.

Prevent access to water when pool is not in use

• Install and maintain barriers, like 4-sided fencing.
• Use locks/alarms for windows and doors.

Pool chemicals, like chlorine, are needed to protect swimmers’ health. However, mishandling pool chemicals can cause serious injuries. Pool chemical injuries lead to about 4,500 U.S. emergency department visits each year, and over one-third of these preventable injuries are in children or teens.

For more info, visit the Pool Chemical Safety website.

Take the following steps to prevent pool chemical injuries:

• Read and follow all directions on product labels.
• Wear safety equipment—such as masks, gloves, and goggles—when handling chemicals.
• Keep chemicals secure and away from children and pets.

Prevent violent, potentially explosive, reactions:

• NEVER mix different pool chemicals with each other, particularly chlorine products and acid.
• Pre-dissolve pool chemicals ONLY when directed by product label.
• Add pool chemical to water, NEVER water to pool chemical.

Order FREE printed and laminated poster on safe storage and poster on safe use at the  CDC-INFO On Demand website.

During 2000–2014, nearly 500 outbreaks were linked to pools, hot tubs/spas, and water playgrounds. Most of the outbreaks were caused by the germs Cryptosporidium (or “Crypto”), Legionella, or Pseudomonas.

These germs can make swimmers sick if they swallow just a mouthful of contaminated water. Although most germs are killed within minutes by chlorine or bromine at the recommended levels, Crypto is a germ that can survive in properly treated water for more than 7 days.

For more info, visit the Healthy Swimming website.

Check the disinfectant (chlorine or bromine) level and pH at least twice per day (and more often when the pool is in heavy use).

• Make sure disinfectant (chlorine or bromine) level and pH are correct.
  • 1–10 parts per million (ppm) free chlorine or 3–8 ppm bromine
  • pH 7.2–7.8

Everyone

Before getting in:

• Don’t swim or let others swim if sick with diarrhea.
• Shower for at least 1 minute before you get into the water to remove dirt or anything else on your body.
  • Chlorine mixed with dirt, sweat, pee, and poop creates chemicals that make swimmers’ eyes red and sting. When chlorine mixes with dirt, sweat, pee, and poop, there is less chlorine available to kill germs.

Once you are in:

• Don’t swallow the water.
• Don’t pee or poop in the water.
• Take kids on bathroom breaks and check diapers every hour. Change diapers away from the poolside to keep germs from getting in the water.
• Dry ears thoroughly with a towel after swimming.

Healthy swimming information

• Visit the Health Promotion Materials page.