Ice Skating

• Allow children to skate only on approved surfaces. Check for signs posted by local police or recreation departments, or call your local police department to find out which areas have been approved.
• Advise your child to: skate in the same direction as the crowd; avoid darting across the ice; never skate alone; not chew gum or eat candy while skating.

Sledding

• Keep sledders away from motor vehicles.
• Children should be supervised.
• Keep young children separated from older children.
• Sledding feet first or sitting up, instead of lying down head-first, may prevent head injuries.
• Use steerable sleds, not snow disks or inner tubes.
• Sleds should be structurally sound and free of sharp edges and splinters, and the steering mechanism should be well lubricated.
• Sled slopes should be free of obstructions like fire hydrants or fences, be covered in snow not ice, not be too steep (slope of less than 30º), and end with a flat runoff.
• Avoid sledding in overcrowded areas.

Snow Skiing and Snowboarding

• Children should be taught to ski or snowboard by a qualified instructor in a program designed for children.
• Never ski or snowboard alone. Young children should always be supervised by an adult. Older children’s need for supervision depends on their maturity and skill.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under age 7 not snowboard.
• Consider wearing a helmet.
• Equipment should fit the child. Skiers should wear safety bindings that are adjusted at least every year. Snowboarders should wear gloves with built-in wrist guards.
• Slopes should fit the ability and experience of the skier or snowboarder. Avoid overcrowded slopes.

Sun Protection

• The sun’s rays can still cause sunburn in the winter, especially when they reflect off snow. Make sure to cover your child’s exposed skin with sunscreen.

Snowmobiling

• The AAP recommends that children under age 16 not operate snowmobiles and that children under age 6 never ride on snowmobiles.
• Do not use a snowmobile to pull a sled or skiers.
• Wear goggles and a safety helmet approved for use on motorized vehicles like motorcycles.
• Travel at safe speeds.
• Never use alcohol or other drugs before or during snowmobiling.
• Never snowmobile alone.
• Stay on marked trails, away from roads, water, railroads and pedestrians.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 27th, 2007 at 6:04 am and is filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.