Janet Brooks, Child Advocacy Manager with Primary Children’s Medical Center, has important tips that can make that ride less stressful for you and equally as fun for them.
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SLEDDING SAFETY TIPS
• Always supervise your child while sledding – adult supervision may help avoid overcrowding and collisions.
• Encourage your child to wear a fitted helmet (like those used for skiing and snowboarding).
• Have your child to wear gloves, hats, boots, and warm clothing to protect against frostbite and other injuries.
• Check to make sure there are no obstacles in the sledding path, like trees, rocks, or sticks. Sledding should only be done in open areas.
• Make sure the bottom of the sled hill doesn’t adjoin a road, parking lot, or frozen water.
• Avoid evening sledding, or only sled in areas where there’s adequate lighting, so that collisions can be avoided.
• Buy your child a sled with a steering mechanism.
• Make sure your child always sits facing forward – it’s the safest sledding position.
• Look for energy absorbing pads on sled seats.
• Examine handholds on sleds to be sure they are secure.
• Ensure sleds and toboggans have easy steering, non-jamming device.
• Never ride in a sled that is being pulled by a motorized vehicle.
• Make sure the number of children riding on the sled does not exceed the manufacturer’s recommendations.
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Additional Resources and Links:
www.utahsafekids.org/Safety Tips.html type in “sledding” in search box
www.primarychildrens.org click on KidsHealth and type in “sledding” in search box
Janet Brooks, Child Advocacy Manager
Primary Children’s Medical Center
801-662-6585
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