This Water Safety Tip From A Swim Instructor Has People Divided
Some found it helpful... others were critical.
Spring break is here! And if you’re traveling somewhere warm, you might want to brush up on your swim safety, especially when it comes to kids. We know that there are certain swimsuit colors kids should avoid and what flotation devices should go in the garbage, but did you know there might be a better way to wrap your kid in a towel when they get out of the pool?
Nikki Scarnati, a Certified Self-Rescue Swim Instructor who uses her TikTok account to share swim safety tips, offered up some advice for parents about swim towel ettiquite. While the tip seems to make sense, some people were pressed in the comments.
“I'm gonna show you a proper way to put your towel around your child...So, when you get your children out of the pool, naturally we want to cover them like this, right?” she says while demonstrating the standard way we all cover our kids after pool time — wrapping them up like a burrito.
Apparently, this could be a risky way to dry off wet kids.
“If they were to fall in the pool this way, all of their limbs are gonna be restricted underneath a wet towel,” she explained.
“So, when you get them out of the pool, dry their arms off, lift your arms up, but put the towel underneath their arms. That way, if they end up in the water, they still have access to their limbs to self-rescue, and they’re that much safer.”
After her video went viral, several commentators took issue with Scarnati’s swim safety tip.
“This is silly. When kids get out and are wrapped up in a towel, they’re sitting down. Whose up and running with their arms wrapped up anyway???” one user questioned.
“Not realistic though. They’re cold and it won’t stay on this way,” another said.
The OP replied, “That’s not true. You can wrap it and tuck it in the back like you would a shower towel.”
However, some saw the point of this kind of tip, and it’s not just to help prevent drowning.
“Also in case they're walking and trip and fall. hands to catch them instead of their face,” one user said.
Another shared, “I can confirm this is true. When I was 2 I fell into the deep end of a rec pool with my towel on around my arms, and I had to be rescued.” Doesn’t hurt to take this into account when at the pool this summer!
