When it comes to your kids, you don’t want to do anything that puts them in harms way. But we often don’t think about how dangerous playground equipment can be. While you want to let them have fun and be a child, it’s important to take steps to prevent injury. So here’s a few tips for preventing playground equipment injuries.
Playground Equipment Injuries: Tips for Safe Playdates
Check the Chains
One of the most common playground equipment injuries comes from swing sets. In many cases, swings are hanging by broken or defective chains. Before putting your child in the swing, check to make sure the chains are in good shape. If they appear old or rusty, you should avoid this swing. Too often these chains break due to the weight of the child swinging. Then your child can face serious injuries in the fall.
Be Aware of Heights
In many cases, playgrounds extend to fairly tall heights. Some may sit roughly ten or more feet from the ground. As you can imagine, falling from that height could do serious damage to your child. So make sure raised areas have proper guardrails and protection. Even as kids get older, they often run through playgrounds paying little attention to where they’re going. Without secure railings and guards, kids can fall from these heights causing serious playground equipment injuries.
Gage Your Child’s Size and Age
When you take your child to a park or playground, try to find one that is age and size appropriate. In some cases, your child may be too small or young to play on certain equipment. Or the equipment is not toddler friendly. When this is the cases, small children may slip through equipment and suffer one of the common playgroup equipment injuries. In addition, they may also become stuck in the equipment. So check to make sure your child can fit through all spaces, that there’s place for them to slip through, before letting them play.
A lot of playground equipment injuries can happen quickly and are very scary. One minute your child is laughing and playing and the next, they are crying in pain. You want to do everything you can to prevent this so make sure to check out potential hazards before letting your kid play.