by Heidi Green
December 05, 2010

A recent study of emergency room records found that about 20,000 children are treated in the hospital each year due to sledding-related injuries. As the study’s lead researcher, pediatrician Lara McKenzie points out, “Twenty thousand injuries a year for an activity you can only do a couple days a year is big.” Winter can be a wonderland but it can also increase risk for injury and illness.

That 20,000 is just the tip of the iceberg. The study didn’t count injuries for which children weren’t taken to the emergency room. It also looked only at sledding, and didn’t include other winter activities, such as ice skating, skiing, snowboarding, or navigating your icy driveway.

But don’t hang up the scarves just yet! Here are 10 tips to help ensure your family stays safe while enjoying the snow this winter:

1. Dress for the cold. Children should wear layers. Several thin layers will help them stay warm and dry. A general rule of thumb for older babies and young children is to dress them in one more layer of clothing than you would choose for yourself. Choose clothing that keeps children snug, but don’t have it so tight that it is restrictive. Fabric-wise, wool or certain synthetic materials are warmer choices than cotton, which performs especially poor when wet. Avoid drawstrings and tuck in scarves to help eliminate entanglement.

2. Check the area. Do a quick safety assessment of the area before engaging in your activity. For example, if your children are going sledding, check to make sure the area is free from roadways and obstacles such as trees, fences, buildings, and other structures. Choose sites that are not overly crowded. For skating, allow children only on surfaces that have been approved by local police or recreation departments; thin ice is a very real danger.

3. Wear safety gear, including helmets. Helmets matter; more than one-third of the sledding injuries treated in emergency rooms each year are head injuries. Make sure safety gear fits well and is activity-appropriate and approved. (Since children look to adults as role models, make sure you’re wearing safety gear, too!)

4. Use safe equipment. Make sure children can see over and around their equipment, and opt for steerable sleds. Snow tubes and snow disks have been found to be particularly dangerous types of sleds.

5. Consider professional lessons. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that children learn winter sports like skiing, skating, and snowboarding from qualified instructors in programs designed for children’s abilities. (According to the AAP, children under the age of 7 should not snowboard.)

6. Take turns. Many injuries occur through collisions. Slopes or surfaces that are over-crowded are risky for everyone. Make sure your children know to share the fun and take turns. When skating, make sure they know to go with the flow of skaters and avoid darting across the ice. When sledding or snowboarding, teach them to quickly move to the side and out of the way after each run. Also, unless the sled they’re riding was made for two people, skip riding partners. The more children there are on one sled, the more likely it is that someone will get thrown off, bumped, or worse.

7. Consider adult supervision, or use the buddy system. Young children should always have a parent or other adult present; older children may be safe with a friend. If something does go wrong, you will want someone capable present to assess the situation and get help.

8. Keep your head clear. Don’t allow your children to dig tunnels or snow forts that may collapse on them. Walls or barricades that children build up are much safer than “burrow-style” constructions.

9. Remember your sunscreen. Sunburns don’t stop with the end of summer. Winter’s snow can reflect the sun’s rays, so make sure you cover any exposed skin with sunscreen, especially on the ski slopes.

10. Watch the time. Children should not play outside for too long; set reasonable limits, and bring them inside periodically to warm up. A break is a good chance to make sure they’re drinking plenty of fluids, too!

In addition to injury, other risks to children playing outside in the wintertime are hypothermia and frostbite. Know the symptoms—including lethargy, clumsiness, slurred speech, changes in skin color, and numbness—so you can spot them in your child.

Additional winter safety tips are available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Staying active during the winter is an important part of good health so, by all means, enjoy the snow. Just be safe when you do!

Heidi Green has been researching and writing about women’s and children health since she moved to Pittsburgh more than 10 years ago. She is also a children’s book reviewer in her spare time. She is mom to Ben, Katie, Sam, and Max.