National Drowning Prevention Alliance
End The Misinformation
Dear Friends,
At the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, part of our vision is to end childhood drowning - the single leading cause of death among children ages one to four.
One major challenge we face is the misleading and inaccurate information used to market and sell children's flotation devices commonly used by millions of parents.
Some examples of these inaccuracies include:
- "learn to swim easily"
- "parents can finally enjoy peace of mind"
- "increase their confidence in water"
This product messaging is misleading at best - deadly at worst.
As a result of this language, many parents find themselves misusing the product and developing a false sense of confidence and security when it comes to their child's aquatic ability and safety.
Example:
We need your help to "End The Misinformation" and save children's lives!
We encourage you to take a moment to hear directly from Nicole Hughes as she bravely shares her personal story. Nicole lost her 3-year old son, Levi, in a tragic drowning accident which followed a day of playing in the pool while wearing a flotation device. Her story is incredibly powerful, and tragically, much too common.
There has never been a study to show that the use of flotation devices help children learn to swim as these misleading messages claim. And while flotation devices may have a place when used appropriately under the close supervision of an adult - their use and efficacy must be studied and proven before such claims can be made. If you share our vision to end childhood drowning, we ask that you please sign our "End The Misinformation" letter that we will be bringing to the retail industry to call attention to and address misleading marketing claims.
If you are a parent who has been impacted by a child drowning, we invite you to share your story to help shed light on this issue.
Please know we are not asking for, or encouraging public shaming of any retailers or manufacturers via social media or otherwise. We believe they – like many of us – have been unaware of this issue. Instead, we aim to gather as many voices and signatures as possible to create an incredible groundswell of support to help ensure that no parent or child is misled by this language.
Together with urgency and purpose, we can create change.
Thank you for your courage and support,
Adam Katchmarchi, Ph.D.
Executive Director
National Drowning Prevention Alliance
Benjamin Hoffman, M.D.
Chief Medical Advisor
National Drowning Prevention Alliance