Water Safety: Stay safe with AHS' summer tips

EDMONTON – Alberta Health Services (AHS) wants Albertans to stay safe while enjoying the province’s lakes and rivers this summer. Following these safety tips will help you avoid serious injury and illness during recreational water activities.

There is always a risk of injury when swimming, especially in unmonitored bodies of water. Here are a few ways you can prevent water-related injuries and illness:

• Wear a proper fitting Canadian-approved life-jacket or Personal Flotation Device (PFD) in a boat, kayak, canoe or other water sports and make sure it fits.
• Make sure young children wear lifejackets when they are in, on, or around the water and be aware of fast-moving water. Stay right beside your child.
• Swim with others when there is no lifeguard present.
• Avoid alcohol, cannabis and any other substance that may affect your judgment before and during water activities.

Lakes, rivers and streams may contain illness-causing microorganisms.

• Check for recreational water advisories or look for posted advisory signs at public beaches. Not all beaches are monitored for biological, chemical, and physical hazards.
• Do not swim or wade and keep pets out of water in areas where cyanobacterial (blue-green algae) blooms are visible.
• Never drink or cook with untreated water directly from any lake or reservoir, at any time. Water-borne organisms, including fecal bacteria, can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

Swimmer's itch is a rash caused by an allergic reaction to the larvae of certain parasites. The parasites can get under your skin when you swim in lakes, ponds, creeks, streams and rivers. You can't get swimmer's itch from swimming pools that are treated with chlorine.

• Shower and dry yourself off with a towel as soon as you leave the water.
• Stay away from swimming areas that have weeds. Do not wade or swim in those areas.

Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Our mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans. Our current focus is on reducing emergency department wait-times, improving EMS response times, increasing access to surgeries, and improving patient flow.