Diving Into Summertime

May 21, 2008 — -- Making sure kids are safe around the swimming pool is an issue close to Marcia Kerr's heart.

It's been 20 years since Kerr's 2-year-old son drowned in her home's swimming pool, a tragedy that happened while Kerr and her husband were making a living selling safety pool covers.

The pool had just been cleaned and the Kerrs had left off the cover to air out the chemicals.

"Right before we put the cover back on, my son went out the back door, which was not locked," said Kerr, who has spent the last 16 years working as a product safety investigator for the Consumer Products Safety Commission, in part because of the tragedy. "He actually got into the water and drowned."

As families gear up for the Memorial Day weekend, officials, parents and swim instructors are talking about how to make pools safe and healthy for children this summer.

Whether examining the risks for illnesses posed by swimming or assessing the safety of pool products and drains, they're advocating that parents keep a watchful eye on kids and take several steps to prevent both drowning and health hazards.

Gearing up for the holiday weekend, parents should be aware of illnesses and germs that chlorine can't kill.

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released news about the parasite Crypto that lives in pools and water parks. There were more cases of Crypto in 2007 than ever before and the CDC warns that this summer could bring more of the same.

The bottom line is to keep kids clean to prevent Crypto from spreading.

"People need to practice healthy swimming habits, such as not swimming when they have diarrhea, not swallowing the water, taking a shower before swimming, washing their hands after using the toilet or changing diapers, and washing their children thoroughly -- especially their bottoms -- with soap and water before swimming," CDC epidemiologist Michele Hlavsa said in a statement released Monday. "To prevent outbreaks, we encourage pool operators to add supplemental disinfection to conventional chlorination and filtration methods."

Crypto can spread when swimmers accidentally swallow contaminated water in pools, lakes, rivers or oceans. The number of cases of Crypto tripled between 2004 and 2007.