The Most Common Childhood Injuries and How to Avoid Them

Childhood seems like one of life’s great periods. You have no responsibilities or very few. You might worry you’ll flunk a test in math class, but you must pay no bills or income taxes.

As a child, your parents can watch over you. They may have watchful eyes, but they can’t protect you every moment of every day. If you go outside and play, you may face certain dangers. Perhaps your parents warn you, but they’re still out there lurking.

Let’s talk about some injuries that sometimes impact children. Parents can stay alert, and if these situations occur, they can leap into action.

Car Accident Injuries

Kids might play in the front yard or backyard. When they do, they might have a bat and a softball, or maybe they have a frisbee they’re tossing around. Perhaps they have a soccer ball, or they’re throwing a football around and pretending they’re Aaron Rodgers or Dak Prescott.

If a child runs into the street, a car might hit them. They might sustain some bumps and bruises, or maybe some more serious injuries occur. Parents can file personal injury claims on behalf of their children if the car drove over the speed limit or the driver used their smartphone while driving and never saw the child.

In these moments, though, the parents probably don’t have a lawsuit in mind. They must rush the child to the emergency room so a doctor can look them over.

Putting up a fence around the front yard and the backyard can stop these incidents. Parents can also sit on the porch and watch their kids when they’re still young.

When they’re a little older, the parents can warn them they must look both ways before crossing the street. They must watch out for traffic, especially if they live on a busy road.

Poison Ivy

If a child has some tangled growth behind their house, or they have some woods nearby, they might have some poison ivy near them. Their parents might teach them the old rhyme, “leaves of three, let it be.” Poison ivy has three leaves, making it easily identifiable.

Kids who grow up in more rural settings can probably identify poison ivy fairly easily, but if they can’t, their parents can get them a book, and they can study the pictures together. They can also easily find pictures online these days just by Googling “poison ivy” and looking at the images.

When a child does touch some poison ivy, the parent can get an over-the-counter cream that contains cortisone. The child won’t like the painful burning and itching feeling very much, but it’s seldom dangerous.

After a few days, the adult can apply creams containing menthol or calamine lotion. The child can also take an oral antihistamine like Benadryl. That should help them sleep till the worst sensations pass.

Bee Stings

Bee stings don’t feel too good, and bees sting kids fairly frequently. Maybe you have some woods near your house where the kids play. They may find a beehive and torment the bees till they attack. Parents must tell their children to leave bee hives alone if they ever find one.

A solitary bee might also sting a child if they encounter one flying around in the yard, pollinating the flowers. Maybe the child antagonized the bee, but they might also accidentally step on one in bare feet. 

That situation can cause a sting, and the child will feel some serious pain for a little while.

It is seldom dangerous unless the child has a bee sting allergy. Some do, and if they have an adverse reaction, the family must call 911 or get the child into an emergency room immediately.

A hornet or wasp might also sting a child. If this happens, the child can clean the area with water and soap. They can place ice on the site for 10 minutes and get the swelling down.

Dog Bites

Dog bites also happen with kids fairly often. A vicious dog in the neighborhood might attack a child when they wouldn’t act so aggressively with an adult. Kids present smaller targets, and if they run, that might trigger the dog’s instincts. They might chase after and bite the child, especially if they feel territorial.

The family can take the child and get an emergency room doctor’s aid. The doctor can clean and dress the wound. They can put on antibacterial ointment. The child may also need a tetanus shot. If they have had one recently, they can probably skip this step.  

Snake Bites

Some kids love playing in parks. There, they might find creeks or dried-up watercourses. They can find snakes living there, and the kids might try catching them. When that happens, they risk a snakebite.

Snakebites sometimes cause very little harm. A nonvenomous snakebite might hurt, and the parents must wash off the wound with soap and water, apply some antiseptic ointment, and put on a bandage. They might think the snake has venom in its fangs, though, and if so, they must get the child immediate medical attention.

Copperheads live in several US states, and rattlesnakes do as well. Their bite doesn’t often kill, but a child may need antivenom drugs, which emergency rooms usually stock if they’re in a state with venomous snakes.

If other kids saw the snake, they might describe it, or the child the snake bit might describe it. The adults may also locate the snake and get a look at it. That can determine the species, so they’ll know whether it has venomous fangs.

These injuries happen often, and many times, kids survive them. They may have some pain or a scar, but if their parents act quickly, they can help the child, so they don’t experience too much discomfort.

They can also warn their kids about these dangers before an injury occurs. Prevention always works better, and averting a dangerous situation makes the most sense.