Don’t KISS It, Put Something On It!!
The season of outdoor fun, and the cuts, scrapes bruises and breaks that come with increased outdoor activity is upon us! Remember as a kid, how you could slam your bike into a brick wall like a crash test dummy and be just fine? But now you can hurt yourself just getting out of bed? A new study found the average child suffers 104 minor injuries a year . . . things like bruises and skinned knees. That’s two injuries a week. Looking back on my glorious misspent youth, I have to say that’s a low estimate. I could’ve hit 104 injuries in a week in my youthful prime, playing with the toys that were specifically designed for kids to play with. Pre-plastic robots that shot sparks and lumbered along on cheesy tin legs that could filet a kids index finger like a Gerber knife. “You’ll shoot your eye out!” What, with a BB gun? C’mon Ma! I could do that and so much more with the pieces of an Erector Set. Future “Dexters” probably liked that toy. Pretty sure that at one time even that most seemingly benign of amusements,”Operation” led to an ER visit when my little brother got his finger stuck in the slot while attempting to extract some “water on the knee.” Of course back then (oh, do tell us, Boomer…) we took it in stride, because toys weren’t the only dangerous thing for us kids to deal with. Everything was heavier, harder and more fearsome in our little eyes, the Electrolux vacuum cleaner with a threatening maw that looked to swallow you whole comes to mind. Lawn darts! “Have some fun in the sun and impale your friends today!”
Kids between three and five suffer the most injuries. The most common cause is tripping while running. And the most common remedy we offer them is . . . a hug. C’mon Ma! Are we out of mercurochrome or something? Here are the most common injuries kids suffer:
1. Skinned knees.
2. Bruised knees.
3. A bump to the head.
4. A cut on their finger.
5. A skinned-up arm or elbow.
6. Bruised arms.
7. A cut on their lip.
8. Minor scrapes and scratches.
9. Bee stings.
10. Sprained ankles.
