Massachusetts Personal Injury Library
Preventing Chronic Illnesses in Children
Injury prevention should be a high priority as a public health strategy for reducing the childhood obesity epidemic, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the report by the CDC, physical activity is being promoted as one strategy to prevent obesity and has many benefits, but injury prevention is a more important step to take.
Injuries leading cause of death
The CDC reports that unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death for children 19 years and younger. There is a definite connection between physical activity and injury prevention, and many measures have already been instituted to keep children safe, such as laws encouraging safe biking and walking and sports regulations to protect children from injury.
But more interventions can be implemented to protect children from unintentional injuries, according to theCDC. Eliminating and decreasing the risk of injury may encourage more people and children to start being physically active, that also decreases the risk of childhood obesity.
Injury prevention strategies that are successful
One strategy that would help prevent childhood obesity, is to ensure playground safety. Some early playgrounds had hazardous equipment that resulted in injuries to children, such as fractures, lacerations, and abrasions, according to a Consumer Product Safety Commission report in the 1970′s. Today most playgrounds are constructed with impact-absorbing surfaces to protect children because parents chose to make sure their children only played on safe equipment, according to the CDC.
This strategy included promoting activity by: (CDC)
- recognizing a barrier to physical activity like unsafe equipment
- taking steps to reduce the risk of injury
- increasing actual and perceived safety
- promoting playgrounds as a place safe for children to be active
Injury prevention framework (CDC)
The CDC reports that William Haddon, Jr., provided a strategy for injury prevention that can help public health professionals develop new countermeasures. These strategies can provide a framework of injury prevention ranging from preventing the hazard to providing rehabilitative services for the injured children, according to the CDC.
Adopting the Haddon strategies as a framework for injury prevention, can provide multiple strategies for reducing the risk of children being injured on their way to school, including:
- Traffic-calming devices can be installed to reduce the speed of vehicles.
- Walkways and pedestrian overpasses can be built to separate cars from pedestrians and bicycles.
- Helmets could be required and children and parents educated about their use and fit.
The Kiley Law Group located in Boston and Andover, Massachusetts takes time when speaking with you about your case and works with you on a contingent basis so there are NO FEES unless our trained Massachusetts child injury lawyers wins your case. Call now for a FREE evaluation of your case – 1-888-208-1695.
