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Sand safer
playground surface than grass
When it comes to safety, sand appears
to be a better playground surface than grass - even though you may be left cleaning it out
of every crack and crevice of your youngster for days after a trip to the playground.
According to a report in the Journal of
Epidemiology and Community Health, the risk of serious fractures and head injuries to
children was nearly twice as high on grass as on sand surfaces. Serious injuries were also
more likely to occur at home, where grass is the most common outdoor surface, than at
public playgrounds, researchers report.
'Grass is not a good protective surface
beneath play equipment,' the authors write. 'A child is more likely to have a head injury
or fracture when falling on grass compared to sand.'
Investigators looked at children aged 1
to 14 years who were seen in two emergency departments in Montreal after they fell while
playing on playground equipment. A total of 930 such injuries were reported during two
summers.
More than half -55% - suffered a broken
bone and 12% sustained a head injury. More than 70% of severe injuries occurred to
children's arms and 17% of severe injuries occurred to the head, the report indicates.
Overall, 45% of children were injured
playing on a sand surface, 27% injured on a grass surface and 28% were injured on another
type of surface. Those playing on grass had a nearly 70% greater risk of injury compared
with those playing on sand.
'The use of residential playgrounds has
increased since 1991, especially among children aged 1 to 4,' according to Dr. Sophie
Laforest and colleagues with the Montreal Public Health Department in Quebec, Canada.
'As we have shown that children were
exposed to higher risks of fractures and head injuries at home than in public playgrounds,
more attention should be given to playground surfacing at home,' the authors conclude. |
