Got Kids? - Safety First!
By
on
February 15th, 2007
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Look closely at this photo. See something strange? I took it yesterday behind our house. The impressive thing is that all kids are wearing a helmet even though the slope is far from steep. The Swedes are incredibly boring people, unless we're drunk, but kids are our highest priority. We take their safety very seriously. Our kids are not locked in a foam coated room, instead society puts a tremendous focus on keeping our children safe while having fun.
Swedes can be anal regarding safety. But it's only because we care and don't want our kids to die or get seriously injured. This safety thinking is hammered in from an early age by all directions of society. Unlike many other cultures we don't keep our kids sheltered from the world. They are out in the cold and rain, fall down in the mud and snow, and learn early on to become independent. Perhaps we even let our kids go nuts a bit much at times. But the safety thinking is always there regardless if we're discussing a car seat, snowracer, baby crib, or stroller. The overall message is that kids are our number one priority.
How can you tell if children are a priority in society? If I look around I can see it everywhere. Health care is free until age 18 (and then only a small co-payment). Dental care is free until age 18. School is free. From day care to university. Parents get 480 paid days of parental leave per child (divide it as you like). You can combine career with family and children. Parents get paid while staying home with a sick child. Playgrounds are everywhere. Giving birth to a baby is completely free. Child mortality is lowest in the world. Fatal car accidents with kids are rare. Those are just a few things that come to mind.
When we buy gear for our kids we always have the safety thing in the back of our head. Especially with items like a crib, stroller, car seat, and outdoor activities. Tests of various kid items are always in the paper or at some community site. We don't see it as a pain in the ass, we look at it as a necessity so that our kids can go a little crazy without getting hurt. Like I said, we're boring and anal.
I really appreciate our view on child safety when I visit Mexico. Child safety is not even discussed there. After seeing what a car crash can do to a child I shudder when I see 98% of the kids riding without seat belt or car seat. At first I thought it was only poor families that couldn't afford the cost of the seat. But it turns out families with money act the same way. It's a shame but I guess it has to do with education, traditions, and habits.
I talked last week about not wanting to die and the goal of seeing my children grow old. The focus on safety is no guarantee for living a long and happy life but it will most likely make a difference. And it makes me feel a lot better that society is trying to help out as much as possible. It means I'm not alone in the quest of seeing my kids grow up and hopefully I can become a superb grandfather some day.
Interesting post and a great picture. I’ve had mixed feelings about helmets and all this safety stuff. My kids wear helmets when they ride skateboards and bikes, I’m not a nazi about it, but I do get after them when I catch them without one on and make them put one on. I’d never make them wear one on a sled. I don’t know why… I just wouldn’t.
The reason I have mixed feeling about helmets is twofold – one is this article and the other is simply a feeling that some of this equipment is giving us a false sense of security. Maybe we are sending a message to our kids that equipment can save you from a bad decision, when it can’t, when the most important part of safety is good judgment.
I love your blog… You consistently give me a new perspective on the world.
I love your blog! I love the photos and the feel. Very cozy. And yes, we are risk takers here but safety first. Awesome.
Great post - and great new look!
I hesitate to send this in fear of opening a Pandora’s box, but… what the heck??
Is it possible that something more than education, traditions and habit play a role in a country’s cultural norms regarding child safety?
I don’t know my Swedish history regarding child safety policies or population growth trends but do you think there might a correlation between the two? Maybe 50 - 60 years ago the population of Sweden began to decrease or the growth rate flattened? In the interest of national/ethnic preservation the government made social policies encouraging having and caring for children, maybe?
I’m sure Sweden is considered a more educated country than Mexico using any reasonable benchmark but the education of the general population and government policies are two different things. I’m sure you know that the current presdient of Mexico has a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard. And Vincente Fox has a Bachelors. They’re well educated yet no national child safety regulations…
I’m guessing that Mexico has never had a significant decline in population growth and therefore has never felt compelled to encourage child rearing using social policy.
I think it’s great that you live in such an accomodating and protective society, I do.
But education, tradition and habit may not be the only factors in Sweden’s enlightened policies– self-preservation can be a powerful force as well.
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