Summer is coming, and the swimming pool is getting busy. In recent years, infant swimming has been favored by parents, and infant swimming collars are available in various styles. But at the same time, people continue to question the safety of infant swimming collars.

Should infants swim? Is it dangerous to use infant swimming collars? The reporter conducted investigations in the United States, Hong Kong and other places, and interviewed experts in kinematics, child care and swimming coaches outside China.

Is infant swimming collar safe?

[Survey] Some experts believe that it will hurt the baby's cervical spine, while others believe that it has little impact

Professor Zhao Shaofei of Guangdong Women and Children's Hospital Affiliated to Guangzhou Medical College and Guangdong Provincial Women and Children's Health Care Hospital is the inventor of the Chinese international patent for neonatal swimming equipment. Zhao Shaofei said that he applied for a patent in 2001, and so far, there are no similar inventions and patents abroad.

Zhao Shaofei said that there is no need to worry about the safety of the baby's neck ring. "Even if the baby is standing still in the water, the neck needs to bear only a few taels of force on the neck ring. As long as the newborn's hands and feet move slightly, the reaction force of the water will exceed the force on the neck." He said that he has not received any reports of children spraining their necks.

Some experts support this view. Han Jinlun, a professor at the Department of Pediatrics of the Faculty of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that in theory, the use of a neck ring does have the possibility of causing danger, but it is only a theoretical possibility. As for whether the baby's neck will bear weight and cause discomfort, Han Jinlun said that there is no need to worry too much. In terms of the baby's body proportions, the head accounts for 1/4 of the entire body length. "In addition, the baby is subject to buoyancy in the water and does not stay in the water for a long time. Therefore, the use of a neck ring does not have a great impact on the cervical spine."

But many experts have raised doubts. Jian Weijie, chairman of the Hong Kong Whampoa Sports Association, said that there is no scientific verification of the safety performance of this swimming equipment so far, and it is not recommended for babies. Using a neck ring will put the weight of the body on the cervical spine, and the baby may also cause damage to the cervical spine during exercise.

Anita Sharma, head coach of the British Swimming Association in China, is not sure whether the neck ring is safe and reliable. But she believes that "wearing a neck ring may affect the child's breathing."

A clinical professor, pediatrician and internal medicine expert at Harvard Medical School who did not want to be named said in an interview that it is not recommended to let children swim in this way, fearing that the baby will choke on water after turning over. As for whether it will hurt the child's cervical spine, the expert said that this is not the main concern.

Jeffrey Weiss, a pediatrician in Phoenix, Arizona, a member and spokesman of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said in an interview that he has not come into contact with baby neck rings and cannot give opinions on the pros and cons of using them.

"For children, even if there is a one in ten thousand risk, it should be taken seriously. I don't know how the statement that "the force that the baby's neck needs to bear on the collar is only a few ounces" was calculated." Zhang Silai, a famous pediatric expert, believes that if the collar is inflated too much, it will cause discomfort in the child's neck, restrict the movement of the cervical spine, and the child's lower jaw must be lifted up to use the collar; if it is not inflated enough, it cannot support the baby to float on the water. In addition, if the carotid sinus in the human neck is compressed, it may cause a drop in blood pressure and a slow heart rate, leading to cerebral ischemia and fainting. Children swimming with a collar may compress the carotid sinus.

Zhang Rongya, an obstetrician and gynecologist at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, also said in her real-name verified Weibo that wearing a collar can easily hurt the baby's cervical spine; the collar is plastic, and clinically, babies are allergic to the collar or excessive friction of the collar causes dermatitis.

Are swimming collars used abroad?

[Investigation] Neck collars are rarely seen in the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Hong Kong. They are usually armpit collars, buoyancy clothes, etc.

Some baby neck collar products in China claim that "the technology comes from Europe and the United States." Is this swimming method adopted abroad?

In Hong Kong, the reporter visited many department stores, baby product stores, and toy stores, but did not see any baby neck collars for sale. Finally, the neck collar was only found in a small daily grocery store on the street. The boss said that the neck collar was made in the mainland and there were few customers who bought it. Most parents chose armpit collars.

Why are baby swimming neck collars rare in large shopping malls in Hong Kong? Many salespeople said that they were worried that it was "somewhat dangerous." Ms. Yuan, a salesperson at a department store in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong, said: "Few parents buy neck collars for their newborn babies."

In some large comprehensive supermarkets in the United States, the reporter did not find baby neck collars. Visiting the American infant toy and supplies chain store "Babies "Us", the store manager said that they have never sold such products. Seeing the photos of babies swimming with neck rings that the reporter showed, the store manager was surprised, "This is the first time I've seen a baby swimming like this."

Some American neighbors told the reporter that it is common for Americans to put swimming vests on their children, and they have never used neck rings because they are worried that the children will be uncomfortable.

Anita said, "Before coming to China, I had never heard of neck rings, and I had never seen them on the British market."

The reporter logged on to the Amazon Japan website to check and found that among the dozens of pages about swimming rings, there were 2-3 baby neck rings for sale, all of which were made in China and there was no sales record.

A staff member of a Chinese swimming product manufacturer revealed that the slogan of using "foreign technology" is not accurate, because "neck rings are generally not used abroad, and this kind of publicity is to cater to people's trust in foreign technology."

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