Getting the Right Fit in Children's Life Jackets

Make sure you use the life jacket correctly and follow these suggestions:

• Always secure the crotch straps on a child's life jacket.
  
• You should test the life jacket in the water with your child.
  
• Help your child to feel comfortable in the slightly tilted back position that a life jacket causes a person to float in. Test float in a pool or shallow water with your child.
  
• Make sure your child always wears their life jacket — and wear yours too!

• Is an inflatable life jacket right for you?
• Life jackets are important to have BEFORE they're needed
• Test your life jacket for sun deterioration

You don't assume that last year's shoes will fit your children this year. You check the fit to make sure you're not crushing little toes.

You need to take the same precautions with life jackets. Children can do a lot of growing between boating seasons. So before your first time out on the boat this year, follow these guidelines to make sure that your children's life jackets fit the way they should.

When choosing a life jacket for a child, take these steps to get the best fit:

• Be sure to choose a life jacket in the correct weight range. Children's lifejackets are sized by weight - under 30 pounds, 30-50 pounds, and 50-90 pounds.
  
• Some life jackets are fitted on chest size as well, so take a chest measurement before you choose a jacket.
  
• Choose a Coast Guard approved life jacket.
  
• If the child is afraid of the water or cannot swim, a Type II Child or Infant life jacket is a good choice.
  
• Choose a brightly colored jacket. Kids like them better (and may not resist wearing it as much) and they're easier to spot in the water.
  
• Have the child try the life jacket on before you buy. To make sure the fit is snug, lift the shoulders of the life jacket. It should not slip over the chin or ears. The life jacket is too big if there is more than three inches between the child's shoulders and the jacket.