Enjoying summer safely with hemophilia

If you or a loved one has hemophilia, the summer season can bring new risks for injuries and bleeds. You may also find that you and your family spend more time at home this summer. To help with this, here are some tips for summer safety at home to help you enjoy everything summer has to offer in a safe way.

Beat the heat

Heat increases blood flow. Hot summer weather can worsen active hemophilia bleeds or cause recently resolved bleeds to start again. Hotter weather also causes everyone to tire more quickly, whether they have hemophilia or not, which can lead to a higher chance of injuries.

To beat the heat and protect yourself, it’s very important to hydrate in the summer. Not only does proper hydration help control your body temperature, it also lubricates joints and helps prevent bleeds.

Wear protective equipment outside

Summer is a great time for skating, riding a bike and other outdoor activities. All those activities can raise the chance of injuries and bleeds, however. Wearing a bicycle helmet is an easy and effective way to help prevent injury — and it’s also the law for children in many states. One review of published studies found that using bicycle helmets lowers the number of head injuries 63-88%.¹ For activities such as skating, use protective elbow and knee pads to lower the risk of joint bleeds.¹

Jump carefully

Even outdoor activities without wheels can be risky for people who have hemophilia. For example, it’s easy to get jostled and injured on a trampoline. If you or your child has hemophilia, make sure the trampoline has a net around it and protective padding on the springs — and only let one person on the trampoline at a time.

Enjoy the summer safely

Having hemophilia doesn’t mean you can’t experience what summer has to offer. A little preparation goes a long way to help everyone enjoy the summer safely. Visit the CDC's website for more tips for a safe summer.

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