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Last updated on Tuesday, May 29, 2018
(UNDATED) - Memorial Day marks the beginning of the 100 deadliest days for teens. That’s for teens on the road and those working summer jobs.
It's a time most teens look forward to - no alarm clock and having some summer fun with friends--but health and safety experts say there's a dark side to the sunny, carefree days.
"You definitely see more traumatic injuries during the summer than you do the winter. I think a lot of that is more people out about working playing not paying attention to these because there's more distractions," said Dr. Joe Krug, an emergency room physician with St. Vincent told FOX59 News.
Let's start with driving. According to a new study from Students Against Destructive Decisions and Liberty Mutual Insurance, 63% of teen drivers admit to texting while driving. Auto crashes are the number one killer among America's teens and stats show that danger is greatest during summer months.
"Know who you're with, know what you're doing, know what your plan is for getting back from whatever you're doing," Krug said.
And summer jobs also come with some workplace dangers.
"About 60,000 young people go to the emergency room each year in the United States with a work-related injury. Young workers are injured at twice the rate of older workers," said Steven Lacey.
Lacey is the chair for the Department of Environmental Health Science at the Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health. He works with the American Industrial Hygiene Association, which says that Indiana's teen workers are at risk on the job.
Lacey is pushing for lawmakers to demand workplace health and education be included in 7th to 12th grade curriculum. For now he says parents can start the conversation.
"Think about this in a child development perspective. Identifying what that young person can do and start matching the job that is going to be right for them at this stage in their life," he said.
The Centers for Disease control offers this free online program to talk about safety with young workers.
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