Everyone loves the opportunity to accessorize, right? Allergy bracelets and other medical alert bracelets are a serious business, but the kid-friendly ones do come in a range of colors and styles designed to appeal to the tiniest allergy-havers. But do they do what they’re supposed to, and protect your toddler from allergens when you’re not around to do it?
In case of emergency
Emergency alert bracelets are designed to give emergency responders like EMTs quick access to basic medical information, including serious allergies and chronic conditions like asthma for people who aren’t capable of communicating this information themselves. For adults, these bracelets can be especially important for people who are rendered unconscious or unable to speak in an accident. In babies, toddlers, and young children, emergency alert jewelry might be especially important in situations where they’re separated from their parents.
One thing emergency alert jewelry is not designed for is replacing clear communication with family, friends, and caregivers about your child’s allergies. It’s still vitally important to have and to communicate a clear, decisive emergency response plan in case of an allergic reaction. Some of the more colorful, child-friendly allergy bracelets can be a quiet reminder of a child’s allergies when snack time comes around, but they’re not designed to replace an established emergency response plan, just to add to it a little.
Emergency alert methods
Bracelets are the most common emergency alert accessory, and because of this, they’re generally the safest, since emergency responders are more likely to look for medical information there. A necklace might fit your look better, but if an EMT doesn’t bother to check for it, it won’t help out much. Bracelets are generally a handy, recognizable way of communicating health alerts, but parents of especially young or small children can also run into trouble with the fact that most emergency alert bracelets don’t come in sizes smaller than either 4 or 6 inches.
In case of car accident specifically, attaching a card to the car seat listing emergency alert information is a common substitute or addition.
