Parachute, Canada’s injury prevention charity, celebrates Safe Kids Week on June 2 to June 8, 2025.

This year the theme is #KidsAndConcussions.

Parachute Safe Kids Week is an annual awareness campaign designed to bring attention to predictable and preventable injuries in children. As children grow older, the main causes of concussion change.

Did you know that falls are the leading cause of concussions in young children under five? And guess what? Sports and recreation incidents are the top culprits for concussions in kids aged 5 to 14.

Here’s the breakdown:

  • In young children, 71% of concussion injuries are caused by falls.
  • Falls from beds, stairs, or sofas are the most common types of falls leading to concussions. And these injuries happen most often while the child is playing (29% of the time).
  • For kids aged 5 to 9, sports and recreation incidents and falls are the leading causes of concussions.
  • And for older children aged 10 to 14, sports and recreation incidents are the number one cause of concussion.

Now, let’s talk about how we can prevent falls. In young children, injuries mostly happen indoors (75% of the time) and at home (69% of the time). Here are some tips to help keep your little ones safe:

  • Keep a close eye on your young ones and use safety products like window guards and safety gates.
  • Make sure wall-mounted gates are used at the top of the stairs and wall-mounted or pressure gates should be used at the bottom of the stairs.
  • Avoid baby walkers with wheels: Baby walkers are banned for sale in Canada. Many children have suffered head injuries from falling down stairs in baby walkers.
  • Keep stairs and high-traffic areas of the home free from clutter and tripping hazards like toys and books.

Let’s talk about preventing concussions during outdoor play and sports.

Why are concussions so important to pay attention to in kids? Well, a concussion is an injury to the brain. It can affect how a person thinks and remembers things, and it can cause a variety of physical, emotional, and behavioural symptoms. Most children will recover in about one month, but some may experience longer-lasting effects.

A concussion is often called an “invisible injury” because without knowing about concussions, it can be hard to know when and how to seek care, how to support a child in their recovery, and how to prevent these types of injuries from happening in the first place.

During Safe Kids Week, Parachute encourages parents and others who care for children to learn more about #KidsAndConcussions.