Why you should always cross your legs on waterslides and other water park safety tips

A day at the water park is peak summer fun, especially for kids. But waterslides in particular come with a slew of health risks that most people aren’t even aware of.

When it comes to amusement park attractions, the data shows that waterslides have the highest number of incidents, beating out roller coasters, spinning rides and even trampolines. “You’re moving at such a high rate on a slide and there is very little protection around your body,” Dr. Ali Jamehdor, emergency medicine physician and medical director of the Weingart Foundation Emergency Department at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., tells Yahoo Life. “That raises the risk of injury.”

But what kind of injuries are we talking about and, more important, how can you stay safe on waterslides? Here’s a breakdown of some of the most serious health issues you could come across on a waterslide, as well as tips on how to lower your risk.

Cuts and gashes

These are the most likely injury you could get on a waterslide, and there are a few different ways this can happen. “Most of these slides are made from a smooth plastic-type material," Jamehdor says. If there is a small chip, bolt, bend or any type of anomaly in the smoothness of the slide, you’re going down at such a high rate that it can cause a laceration.”

There’s also a risk that someone who went down the slide before you dropped something that could slice you on the way down, Jamehdor says.

And, of course, there’s the risk of colliding with another rider if your rides are timed well enough, Dr. Erin Muckey, associate professor of emergency medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, tells Yahoo Life.

How to protect yourself: If given the choice, Jamehdor recommends riding on a tube or mat to create a barrier between your body and the slide’s surface. It’s also important to follow the rules. “Always maintain ample space between riders to prevent collisions, especially in the pool at the end of the slide,” she says. “Wait until the previous rider has safely cleared the end of the slide before starting your descent.”

Broken bones

Dr. Michael Levine, an emergency medicine physician at UCLA Health, tells Yahoo Life that he’s seen several people break bones on a waterslide. “Occasionally you have people that go headfirst, even though they’re not supposed to, end up hitting the bottom of the pool with their head and break their neck,” he says. Levine says he’s also seen people stand up on slides, fall off and break a bone (or bones).

There have also been tailbone injuries from waterslides, Muckey says. “Although rare, a broken bone or tailbone injury could occur if a rider bounces and their tailbone hits the slide hard while traveling at high speed,” she says.

How to protect yourself: Jamehdor recommends keeping your body “as compact as possible” when you’re going down the slide. It’s best to follow the instructions laid out by the water park, which may include crossing your arms when you go down. “The more compact you can be and in one piece as opposed to flailing around, the better,” he says. “If you hit one turn and your arms are loose, that can lead to fractures.”

Vaginal lacerations

It may sound strange, but women have gotten vaginal lacerations and tears from waterslides in the past. One woman sued Disney World in 2023 after she said she received severe “gynecologic injuries” on Typhoon Lagoon’s Humunga Kowabunga slide and needed to be hospitalized.

One extreme waterslide at Austria’s Area 47 adventure park reportedly bans women, presumably over the risk of gynecologic injuries.

“It’s a laceration, and we see it a lot in the perineal or vaginal area,” Jamehdor says. “When you add a high velocity to something, any quick separation of your legs and hitting an object or even water can cause an extension” — or tear — “to the orifice of the vaginal area.”

How to protect yourself: Jamehdor stresses the importance of crossing your legs when traveling down a waterslide that doesn’t involve a tube or mat. Most water parks will recommend that everyone — including men — do this, but he says this rule is crucial to follow.

Testicular injuries

Men aren’t immune to injuring their private parts, Jamehdor says. “You can see testicular injuries with men,” he says. “If you’re going down very fast and your legs separate a little bit, the high pressure of the speed and the force of hitting the water can cause injury to the testicles.”

How to protect yourself: Jamehdor recommends that men, as with women, cross their legs while going down a waterslide if they’re not on a tube or mat.

Water enemas

Another weird but true injury: Several people have reported experiencing so-called waterslide enemas, in which water is forcefully pushed up someone’s rectum on a waterslide.

“It’s due to the force that you’re coming down the slide with and the water that’s on the bottom,” Jamehdor says. If your bathing suit happens to move to the side during the ride, “the high pressure can push water into the rectal area. The faster and higher the speed of the ride is, the more likely that is to happen,” Jamehdor adds.

How to protect yourself: Going down a slide with your legs crossed should help, Muckey says. But Jamehdor also suggests wearing bathing suit bottoms that fit tightly and extend over your upper leg to keep them secure. If water hits the fabric, it should disperse rather than being pushed into your rectum, he says.

Parasites

Cryptosporidium is a parasite that can cause an intense, watery diarrhea, and it can live in water that’s not properly cleaned. “If the water is adequately chlorinated, you shouldn’t get sick from it,” Levine says. But maintaining proper chlorination levels can be tough, especially in busy water parks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that there were 208 outbreaks of cryptosporidium linked to recreational water between 2015 and 2019.

“Since cryptosporidium is more resistant to typical chlorine water treatments, it can spread rapidly in these recreational water environments,” Muckey says. “A person can become infected by swallowing water that is contaminated with the parasite.”

How to protect yourself: Jamehdor recommends keeping your mouth closed as much as possible while you’re going down a waterslide. It’s also a good idea to avoid actually swallowing pool water, Muckey says. “Use facilities that follow proper water treatment procedures, although it may be difficult to verify this,” she adds.

Heat illness

Heat illness like heat exhaustion and heat stroke can happen, even at a water park. “Even though you’re around the water, you can definitely get heat illness,” Levine says. “Some people think, ‘I’m in the water, so I don’t need to drink water,’ but that’s not the case.”

Levine says that people can be “lulled into a false sense of security” that they don’t need to stay well hydrated at a water park and end up getting sick.

How to protect yourself: Levine recommends doing your best to continue to drink water in between waterslide runs. “Certainly if you feel lightheaded, dizzy or really hot, get out of the sun and into a cooler environment,” he says.