Keeping Kids from Getting Lost (and What to Do If They Do)

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How can you help your child from getting lost—and what do you do (heaven forbid!) if he or she does go missing?

All parents have stories they shudder to recall—a time when a child hid under a rack in a department store, wandered off at the beach, or just took off in an instant. If you can relate (and most parents can), then you know the indescribable panic of losing your child, even for a few seconds.

While a lost child can get hurt or, worse yet, abducted, the good news is missing children are most often found and reunited with their caregivers quickly and unharmed. Even with a safe return, getting lost can leave scary, indelible memories for both child and parent.

According to an October 2002 US Department of Justice report, every year 374,700 children become temporarily separated from their caretakers for at least one hour. That's 1,025 kids each day. Another 2002 report from consumer research company Intimetrix noted that during a 12-month period, over 27 percent of all families visiting amusement parks lost one of their children while they were there—that's one out of every three kids!

Unfortunately, these statistics represent only the incidents that are reported to authorities. When surveyed, parents report seven out of 10 children get lost at least once in their lifetimes, affecting 90 percent of families. If it hasn't happened to your family yet, chances are it will.

So, what can you do if your child does get lost?

Keep Calm

When a parent realizes that his or her child is missing, a typical reaction is to scream out the child's name; yet this won't locate quickly a child that isn't close by and it actually might notify the wrong type of person that your child is lost and vulnerable. To help you keep your cool, remember that odds are your child is simply lost and has not been abducted. Being smart and proactive can help you find your child quickly and unharmed.