Boomers grew up in the 1940s, ‘50s, and ‘60s, when safety laws were much more lax, so they got up to all sorts of mischief that would not fly today. If you’re a boomer, you’ll recognize these 18 dangerous childhood activities that would be considered too dangerous today.
Riding Without a Seat Belt
It became law to fit all cars with seat belts in 1968, but it wasn’t until New York’s 1984 law change that it became mandatory to wear them. This was a bit of a culture shock for boomers, but it’s now considered neglectful to not fasten your kids’ seat belts in the car.
Climbing Trees
Children love exploring, so it’s no wonder they love climbing trees. However, modern parents often forbid their kids from climbing trees because they’re worried about them getting hurt. Boomers remember spending hours climbing trees when they were young, even if some of them ended up with broken bones.
Playing Outside Alone
Boomers often criticize millennial parents for being overprotective, but society has changed since the days when they could safely play outside alone. HuffPost warns of the rise of predatory behavior, with adult strangers now more likely to harm or abduct children out alone. This fear wasn’t nearly as intense when boomers were kids.
Skateboarding Without a Helmet
Public skateparks are responsible for helmet enforcement, but most don’t. As a result, parents enforce helmets for children who skateboard, to the shock of many boomers who never wore them. Nowadays, we’re more informed on head trauma and brain damage, so skateboarding without a helmet is considered dangerous and stupid.
Sledding Down the Stairs
Boomers used to have as much fun playing indoors as they did outdoors, but that doesn’t mean they were always safe. Sledding down the stairs involved sitting on a plastic tray and sliding down from the top of the staircase. Nowadays, parents teach strict stair safety, so indoor sledding doesn’t fly.
Drinking From the Garden Hose
Drinking from the garden hose today sounds disgusting because we’re all aware of how much pollution there is in outdoor water, but most boomers recall spending summer outside with only hose water for hydration. Due to chemicals, bacteria, and bugs, younger parents always stop their kids from drinking from the house.
Not Wearing Sunscreen
All kids should play outside, but parents are now ensuring they’re slathered in sunscreen before they do. The New York Times reports that SPF 15 was introduced in 1986 and SPF 30 in the ‘90s, so many boomers burned badly in their youth and are now the highest-risk group for dangerous melanoma.
Playing On Construction Sites
Construction sites are not places for children, but that didn’t stop many young boomers from sneaking into them to play. They had more freedom to play alone outdoors, so they often explored areas like building sites without anyone knowing. This isn’t the case for kids nowadays, whose parents monitor them more closely.
Making Rope Swings
Boomers enjoyed constructing their own playgrounds as children, including rope swings. However, homemade rope swings are a massive accident risk because most kids aren’t aware of how to properly knot the rope to stop it from unraveling. Today’s parents are also more worried about their children falling and getting hurt.
Setting Off Fireworks
In most states, you must be 18 years or older to buy fireworks, but many boomers fondly remember being allowed to set them off at much younger ages. Despite the safety risks, they reveled in the excitement of doing something dangerous, but kids nowadays wouldn’t get away with doing the same.
Using the Oven
It’s important to teach kids to cook as they grow up, but it’s considered very dangerous to let them use the oven without supervision. Boomers were resourceful children because they spent time alone at home while their parents worked or went out, so they grew adept at using the oven by themselves.
Smoking
Many Americans are against smoking because of health regulations, but most of those came into effect in the ‘90s, when boomers were already adults. In their youth, there were fewer anti-smoking adverts to put them off smoking their parents’ cigarettes. Thankfully, smoking is finally becoming less ‘cool’ to today’s teenagers.
Running Errands Alone
We’re still debating whether it’s safe for kids to run errands alone, though it’s something boomers used to do all the time. According to Fox News, many parents don’t let their children run errands alone now due to the dangers of bad neighborhoods or busy streets, which weren’t major concerns for boomers’ parents.
Balancing On Bicycle Handles
Most boomers cycled without wearing helmets, which was dangerous enough, but many took it further by balancing on the handlebars. This dangerous game involved one person cycling while the other tried to stand up on the handlebars and often resulted in the latter falling off, which parents today wouldn’t allow.
Messing Around With Superglue
All kids have fun with arts and crafts, but current schools are much stricter about what supplies they let children use. Boomers fondly remember messing around with superglue and sticking their fingers together, but younger parents are more aware of the dangers of inhaling glue or getting it on their skin.
Crawling Inside Sewers
Kids love exploring new places, and for many young boomers, that included sewers. However, parents today would be shocked at their children doing the same. Not only could they get stuck, but raw sewage is dirty and contains lots of dangerous bacteria.
Playing With Fire
Nationwide Children’s Hospital estimates that fires started by children playing cause 150 deaths and almost 1,000 injuries each year, so parents are rightfully fearful. Back in the ‘40s, ‘50s, and ‘60s, there wasn’t as much education about the dangers of playing with fire, so young boomers were quite the pyromaniacs.
Using Trampolines Without Nets
Last but not least, it’s rare to find a trampoline sold for kids without a net nowadays. There’s a considerable risk of children bouncing off and injuring themselves by breaking bones or hitting their heads. Decades ago, however, young boomers were simply less informed about the dangers, so they bounced without restrictions, leading to countless hospital visits.
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