Which action should lifeguards take to maintain a safe swimming environment?

Maintaining a safe swimming environment is essential for the well-being of all pool users, and ensuring proper hygiene practices plays a critical role in this. Lifeguards are responsible for monitoring the pool area, not only to prevent accidents but also to ensure that the water remains clean and safe for swimming. Proper hygiene practices can help reduce the risk of waterborne illnesses and maintain overall pool cleanliness.

This involves enforcing rules related to showering before entering the pool, ensuring that swimmers are not in the water when they are sick, and making sure that facilities are cleaned regularly. When hygiene practices are prioritized, it creates a safer and more enjoyable experience for all swimmers, reducing the potential for health hazards commonly associated with public swimming pools.

The other options, while they may seem related to pool safety, do not directly address maintaining a healthy swimming environment in the same impactful way that proper hygiene practices do. For instance, changing the size of the pool or limiting swimming hours does not inherently improve water quality or swimmer safety in terms of health. Similarly, requiring floats can enhance safety for some swimmers but does not provide a comprehensive approach to hygiene and health safety.