What is the primary purpose of a life jacket?

The primary purpose of a life jacket is to help you float and stay afloat in the water. Life jackets are designed to provide buoyancy, which means they are engineered to keep a person's head above the water, reducing the risk of drowning. This function is critical in emergencies, as it allows individuals who may be unable to swim or become incapacitated to remain buoyant until help arrives or they are able to reach safety.

While keeping warm in cold water is a benefit of some types of flotation devices, it is not the main purpose of a life jacket. The notion that life jackets provide style is misleading as it trivializes their essential safety function. Additionally, life jackets do not absorb water for safety reasons; rather, they utilize air pockets or foam to create buoyancy. Thus, the key aspect of a life jacket is its role in helping individuals stay afloat in water.