If you're a parent, sun protection for your kids should be high on your priority list.Preventing sunburn with sunscreen and protective clothing are important when activities take you outdoors.
But a recent study released by the Colorado School of Public Health shows that many parents could be doing more to protect their children from sunburns — and skin cancer. Here, the dangers of sunburn and how to protect your family better.
UV Protection for Kids: Why It's Important
Ahmet Altiner, MD, a New York City-based dermatologist, says that getting this message out to parents is critical as there's more risk associated with a child's sunburn than most people realize. "There is very good biological evidence that exposure to harmful UVA rays early on in life can lead to an increase inchances of melanoma in the future," he says. "Therefore, sun protection is particularly important in children. For example, when I screen my patients for risk factors for melanoma, one of the questions I ask is, 'Did you have a blistering sunburn when you were a child?' This is an important gauge for me as to how much UVA damage they may have had as a child."
Simple, Affordable Ways to Provide UV Protection
Providing sun protection to reduce the risk for melanoma and skin cancer in your kids as they grow up can be a simple matter and also one that doesn't have to break your budget. There are a number of easy, cost-effective ways to reduce your kids' risk for sunburn.
The first step is sunscreen, says Richard Bezozo, MD, president of MoleSafe, a melanoma screening company with clinics nationwide. Dr. Bezozo stresses that the sunscreen's SPF — the number that indicates its sun protection factor — and the way you apply it is more critical than buying the most expensive one on the shelf. "Parents should use a sunscreen with at least a 30 SPF because anything less is not very useful," he says. "The most important things to remember are to put the sunscreen on at least 30 minutes before going outside or going into the sun and to always reapply sunscreen after swimming, sweating, and rubbing with a towel. Even without swimming or sweating, reapply the sunscreen every couple of hours during a day in the sun. Apply enough sunscreen to the child's body and be sure to cover the child's entire body."
If your kids are swimming, a waterproof sunscreen is a good choice, says Laura Speck, MD, of Westlake Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery in Austin, Texas. "A few of the sunscreen brands I generally recommend are Neutrogena, Aveeno, and EltaMD," she adds. "Products such as Neutrogena Wet Skin Kids Spray are conveniently able to go directly onto wet skin, making reapplication quick and easy at the pool."
In terms of protective clothing, a good rule of thumb is to choose long-sleeve shirts and wide-brimmed hats for outdoor outings. When swimming, invest in a long-sleeve swim shirt that your child can leave on while in the water. There are children's clothes available with an added UV coating, but these can be expensive and might not be needed. "Unless a child is particularly sensitive to the sun, I do not believe any special type of UV clothing is necessary," says Dr. Altiner. "Wearing long-sleeve shirts while in the water is a great way to promote sun protection."
Finally, the best (and cheapest) way to protect your children from sunburn is to simply avoid the sun when it's the strongest, generally from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on sunny days. Of course, sun exposure is still dangerous at other times and even on cloudy days, so the rules about sunscreen and clothing still apply. "One useful tip I give my patients is to check the UV index on Weather.com," says Altiner. "This is a much better way to gauge how much sun they are getting than actually keeping to a specific time frame. It is important to remember that there can be cloudy days when the index is still high. So to avoid a false sense of security, don't go by only what you see in the sky."
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