Sun Safety
Why protect against the sun?
What is Skin Cancer?
What Kind of Damage Does Sun Exposure Cause?
What is UV radiation?
How Can I Practice Smart Sun Safety to Protect my Children From the Sun?
How can I pick the best sun protective clothing?
What are Other Excellent Resources to Learn More about Sun Safety?
You wouldn’t put your child in a car without strapping them in a car seat or seat belt. You wouldn’t let your child ride a bicycle without a helmet. Practicing sun safety and setting an example of sun protection habits are important preventative measures to ensure the safety of children.
In fact, research shows a strong link between sunburn in children and the increased risk of skin cancer in later life--unprotected exposure to the sun in the first 15 years of life more than doubles the chance of getting skin cancer. This strong link is THE reason why it is key to protect children from the harmful rays of the sun.
Here are some important facts:
- Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. More than one million skin cancers are diagnosed annually.
- Just two or three blistering sunburns during childhood can double the risk of skin cancer.
- Each year there are more new cases of skin cancer than the combined incidence of cancers of the breast, prostate, lung and colon.
- One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.
- One in four persons who develop skin cancer is under the age of 40.
- Melanoma kills more young women than any other cancer.
- Utilizing proven cancer prevention and early detection techniques can eliminate at least 100,000 cancer cases and 60,000 cancer deaths in the U.S. each year.
- More than 90 percent of all skin cancers are caused by sun exposure, yet fewer than 33 percent of adults, adolescents, and children routinely use sun protection.
Skin cancer is a disease in which cancer (malignant) cells are found in the outer layers of your skin. Your skin protects your body against heat, light, infection, and injury. It also stores water, fat, and vitamin D. The causes of skin cancer include:
- unprotected and/or excessive exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation which can result in severe childhood sunburns.
- fair complexion.
- occupational exposures to coal tar, pitch, creosote, arsenic compounds, or radium.
- family history.
- multiple or atypical moles.
What Kind of Damage Does Sun Exposure Cause?
Part of the sun's energy that reaches us on earth is composed of rays of invisible ultraviolet (UV) light. When ultraviolet light rays (UVA and UVB) enter the skin, they damage the skin cells, causing visible and invisible injuries.
The sun emits three types of ultra violet radiation but only two of those reach the earth’s surface. These are UVA and UVB rays
UVA: UVA rays pass through the protective layer (our atmosphere) that shields the earth. UVA rays make up 95 percent of our sun exposure, which can cause skin aging and wrinkling and contribute to skin cancers.
UVB: UVB rays are also dangerous and can cause sunburns, eye damage, immune system damage and skin cancer.
UVC: Although UVC rays are the most harmful type of UV ray, most are blocked by the ozone layer and don’t reach the earth. However with the thinning of our ozone due to global warming more and more UVC rays may enter our atmosphere making a greater concern in the future.
How Can I Practice Smart Sun Safety to Protect my Children From the Sun?
A great first step is to teach your children to follow the "ABCs for FUN in the SUN":
A = AWAY. Stay away from the sun in the middle of the day.
B = BLOCK. Use SPF15 or higher sunscreen.
C = COVER UP. Wear a T-shirt and a hat.
S = SPEAK OUT. Talk to family and friends about sun protection.
Other key tips include:
- Avoiding the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- Seeking shade especially in the middle of the day when the sun's rays are strongest. Practice the shadow rule and teach it to children. If your shadow is shorter than you, the sun’s rays are at their strongest.
- Slip on a shirt: Cover up with protective clothing to guard as much skin as possible when you are out in the sun. Choose comfortable clothes made of tightly woven fabrics that you cannot see through when held up to a light.
- Slop on sunscreen: Use sunscreen and lip balm with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Apply a generous amount of sunscreen (about a palmful) and reapply after swimming, toweling dry, or perspiring. Use sunscreen even on hazy or overcast days.
- Slap on a hat: Cover your head with a wide-brimmed hat, shading your face, ears, and neck. If you choose a baseball cap, remember to protect your ears and neck with sunscreen.
- Wrap on sunglasses: Wear sunglasses with 99% to 100% UV absorption to provide optimal protection for the eyes and the surrounding skin.
- Follow these practices to protect your skin even on cloudy or overcast days. UV rays travel through clouds.
- Infants under six months of age should be kept out of direct sun and covered by protective clothing.
How can I pick the best sun protective clothing?
A piece of clothing or swimwear is awarded a UPF rating based on a test that measures the amount of ultraviolet radiation that passes through the fabric or clothing. Unlike the test method used to rate sunscreens which, using volunteers, measures the amount of transmission of ultraviolet radiation by human skin reactions, the testing of fabrics and clothing is done using machines.
When choosing a garment for sun protection, the important considerations are:
- the design (in terms of the amount of skin coverage)
- the closeness of the weave
- comfort
UVR protection % UVR transmission UPF ratings
Good 6.7 - 4.2 15, 20
Very good 4.1 - 2.6 25, 30, 35
Excellent < 2.5 40, 45, 50, 50+
Sun Busters® swimwear and hats provide excellent protection from the harmful rays from the sun. Sun Busters is a line of fresh and vibrant high-quality chlorine resistant swimwear with fabrics that are tested to confirm they provide UPF 50+ and block out 98% of all UV rays.
What are Other Excellent Resources to Learn More about Sun Safety?
The American Academy of Pediatrics: Be Sun Safe!
The American Academy of Dermatology: Sun Protection Guide for Children
The Skin Cancer Foundation : Protect Your Children from the Sun
The American Cancer Society: All About Skin Cancer-Melanoma
UPF Classification System:
