Summertime! Sunburn? Protect yourself and your kids.

I love summer and spending time outside with my family.  But I worry about too much sun for everyone.  Sunburn is painful but worse than that, sunburn can lead to skin cancer.  Hats, sunglasses and most important SUNSCREEN should be a requirement for all outside activities.  I try to remember.  Hopefully you do too.  Here is some good info on sun safety and sunscreen from the Environmental Work Group web site.

No sunburn for this funny face please.

1. Quick tips for a good sunscreen.

Ingredients matter – learn if your brand leaves you overexposed to damaging UVA rays, if it breaks down in the sun, or if it contains potential hormone-disrupting compounds.

 

Avoid these

Look for these

 

Ingredients

Oxybenzone

Vitamin A (retinyl palmitate)

Added insect repellent

Zinc

Titanium dioxide

Avobenzone or Mexoryl SX

 

Products

Sprays

Powders

SPF above 50+

Cream

Broad-spectrum protection

Water-resistant for beach, pool & exercise

SPF 30+ for beach & pool

 

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2. But first things first – do these before applying sunscreen.

The best defenses against getting too much harmful UV radiation are protective clothes, shade and timing. Check out the checklist:

Don’t get burned. Red, sore, blistered (then peeling) skin is a clear sign you’ve gotten far too much sun. Sunburn increases skin cancer risk – keep your guard up!

Wear clothes. Shirts, hats, shorts and pants shield your skin from the sun’s UV rays – and don’t coat your skin with goop. A long-sleeved surf shirt is a good start.

Find shade – or make it. Picnic under a tree, read beneath an umbrella, take a canopy to the beach. Keep infants in the shade – they lack tanning pigments (melanin) to protect their skin.

Plan around the sun. If your schedule is flexible, go outdoors in early morning or late afternoon when the sun is lower in the sky. UV radiation peaks at midday, when the sun is directly overhead.

Sunglasses are essential. Not just a fashion accessory, sunglasses protect your eyes from UV radiation, a cause of cataracts.

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3. Now put on sunscreen – here are the essentials, beyond the quick tips.

Some sunscreens prevent sunburn but not other types of skin damage. Make sure yours provides broad-spectrum protection and follow our other tips for better protection.

Don’t be fooled by a label that boasts of high SPF. Anything higher than “SPF 50+” can tempt you to stay in the sun too long, suppressing sunburn but not other kinds of skin damage. FDA says these numbers are misleading. Stick to SPF 15-50+, reapply often and pick a product based on your own skin, time planned outside, shade and cloud cover.

News about Vitamin A. Eating vitamin A-laden vegetables is good for you, but spreading vitamin A on the skin may not be. New government data show that tumors and lesions develop sooner on skin coated with vitamin A-laced creams. Vitamin A, listed as “retinyl palmitate” on the ingredient label, is in 33 percent of sunscreens. Avoid them.

Ingredients matter. Avoid the sunscreen chemical oxybenzone, a synthetic estrogen that penetrates the skin and contaminates the body. Look for active ingredients zinc, titanium, avobenzone or Mexoryl SX. These substances protect skin from harmful UVA radiation and remain on the skin, with little if any penetrating into the body. Also, skip sunscreens with insect repellent – if you need bug spray, buy it separately and apply it first.

Pick a good sunscreen. EWG’s sunscreen database rates the safety and efficacy of about 1,700 products with SPF, including about 600 sunscreens for beach and sports. We give high ratings to brands that provide broad-spectrum, long-lasting protection with ingredients that pose fewer health concerns when the body absorbs them.

Cream, spray or powder – and how often? Sprays and powders cloud the air with tiny particles of sunscreen that may not be safe to breathe. Choose creams instead. Reapply them often, because sunscreen chemicals break apart in the sun, wash off and rub off on towels and clothing.

Message for men: Wear sunscreen. Surveys show that 34 percent of men wear sunscreen, compared to 78 percent of women. Start using it now to reduce your cumulative lifetime exposure to damaging UV radiation.

Got your Vitamin D? Many people don’t get enough vitamin D, which skin manufactures in the presence of sunlight. Your doctor can test your level and recommend supplements or a few minutes of sun daily on your bare skin (without sunscreen).

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4. Sun Safety Tips For Kids

Kids are more vulnerable to sun damage. A few blistering sunburns in childhood can double a person’s lifetime chances of developing serious forms of skin cancer. The best sunscreen is a hat and shirt. After that, protect kids with a sunscreen that’s effective and safe. Take these special precautions with infants and children:

Infants

Infants under 6 months should be kept out of direct sun as much as possible. Their skin is not yet protected by melanin. So when you take your baby outside:

• Cover up – Wear protective clothing, tightly woven but loose-fitting, and a sun hat.
• Make shade – Use the stroller’s canopy or hood. If you can’t sit in a shady spot, put up an umbrella.
• Avoid midday sun – Take walks in the early morning or late afternoon.
• Follow product warnings for sunscreen on infants under 6 months old – Most manufacturers advise against using sunscreens on infants or urge parents and caregivers to consult a doctor first. The American Academy of Pediatrics says that small amounts of sunscreen can be used on infants as a last resort when shade can’t be found.

Toddlers and Children

• Test the sunscreen by applying a small amount on the inside of your child’s wrist the day before you plan to use it. If an irritation or rash develops, try another product. Ask your child’s doctor to suggest a product less likely to irritate a child’s skin.
• Slop on sunscreen and reapply often, especially if your child is playing in the water or sweating a lot.
• Choose your own sunscreen for daycare and school. Some childcare facilities provide sunscreen for the kids, but you can bring your own if you prefer a safer, more effective brand. Share EWG’s safe sunscreen tips and product suggestions with your child’s caregiver.

Sun Safety at School

Sometimes school and daycare policies interfere with children’s sun safety. Many schools treat sunscreen as a medicine and require the child have written permission to use it. Some insist that the school nurse apply it. Other schools ban hats and sunglasses on campus. Here are a few questions to ask your school:

• What is the policy on sun safety?
• Is there shade on the playground?
• Are outdoor activities scheduled to avoid midday sun?

Teens

Teenagers coveting bronzed skin are likely to sunbathe, patronize tanning salons or buy self-tanning products. Not good ideas. Researchers believe increasing UV exposure may have caused the marked increase in melanoma incidence among women born after 1965. Tanning parlors expose the skin to as much as 15 times the UV radiation of the sun and likely contributed to melanoma increases. Many chemicals in self-tanning products have not been tested for safety; the major self-tanning chemical, dihydroxyacetone, is not approved by FDA for use in cosmetics around the eyes.

Tan does not mean healthy. Here are a few more tips for teens:

• Make sunscreen a habit for every outdoor sport and activity.
• Find sun-protective clothing, hats, and sunglasses that you like to wear.
• To parents of teens: Be good role models – let your teen see you protecting yourself from the sun.

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Be gentle.