By Sandra Domingos
The only certain way to protect you from the sun is to stay indoors all the time, away from the windows. However, that is not realistic, right? Here we will focus on how you can start teaching your children from an early age. By instilling a healthy respect of the sun from an early age, you are setting them up for a lifetime of improved health. Bellow is five ways to begin protecting your children from the sun.
1. Apply sunscreen at all times – It is quite normal for people to use sunscreen when they know that they will be spending a day at the beach, but not as common when they are going outdoors for a short time in the summer, on a cloudy day, or even in the winter. It is important to realize that even incidental sun exposure can result in damage to the skin. Be sure to use a broad-spectrum sunscreen (for protection against both UVA and UVB) with a minimum SPF 15.Reapply every 90 minutes to two hours or sooner if sweating or swimming.
- Seek shaded shelter – Find a tree or use an umbrella or cabana to seek shelter from the sun. This still requires that you use sunscreen as you and your children will still be exposed to the sun’s rays that reflect, but at least you are cutting down some of the direct exposure.
- Wear sunglasses – The rays of the sun damage the eyes, which can result in corneal burns (sunburn of they eye’s surface). In later life, the cumulative effects of sun damage can also result in cataracts and/or macular degeneration of the eyes. So be sure to teach your children the importance of wearing sunglasses from an early age.
- Avoid those times of the day when the UV radiation is at its highest – This will vary on where you live. For example, if you are closer to the equator, the UV rays are more direct there throughout the day. In general though, if you live in the Northern Hemisphere, the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. are the times of the day to avoid as the sun is higher in the sky then.
- Wear large-brimmed hats and tightly-woven fabrics – Hats will protect the scalp, ears, and neck. When looking for tightly-woven fabrics that will help protect your children from the sun, be sure to hold up the fabric up to the light to ensure that light is unable to pass through it. If light does not pass through it, then you also know that the sun’s rays cannot as easily.
Understanding sunscreen and what you should look for:
Buying sunscreen can be confusing as there are so many choices. Do you buy the one with SPF 15 or 60? How much should you apply? And what exactly does “broad-spectrum” mean? In what follows, you will get the most important answers as to what you should look for in a sunscreen.
- Broad-Spectrum – Broad-spectrum sunscreens protect your skin from the sun’s two main types of ultraviolet rays – UVA (the dominant tanning ray) and UVB (known to cause burning). Neither one is safe though, as they both contribute to aging in your skin and eyes, as well as skin cancers. So if you use a broad-spectrum sunscreen, you will be protecting your skin from burning, skin cancer, wrinkling, and other aging of the skin.
- Sun Protection Factor (SPF) – The SPF refers to the level of blockage against UVB (it does not include UVA) rays that the sunscreen provides. So the higher the SPF is, the longer you can stay in the sun before you burn. If you are highly sensitive to the sun, then you will want to use sunscreen with higher SPF. However, even a SPF 100 will not block 100% of the UVB rays. No sunscreen does that. Products with SPF 15 can be effective for incidental sun exposure, and can be found in many face moisturizers.
Enjoy the heat and the fun safely!
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