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Parents on Right Sun Safety Track: But Still Room for Improvement |
SourceAmerican Academy of Dermatology ForumsHealth, Safety, Nutrition and KidsRelated ArticlesFamilies Frying Together: Sunbathing Habits of Parents and ChildrenSummer Is Here: Here's Some Timely Tips To Beat This Week's Heat Information and news releases furnished by the members of PR Newswire, who are responsible for their fact and content. |
NEW YORK, April 28, 1997 -- Most parents have gotten the word about sun safety, but there's still room for improvement especially compared to making sure their children wear their seat belts, eat their fruits and vegetables or wash their hands. In a recent American Academy of Dermatology/Parents magazine/Safeguard Soap survey, nine out of ten parents were aware that sun exposure during childhood can increase their chances of getting skin cancer, but only 68% regularly put sunscreen on their children compared to their diligence (96%) about seat belts and child safety seats. "Over 2,900 parents responded to this written survey," reported Catherine Winters, Senior Editor from Parents magazine at the AAD's Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month kick-off today. "Many parents have heard the sun safety messages on TV, or have seen numerous articles in magazines and newspapers -- they're well informed. It may take a while before they integrate this information into their already busy daily routines," she said. Over a third of the parents polled reported that their child had a sunburn last summer. This could be explained because during the summer months, only 68% noted that they regularly put sunscreen on their child at the beach, 46% use sunscreen whenever their child plays outdoors, and 33% use sunscreen when they are at the park. Some parents (29%) felt that protecting their child from the sun was a difficult task citing that sunscreen stings their eyes (33%). Another 24% considered using sunscreens too expensive. Of concern were parent observations that relatively few childcare facilities -- day care, school, summer camp, or recreational center -- made any active attempt to protect children from the sun. At best, it was reported by parents, only 25% of childcare facilities scheduled outdoor play time to reduce sun exposure. "Since one blistering sunburn significantly increases your chance of developing skin cancer later in life, we certainly have our work cut out for us. Parents are listening, we just have to get them to take action," said Roger Ceilloy, MD, President of the AAD. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends following the ABCs of Sun Protection:
CONTACT: Donna Stein of American Academy of Dermatology, 847-330-0101, ext. 341, or dstein@aad.org |
