DISCLAIMER: The following post outlines the writer’s personal journey with melanoma. It is not intended to act as medical advice. As always, please consult your doctor with any questions about your health.
As a Stage III Melanoma survivor and mom, sun safety has taken a front row seat in our house. I was diagnosed shortly after my son’s first birthday. I grew up on tanning beds, baby oil, and as much laying out in the sun as possible with a tablespoon of sunscreen.
Skin cancer was something I literally knew nothing about. I didn’t know there were different kinds, or that sunburns in your adolescent years increase your risk of skin cancer tremendously. I didn’t know what I didn’t know!
Well, now I know. Starting at a very young age, I want my kids (our daughter was born 4.5 years after my diagnosis) to know how important sun safety is. I want them to get used to wearing sunscreen every day because it’s just a part of their daily routine. I don’t want my kids or your kids to be told at the age of 25, “Your biopsy came back, it’s Melanoma, and we’re concerned it has spread.”
According to skincancer.org, if a person has had more than five sunburns, then their risk for Melanoma doubles. They also share that children’s skin especially is very sensitive to UV rays–it only takes one severe sunburn when they’re young to double the chances of a Melanoma diagnosis later on.
With it already being the beginning of August (how the heck did that happen?!), it’s time for us moms to go full force back into school supply shopping, new clothes, fall sports . . . the list goes on and on. While I’m not here to add more to your to-do list, I’m here to take the research out so that you can set your kids up for sun safety during the school year without added work.
Here are my three tips for keeping kids safe in the sun during the school year:
1. Teach your kids about sun safety.
We DO NOT want to teach them that the sun is bad. Instead, we want to teach them that we wear sunscreen, hats, UPF clothes, take shade breaks, etc. to keep our skin healthy. We want the focus to be on how important the skin is versus the sun being dangerous.
I like to let my kids pick what kind of sunscreen they want to wear that day. There’s something about a choice that makes them more excited to apply it!
2. Put sunscreen on your kids before they walk out the door in the morning (or have them do it).
Of course, this depends on the age of your kid(s). The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends that sunscreen be reapplied every two hours. Depending on your child’s recess time, we might technically be out of that window. However, SPF is better than no SPF and even on a cloudy day, they should still be wearing it.
I drive my son to school in the morning, so when we’re sitting in the car line, that’s our time to put sunscreen on. It can be easy to forget, especially if we’re trying to do other things in the morning like finish homework. I started setting a daily alarm to remind us.
3. Send in a new bottle of sunscreen, which is usually good for a year.
This can be sent in with locker/school supplies so that it can be in their locker all year long. Bonus points if you can get your child to put some on prior to going outside for recess!
I’m not a huge fan of spray sunscreens, only because they really need to be rubbed in to be effective and if you apply outside–and, for example, the wind is blowing–it’s really easy to miss a spot. However, my son likes a spray because it’s easier for him to apply. That’s what I will send in with him for the school year with a name sticker on it.
I’ll continuously remind him to apply it before he goes out for recess. (This is a big work in progress for us.) He will be in second grade this fall, and I’m considering looping the teacher in to help remind him.
Sun safety should be a priority all year round.
There’s a common misconception that if it’s cloudy or cold outside, you don’t need sunscreen, but the United States Environmental Protection Agency shares that up to 80% of UV rays can penetrate clouds. According to skincancer.org, UVB rays are strongest in the summer and are the main ones that are responsible for sunburns, but they can reflect off of snow and ice in the winter. And, UVA rays are constant throughout the whole year and lead to tanning, dark spots, and wrinkles. So, it’s important to remember that even when the UV index is low, you still have the risk of getting a sunburn.
I have found through my advocacy work that the majority of school playgrounds have very limited sun protection options. And, kids are outside when the sun is at its strongest (10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.). I’d love to see skin protection for all “bodies” to be added into the school’s health class or safety message.
What my husband and I try to focus on with our children is that your skin is the largest organ in your body and it’s the exterior layer that helps keep us safe. We need to do our part to protect it! It can be as easy as wearing sunscreen and/or protective clothing. The sooner it becomes habitual rather than being a “daunting” task, the easier it is on parents and kids.
It’s not about making the sun seem scary or unsafe, but we as parents are obligated to do what we can to make sure our kids stay safe in the sun. It’s not about being perfect or overthinking it, but every little bit of extra protection helps!
–Guest post submission by Leah Koskinen
