Focus On Pediatrics-Teach parents these sun smart’ ideas
The Atlanta-based American Cancer Society encourages people to build a lifetime of safe-sun habits. Following are a few of their suggestions:
• Wear protective clothing. While most people now know to slip on a shirt for best protection against the sun’s harmful rays, not just any shirt will do. It’s best to select a tightly woven fabric that you can’t see through when it is held to the light. Also, dark colors prevent more ultraviolet (UV) rays from reaching the skin than light colors do.
• Use the shadow test. To determine the sun’s intensity, use the shadow test. When its rays are the strongest a person’s shadow is shorter than they are. Avoid outdoor activities at this time.
• Protect from reflective surfaces. While a hat protects from the downward UV rays, it does not protect from UV rays reflected upward from such surfaces as snow, sand, concrete, and water. These surfaces reflect about 85% of the sun’s rays. Therefore, sunscreen should be applied to the face, neck, and ears.
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