Toys and Games - Reviews and News

The sun is out, the sky is blue, there’s not a cloud to spoil the view…. But an increasing number of people in the UK are contracting skin cancer.

As we enter the sunny summer months it is important that parents and carers ensure that the children they look after are thoroughly protected from the sun’s harmful rays. Statistics published by Cancer Research UK clearly show the effects of the fashion for what was once described as ‘a healthy tan’.

Many people who were sun worshippers in their twenties and thirties are now regretting having exposed their skin to the ravages of the sun’s rays. Ensuring that children are protected is one thing, but setting a good example is equally important. A child who sees their mother baking themselves on the patio is far more likely to do the same themselves when they get older.

The answer is using adequate and effective sun protection. Apply a good quality, high factor sun screen before venturing out doors and then re-apply, particularly if children are swimming or playing in water. Ideally avoid going outdoors during the peak mid-day hours. This is far easier said than done, I know, so try to keep yourself and your children covered up with good hats and long sleeved shirts.

I know from my own experience how difficult this can be. My own children are now old enough to head off to the beach without me and I always tell them to put on more sun screen after they have been swimming. But I know that this will often slip their minds. If they are playing in the back garden I’ll go out and chase them around with a big bottle of factor 16 sun cream but when they go off to the beach on their own I must rely upon them.

So do try to ensure that you and your children don’t become Cancer Research statistics. Get yourself some good quality sun protection and use it.