During June, many parents are ready to send their children off to summer camp.  When the kids head to summer camp, there's more to worry about than mosquito bites.  The damage caused by the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays can be much more severe.

Over 90 percent of all skin cancers are caused by exposure to the sun.  Without proper sun protection, a fun summer at camp can lead to painful sunburns, premature skin aging and skin cancer. Just one severe sunburn in childhood doubles the chances of developing melanoma later in life.  Children with fair skin, blond or red hair and blue or green eyes are at the highest risk of sunburn. But darker-skinned children also need sun protection.  As a parent, you can easily help your children avoid painful sunburns and the lasting damage that they can cause.

“Fewer than one-third of children between the ages of eight and eleven wear sunscreen,” said Perry Robins, MD, President of The Skin Cancer Foundation. “Parents need to teach children from an early age how to be sun-safe and reduce their risk of skin cancer.”

There are many things parents can do to keep their kids sun-safe at summer camp.  You may want to ask:

• Are the camp counselors trained in sun safety?
• Do counselors remind children to apply sunscreen regularly?
• Are outdoor activities scheduled in the early morning or late afternoon? Ultraviolet (UV) rays are most intense from 10 AM to 4 PM.
• Are there adequate places for campers to seek shade during outdoor activities?
  
  

You can prepare your children before they leave for camp with a sun safety lesson, including how to use sunscreen.  An SPF 15+ sunscreen (water-resistant formulas are especially good) should be used regularly:

• Apply a thick, even coat to all exposed areas, 30 minutes before going outside.
• Reapply every 2 hours and right after swimming or sweating heavily.
• Remind children to cover those easy to miss spots, such as the back of ears and neck, as well as the tops of feet and hands.
• If you suspect that your children are not using enough sunscreen, or not reapplying often enough, an SPF 30 sunscreen should be used instead.

• Wear t-shirts with a dense weave in dark or bright colors.
• If they won’t wear a wide-brimmed hat, a baseball cap is better than nothing.
• Wear UV-blocking sunglasses to protect their eyes and the sensitive skin that surrounds them.