Sun Safety Tips for Children

We all love it when the sun puts his hat on and shines. The sun makes summer activities even better, and let’s be honest, we are all a little happier when the sun is shining. But then sun can be quite dangerous, especially to young delicate skin and sensitive eyes. This doesn’t mean you have to hide away indoors with your children as soon as the sun starts shining. You can still have fun in the sun as a family, it is just important to protect your little one’s sensitive skin and eyes from those harmful UV rays in the right ways.

We have compiled our list of our top sun protection tips and advice to help you and your family enjoy the sunshine safely.

How to protect your child from the sun

At Babiators, we want to encourage your child’s sense of adventure and let children be children. This means we want them to get out and explore this amazing world we live in and discover how awesome it is. When the sun is shining there are just a few extra steps we all need to take to protect ourselves. Let’s take a closer look…

Get shady

In a nutshell, wherever possible your children should stay in the shade and avoid midday sun from 10am-4pm as much as they can. You can use trees, canopy’s, pop up UV tents or even umbrellas to get that all important shade.

Cover Up

When dressing for the day, try to choose clothes that keep the sun off as much of their skin as possible that covers arms and legs. It’s also best for these clothes to be lightweight and loose fitting to stop them from overheating, we usually opt for cotton.

Hat

Popping a hat on their head will help protect them from some of those UV rays on their face and scalp. Pick a wide brimmed sun hat so it also protects their neck and ears. You can always choose one with a chin strap too if your mini adventurer isn’t too fond of wearing hats to help keep the hat on.

Sun Cream

This one is a no brainer! Choose the highest SPF you can find, The British Skin Foundation recommends SPF30. It should be applied 15-30mins before going out and reapplied every couple of hours throughout the day, and after water play.

Sunglasses

We always say, if it’s time for sun cream, then it’s time for Babiators. Sunglasses will help protect your child’s eyes from harmful UV damage, and if you choose Babiators they will look pretty cool too! Children and babies don’t process UV rays as effectively as adults which can result in potential problems down the line, which is why is it super important to protect them from an early age. Our Babiator sunglasses offer 100% UVB/UVA protection to give your child maximum protection. Plus, consider buying our silicone strap to keep those sunglasses from slipping off.

What should you do if your child get’s sunburn?

Whilst every parent takes steps to try to avoid sunburn, sometimes children unfortunately do get sunburnt. It’s useful to know what to do in these situation to care for them. We all know that an obvious sign of sunburn is redness on the skin that feels especially warm to the touch. If it looks like an extreme case of sunburn, so always seek medical advice as this might need specialist care

In most cases you can treat your little ones skin at home with some extra care tips.

• Place a cool, damp cloth on the sun burnt area for 10-15 mins, repeat throughout the day.
• Soothe skin with a gentle baby moisturiser or emollient cream. A good tip is to keep these in the fridge so they are extra cool to help soothe the skin.
• It is quite likely that your little one will be de-hydrated so make a big effort to replace fluids by drinking plenty.
• Is the sunburn is causing your baby pain, you can try to calm their pains with an over the counter approved infant paracetamol
• Keep baby out of the pool or sea for a couple of days as chlorine and salt can aggravate burns.
• During treatment your baby’s skin may begin to peel, but don’t panic. This usually happens after a few days and is a natural part of the healing process.

Most importantly we want you to have as much family fun outside as possible exploring and being totally awesome. With these simple but vital tips and useful information you will be able to ensure your family is protected and can enjoy the sunshine safely.