If your kids don’t burn, how strict are you on sunscreen

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I read this article a few years ago. Food for thought. Remember people do profit off of sunscreen - whenever profit is involved you have to dig deeper

https://www.outsideonline.com/health/wellness/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science/

It’s an interesting article but they still emphasize that it is sunburns during childhood and adolescence that carry the greatest risk so not an article that really discourages sunscreens in kids. If my kid didn’t burn I wouldn’t be so strict though. I try to balance healthy sun exposure and skin protection. But we had our first beach trip this week and I missed an area that was apparently intermittently covered by her shirt and she had a very mild burn. I felt guilty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mineral sunscreen literally has the same active ingredient as diaper rash cream. My aunt never burned badly but then lost part of her cheekbone to skin cancer (luckily not worse). Slather that stuff on.

I do the zinc.

Ugh, it leaves residue over EVERYTHING, stains clothes, and sits on top of the skin like paste (ahem, like diaper cream). I really want to find a good mineral sunscreen, but I haven't found a good option that doesn't leave me cursing the sunscreen gods. Any recs?

Aveeno Baby or Kids is my favorite, and we've tried a lot of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my kids has olive skin and takes after me (I don't burn) and the other one has fair skin and takes after her redheaded dad. We make them both sunscreen on every day and if we're going to be out in the sun longer than 30 minutes in the summer. I am definitely more lax about it in the winter than I should be. I am in my 40s and am definitely seeing a lot of sun damage on my skin - I never wore sunscreen but have started wearing it on my face every day and on my body if we're going to be out for a long time. My goal is to make it a habit early on so that my kids don't run into the same problems that I have.

I was seriously contemplating if I wrote this response lol but I am in my 30s. I have two daughters- one olive skin after me and the other is about as far skinned as possible with freckles and red hair after DH. I definitely reapply more to the redhead and make her wear her hat (she's only 20 months) where I'm more lax with our older daughter (6).

[Anonymous]

We are white and burn very easily.

We always use sunblock. Everyone should.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wear sunscreen on my face and neck every day. The kids know I started that in my 20s and it's why I look good at 42.

I don't make them wear it every day but I've started introducing my tween to the idea. I tell her that her decollette will easily burn and should always have sunscreen.

When they were babies I tried so hard to use all mineral sunscreen but that stuff will just not rub in. So finally I conceded that sunscreen they wear is better than none at all. We put it on before being outside for several hours and will reapply if the sun is relentless. If it's kind of cloudy, we probably won't.

I'm not generally a fan of the spray (I will taste it even if someone is standing 20 feet away when they spray it) but I keep a can on hand. When they were younger and needed an adult to do their sunscreen, it's what DH preferred to use. And sometimes a friend coming to the pool with us will seem confused if I only offer lotion.

For our bodies, I bulk order European sunscreen (Garnier Ambre Solaire from Care to Beauty in Portugal) because it has better UVA protection than US sunscreens. Plus we like the smell and it rubs in really easily.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-06-23/why-the-us-has-fewer-sunscreen-options-than-europe

Ick. Don’t talk to your tween about décolleté… just no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never put sunscreen on my kids unless we are going to be outdoors or at the beach/pool for many hours. My kids don't burn. I'm not completely convinced that the rise in skin cancer isn't somehow related to the constant use of chemical sunscreens.

I wonder the same thing, although I don't ever say it out loud out of concern people will think I'm a conspiracy theorist. I do encourage DCs to use the Cetaphil face lotion with sunscreen on a daily basis in the summer, but I otherwise think they need the Vitamin D so we don't apply anywhere else unless we'll be outdoors for an extended period of time.

Same, I could have written this

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I read this article a few years ago. Food for thought. Remember people do profit off of sunscreen - whenever profit is involved you have to dig deeper

https://www.outsideonline.com/health/wellness/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science/

Thank you for posting this! We are a Latino family and only I wear sunscreen. My husband and boys don’t. I was feeling guilty but after this article I am not going to anymore.