The sun is a frequent source of joy for the children of their parents, but it is important to remember that you need to enjoy the sunlight without harm to health. The experts at La Roche-Posay cover the important aspects of sun protection in this article.
Often the whole family goes to spend long-awaited vacations and vacations at sea, but with the birth of a baby, the question often arises, is it safe to travel with a baby or small children to sunny countries?
Of course, a vacation by the sea is always an expected event for the whole family and there is no need to refuse it. It is important to remember the main thing: the sun is not safe, there is such an important and easy to understand indicator as the UV index, it can be found in any weather forecast application on a mobile phone or on weather forecast sites. If the UV index is above 3, it is recommended to stay in the shade, cover the skin with clothing as much as possible, wear a hat and use sun protection creams. The sun’s rays are most active after the UV index is greater than 4 and the risk of sunburn and heat stroke is high. It is also recommended to avoid exposure to direct sunlight for children under 3 years of age in general, it is optimal to stay with the baby in the shade or under the canopy of trees, but still up to the UV index is not higher than 3.
There is an opinion that children produce vitamin D thanks to sunlight, is being in the sun really beneficial?
Sunburn is rather an unhealthy habit. Vitamin D (also called growth vitamin) can be obtained by going out into the sun with your baby during safe hours when the sun is the least active (usually in the summer from 8 to 10 am and from 16.00 to 20.00 pm) and the UV index is below 3. Enough to go out and walk for a short time, usually no more than 10-15 minutes in direct sunlight or up to half an hour while walking under the trees. In winter, there are very few sunny days in our strip, so vitamin D is recommended to be obtained from food and vitamin supplements. Also, when we talk about young children, it is rare that anyone can get such an amount of food, for example, fish, that would provide children with the standard amount of vitamin D and vitamin supplements are the more common way to get this vitamin.
Can one sunscreen be used for the whole family?
Not desirable, because Children’s skin is thin, delicate and particularly sensitive to sunlight. Plus, there are stricter requirements for the production of children’s products than for adults. Accordingly, sunscreen products for adults are not suitable for children. For children, the use of products with higher protection against 2 types of sun rays UVA and UVB may be recommended, plus, it is always an individual decision of parents in favor of choosing or not using products with fragrances, alcohol in the composition, etc.
For babies from 6 months you can use ANTHELIOS MILK FOR INFANTS AND CHILDREN with protection factor SPF 50+ in a light, comfortable texture, for children from 3 years old – ANTHELIOS spray or baby milk with a high protection factor 50+ to protect the skin from sunburn and allergic reactions to the sun.
If the most unpleasant thing happened: a sunburn, how to help a child?
There are several rules: you need to get out of the sun, treat the skin with soothing, moisturizing and regenerating agents, for example, use Cicaplast balm B5 soothing regenerating agent, it can be applied when the skin is reddened from exposure to UV rays. The cream contains panthenol and a complex of ingredients that have properties that help restore and heal the skin. Further, it is important to protect skin reddened from the sun from further exposure to ultraviolet radiation so as not to aggravate the situation.
How should children’s skin be restored after sunbathing?
It is important to remember that sunbathing can lead to flaky skin. Even if there is no sunburn, there is a risk that the skin will become dry, begin to peel off, cause discomfort and there will be a clear need to restore it. Here Cicaplast B5 balm is relevant locally for the most problematic areas of the skin and LIPIKAR Milk for the whole body, which is suitable for dry and delicate skin of babies and children, nourishes and moisturizes the skin, reduces the appearance of dryness, restores the skin’s protective barrier.