Shunburn 2012

Be a good sport - love the sun but respect your skin

2012 is a special year for sport and now more than ever we should be getting active and getting ourselves outside. Whether that’s participating in your favourite sport, going for a bike ride with mates or watching football from the terraces, it’s important to take care of your skin when out and about in the sun.

We know that it’s the damage done to your skin when you’re young that could lead to skin cancer developing in later life, so it’s important to avoid the pain and shame of the lobster look by following these five simple steps…

  • Cover up your skin
    Throw on a long sleeved shirt or top that ideally has a collar and a sarong or long shorts to banish those burning rays.

  • Slap on the suncream
    Apply generous amounts of water resistant suncream of at least SPF30 and above, to clean, dry skin before going out in the sun.

  • Wear a hat or cap
    Whether its cowboy hat, a floppy hat or baseball cap, all are good at keeping the heat off your head, face neck and ears.

  • Slip on the shades
    Don’t forget, your eyes need protection too!

  • Chill out in the shade
    When the sun’s rays are strongest between 11am and 3pm, reach for the shade and sit under a tree, building or umbrella.

Young Brits burning desire for status holiday tan

We questioned 16-24 year olds about their attitudes to sun safety when on beach holidays and found that many young Brits on holiday don’t wear suncream because they want a ‘status’ tan, and believe covering up is ‘uncool’.

Questions about suncream and sun safety advice when on holiday revealed …

  • 44% of young people are lying in the sun for hours
  • 60% of young people say they don’t always apply suncream
  • One in ten (11%) believe covering up skin on the beach is really uncool, and a fifth (17%) never cover up with sarongs or long sleeved tops because they want maximum sun exposure.
  • Of those that stayed in the UK, a third (30%) don’t bother with suncream in the UK at all

Questions on attitudes to holiday sun tans revealed…

  • 12% of 16-24 years olds believe a tan proves you go on holiday to nice places
  • Nearly half (40%) would be disappointed if they returned from holiday without a sun tan
  • Almost half (49%) of 16-24 year olds think people look healthier with a sun tan

Read our press release here

The Burning Issue survey

We questioned 13-24 year olds on their attitudes to sunbeds, fake tans and sun cream and tested their knowledge of sun safety and skin cancer. Results showed...

  • Teenagers tan for twelve times the safe limit
  • Over a third (36%) of young people still do not wear sun cream in the UK even on hot days.
  • Over half (58%) do not know how to apply sun cream correctly – believing it should be rubbed in completely when for any sun cream to perform to its full UV protection rating it should be patted gently onto skin with a visible film left on the surface.
  • A fifth (21%) believes milk to be a higher source of vitamin D than the sun

Download the PDF to learn more...

LOVE THE SUN, RESPECT YOUR SKIN

A five minute film presented by Channel 4’s T4 presenter Jameela Jamil talking about five easy ways to stay safe in the sun.

Download: A3 Poster

Stick up this poster in your school, college, common room, or form room...

Download: Leaflet

Give all your friends, colleagues, pupils a copy of this leaflet...

Download: Teaching Pack

This pack is designed to help you create interesting and engaging lessons around Teenage Cancer Trust’s five key sun safety messages and our mantra “Love the sun, respect your skin”...

Aftersun

If you don't manage to avoid getting burnt in the sun, drink plenty of water to keep hydrated and use aftersun lotion on affected areas. If your burns are severe, seek advice from your pharmacist or GP.

Fake it!

Just one session a month on a sunbed can increase your risk of skin cancer by more than half.

Check out your local chemist or department store for fake tans that give great colour without the grave health risks. Fake tan products don't offer sun protection, so keep your five steps for sun safety in mind when you use them.

5 minutes to spare?

Help us by filling out this quick survey on sun safety before the end of May.

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Free Burn Alerts

Teenage Cancer Trust offers a free burn alert text message service which reminds you to stay safe in the sun during the hottest days of the year. To sign-up, text the word BURN2 to 70300.


Teenage Cancer Trust burn alert texts are sponsored by Club 1830

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Sunbeds banned for under 18s

In 2010 Teenage Cancer Trust hosted a photo call outside parliament and lobbied MPs to vote in support of the Sunbed Regulatory Bill.

In 2011 the law preventing under 18’s using sunbeds finally came into effect!

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