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Nurses stress sunblock use |
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| Written by Arley Hoskin | |||
| Monday, 01 June 2009 00:00 | |||
 Baseball games, picnics and pool parties are all ingredients for summer fun, but nurses encourage everyone to include sunscreen in their recipes for fun.Sunscreen application should be a part of everyone's morning routine, said Amber Smith, RN, CPN, a nurse in Children's Mercy Hospital's dermatology department. Smith said most facial moisturizers contain sunscreen with strength of at least SPF 15. She said parents should use SPF 30 or higher on their children. Sunscreen should be applied 20 to 30 minutes before sun exposure and should be reapplied every two to three hours. "That will get you the basic protection that you need," Smith said. The level of SPF does not coincide with how often a person needs to reapply. SPF stands for Sunburn Protection Factor. According to the Food and Drug Administration's Web site, www.fda.gov, SPF "is a measure of how much solar energy (UV radiation) is required to produce sunburn on protected skin (i.e., in the presence of sunscreen) relative to the amount of solar energy required to produce sunburn on unprotected skin. As the SPF value increases, sunburn protection increases." The amount of solar exposure people receive has multiple variables. For example, according to the FDA, one hour of exposure at 9 a.m. is the equivalent of 15 minutes of exposure at 1 p.m. Skin type also plays a role. A person with fair skin generally absorbs more solar energy than a dark skinned person. Kay Suppes, RN, MSN, OCN, an oncology clinical nurse specialist at North Kansas City Hospital's Northland Cancer Center, said regardless of skin type everyone should use protection. "You can even get sun exposure when you are in your car," Suppes said. "Even if it's only for a short interval, that all adds up to your overall sun exposure." Suppes works with melanoma patients. Melanoma, which represents about 5 percent of all skin cancer, is the deadliest type of skin cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, about 68,720 new cases of melanoma will be diagnosed in 2009 and 8,650 people are expected to die from the disease this year. Suppes said the cancer in most melanoma patients has spread to other organs by the time patients reach the oncology clinic. She said when that happens the disease usually becomes terminal. "There's no great treatment at this point," she said. Suppes encourages people to check for irregularities and changes in moles. Skin cancer caught during the early stages is less likely to spread. Suppes said people should not be fooled by the false idea of a "healthy" tan. "Most people think as long as I don't get a sunburn I'm OK," she said. "Even if you don't burn it's still injuring your skin." Providence Medical Center med/surge nurse Rachel Swafford, RN, said she sees young patients who seek a suntan. "I still see a lot of young girls going to tanning beds," Swafford said. "That is a big concern." Area nurses encourage people to use products such as sprays or lotions to achieve a tanned look. "There are lots of new products that are coming out that give you the tan look without actually causing damage to your skin," Smith said.
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