31% of teenagers never use sun cream

Research by a cancer charity has found that around a third of teenagers never use sun cream in the UK, despite the risks posed by UV rays.

The Teenage Cancer Trust, which supports young people with cancer, has launched its Shunburn campaign to encourage more teenagers to look after their skin in the sun. Its slogan is “Love the sun, respect your skin”.

Its poll found that 55% of teens thought that the sun was less dangerous in the UK than abroad, whilst 26% burn on purpose in the hope of getting a tan quickly.

It also found falling asleep in the sun was a common cause of burning, and that the shoulders were the most common place for teenagers to get burnt.

The Chief Executive of the charity said: “We’ve found that young people display a worrying lack of awareness when it comes to protecting their skin from the sun. We are trying to educate them to prevent the over exposure to the sun whilst young which can lead to problems with skin cancer in later life.”

Here are 5 tips from the Teenage Cancer Trust to stay safe in the sun:

• Put on sunscreen
• Cover up your skin
• Wear a hat or cap
• Hit the shade between 11 and 3
• Use sunglasses

It has released the following video marking the launch of the Shunburn campaign:

Green People has a range of organic skin care for teenagers that includes an SPF15 moisturiser for the face – Face the Sun.

However, for all over protection from the sun, the SPF15 sun lotion with tan accelerator or No Scent SPF25 sun lotion would be best.

As with all sun lotions, remember to apply generously (30ml for your whole body) and reapply every 2 hours or after swimming.