05/17/2021
Sunburn
Sunburn is a common problem in children. In addition to causing painful burns, excessive sun exposure increases the risk of skin cancer, skin aging, and other skin conditions. Especially during the summer months, it’s important to take steps to prevent excessive sun exposure, such as wearing sunscreen
What is sunburn?
Sunburn is redness, pain, and sometimes other symptoms caused by ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun. Sunburn occurs within 6 to 12 hours after skin exposure. In addition to redness and pain, it can cause tenderness of the skin, swelling, and blisters. Severe sunburn can also cause nausea, chills, and just “feeling sick.” The burned area remains red and painful for a few days. Later, peeling may occur as the skin heals.
What causes sunburn?
Excessive exposure to sunlight on unprotected skin.
Exposure to artificial light sources, such as sun lamps
and especially tanning beds.
What are the long-term risks of sunburn and excessive sun exposure?
Excessive exposure to sunlight in childhood greatly increases the risk of skin cancer later in life. It can also cause premature aging and wrinkling of the skin, actinic keratoses (rough spots and skin growths caused by sun damage), and other problems.
Severe sunburns causing blistering when young greatly
increase the risk of an especially serious type of skin cancer called malignant melanoma.
Although sunburn results from a type of ultraviolet radiation called UV-B rays, the same long-term damaging effects—including skin cancer—are also caused by UV-A rays. Tanning booths, which use UV-A light, are not healthy and not recommended.
What increases your child’s risk of sunburn?
People with fair skin are at highest risk. Sunburns occur
most easily and fastest in people with very light skin, especially those with freckles or red hair and those who do not tan.
Sunburn is most likely to occur if your child is out in the sun during the middle of the day, when the sun is strongest: about 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. However, your child can still get enough sunlight to cause a burn at other times of day and even on hazy or partly cloudy days
Infants and young children can quickly develop serious sunburns.
Can sunburn be prevented?
Yes. Especially if your child has fair skin and does not tan, take protective steps every time he or she is out in the sun. On sunny summer days, sunburns can occur very rapidly: after as little as 15 to 30 minutes in the sunlight!
Put on sunscreen. Make sure the sunscreen has a “sun protection factor” (SPF) of at least 15. (This means you can stay out in the sun 15 times longer before sunburn occurs, compared to without sunscreen.)
How is sunburn treated?
When sunburn occurs, your child should stay out of the sun until the burn is completely healed. Make sure he or she has on sunscreen and other sun protection before going out again.
Apply cool washcloths to help relieve pain.
Give anti-inflammatory pain medications, such as ibuprofen, to reduce pain and tenderness.
Sprays and other products containing local anesthetics (such as benzocaine or lidocaine) that numb the skin may help some, but they may also cause skin rashes or irritation.
