Education

By Cathie Ericson

If you’re of, ahem, a certain age, you probably remember the days of “lying out” in the backyard covered in baby oil—maybe even lying on foil—all in pursuit of that coveted, bronze tan. Now, older and wiser, we’re still slathering ourselves up, but it’s with SPF 50. So how do you transform your hard-gained wisdom into some sun safety rules for teens?

Like our former selves, many teens will go to unsafe lengths to pursue a tan, from venturing out sans su...

Childhood and adolescence are critical periods in which exposure to UV radiation is more likely to lead to skin cancer later in life. When the UV is 3 or higher, sun protection remains important including throughout the teenage years.

UV radiation can’t be seen or felt which is why it is easy to be caught out. It’s not like the sun’s light or heat which we can see or feel. This makes the sun protection message challenging for teens as it’s not always obvious when sun protection i...

Sunface is a free facial aging app that lets you take a selfie and see what your skin will look like in the future based on your level of UV exposure.

By Susan Rinkunas



I get it, putting on sunscreen can feel like a chore. Despite the possibility of developing skin cancer from UV exposure, some people just can’t be bothered to use it on a daily basis, or even re-apply at the beach. But sun exposure doesn’t just increase cancer risk, it also leads to premature skin ag...

Gery P. Guy Jr, PhD, MPH1; Dawn M. Holman, MPH1; Meg Watson, MPH1

JAMA Dermatol. 2016;152(10):1083-1084. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2016.3453

Sun exposure in childhood is an important risk factor for the future development of skin cancer. The risk of developing melanoma is strongly related to a history of sunburns (an indicator of intense UV radiation exposure) during childhood and adolescence.1 However, skin cancer risk can be greatly reduced if children and adolescents are...