With skin cancer "epidemic," try these safe ways to protect kids from sun

By Katie Leslie

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

When Kristin Pierce became pregnant with her first child two years ago, she morphed into Mother Earth: she researched everything from what to clothe him in, to what to clean her house with, to the safest and most nutritious foods. The blonde fair-skinned woman also set out to protect him, and her subsequent daughter, from inheriting her battle with skin cancer.

"I am scared for them, because I know that skin cancer is genetic; and having a mom with as many skin cancers as I've had, and a dad with some as well, I know it’s probably in their future,” she said. “Anything I can think of to do, I do it. Whether it’s sunscreen, hats or clothing with UVB protection built into it – you name it.”

Pierce said she tries to take the most organic route in raising her kids, a challenge when it comes to using sunblocks, which often contain unpronounceable chemicals. And when researching those products, she read reports that wearing sunblock can inhibit the body's ability to produce Vitamin D, a fact confirmed by the American Academy of Dermatology.

But for Pierce, who follows AAD's advice to seek Vitamin D sources in food and supplements, instead of the sun, the reality of skin cancer is far worse.

"I do think the information about Vitamin D, of all that I’ve read, is right on," she said. "But the harmful effects of what sun can do, especially to skin as sensitive as mine and my children’s, really outweigh the risks."

The incidence of skin cancer has reached epidemic proportions, said Dr. Amy Kim, a dermatologist with Atlanta-based Metropolitan Dermatologic Surgery and an educational spokesperson for The Skin Cancer Foundation.

One in every five people now has some form of skin cancer, most commonly basal cell and squamous cell, she said. Some 80 to 90 percent of those cases are related to ultraviolet ray exposure from the sun or indoor tanning. And research shows a connection between the number of sunburns a child has and her risk of getting skin cancer later in life, she said.

Kim added that the lifetime risk of getting melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, has increased with recent generations.

"When people were born in 1900… They had a lifetime risk of one in 2,000. In 1950, one in a 1,000," she said. "Basically babies born now have a one in 60 risk."

In 2010 alone, an estimated 68,000 people will be diagnosed with melanoma and nearly 9,000 will die from it, according to the National Cancer Institute. Kim explained that the reasons behind the increase in skin cancers include tanning bed use, longer lifespan and that people wear more revealing clothing than in previous generations.

The best protection against developing sun-related skin cancers is easy, but getting people to comply is difficult, she said.

"We still deal with people who don’t want to put it on. I think the biggest problem I run into is that they’ll put it on and don’t reapply it," she said. "People should be going through sunscreen bottles regularly. One bottle shouldn’t last all summer."

Sun Safety Tips

• Regardless of ethnicity, use a broad-spectrum sunblock with a minimum SPF 30.
• Use at least a shot glass-full of sunblock with each application, and at least 30 minutes before going outdoors.
• Reapply every hour and a half to two hours, and after swimming or vigorous exercise.
• For parents concerned about chemical-laden sunblocks, Kim recommends brands such as Blue Lizard, a titanium-based chemical-free sunblock.
• With heavy sunscreen use, supplement diets with Vitamin D-fortified foods and daily vitamins.