Sunny days ahead

You already know that sunscreen is an all-seasons superhero, protecting your kids from the sun’s super-strong rays. Here are a few additional tips that will help you to keep your child’s tender skin safe during the sunny days ahead.
Clothes calls. It sounds like the stuff of which science fiction novels are made, but you can now find SPF ratings of SPF 50+ on a surprising range of clothing items for kids as well as adults. To make sure that the item in question will protect your family from the sun, look for the Canadian Dermatology Association’s logo as proof that the item in question has been rated through the CDA’s Sun Protection Evaluation Program (SPEP).
You missed a spot. It’s easy to miss a spot when you’re slathering on the sunscreen—not the obvious areas, like your child’s arms and face, but out of the way bits and pieces like the tops of her feet, the tips of her ears, and the back of her neck (unless her hat protects this area). A hat provides the best protection for the scalp, as well as the face, head, neck, and ears. To protect your child’s eyes, rub lip balm with a minimum SPF of 15 around your child’s eyes (this works better than sunscreen, which tends to get rubbed into the eyes) and then pop on a pair of wraparound sunglasses that provide 100 percent UV ray protection. While you’ve got the lip balm out, apply some to your child’s lips. Reapply every hour when you’re in the sun.

• Ann Douglas is the author of numerous books about pregnancy and parenting, including The Mother of All Parenting Books. Read her new blog—The Mother of All Parenting Blogs—at ParentCentral.ca.