Why are you letting your children get burnt?

[GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal]

At a large park and keep seeing fair skinned, blonde/ginger children, running around with no tops going increasingly lobster pink.

Mine are olive skinned with dark hair and eyes, but are still covered up and have factor 50 and hats on. I wouldn't have thought I was an especially protective mum, either.

Ok, I shouldn't judge, but it just looks so sore.

35 degrees here today. We went to the beach. 3 year old in a full swim suit and sun cream. Older two in their
Costumes with T-shirt’s on and suncream. We left by mid day

None of mine are burnt. They understand why they need to cover up

I agree kids should wear tops - I think everyone should in public anyway! There are some very vigilant responses on every suncream thread. FWIW I have blonde children and we are all very fair but I apply factor 50 a couple of times a day, hats go on and off intermittently and I’ve never enforced indoor time between 11 and 3. If it’s incredibly hot out we would probably all go inside regularly anyway and gravitate to shade. My children have never burnt here or abroad. I always make sure we have some sun exposure every day with no suncream on at all for the vitamin D as well.

My dd3 9 got burnt today on a school holiday club trip to the seaside. I wasn't there as I was at work. I packed factor 50 and a hat and long sleeves but she was in and out of the water, even though I asked to keep putting it on. If u saw her you'd think I was to blame being her parent and all.

I’m beyond paranoid that my dd will burn. She’s plastered in factor 50 all day she’s out in the sun and I keep a hat on her. She has her dad’s skin and without adequate protection would burn in a minute.

I don’t tend to keep her out in the direct sun, always try and find some shade

"My dd3 9 got burnt today on a school holiday club trip to the seaside. I wasn't there as I was at work. I packed factor 50 and a hat and long sleeves but she was in and out of the water, even though I asked to keep putting it on. If u saw her you'd think I was to blame being her parent and all."

No, if I'd seen her I'd have thought, "ouch, poor kid, burnt in spite of long sleeves and a hat, unlucky."

An 18 month old topless with burnt shoulders is a completely different matter.

Ive just been to the shop and there was a mum with a primary age son absolutely scarlet front and back. They were talking to another family both quite proud of it and Mum said "He'll be nice and brown when we go on holiday next week." I judged, I judged hard.

Also, my DCs are olive skinned but I am not - I know what sunburn looks like because I've had it. The tops of his ears and the tops and backs of his shoulders were burning, as were those of a few other kids I saw. No idea if they were all from the same family or notvv

Why are so many PP focussing on the fact that some people go pink? The OP surely knows that, she's talking about sunburnt shoulders.

I come from a country where skin cancer is prevalent and people have been keeping out of the sun for the last 20 years. I'm regularly surprised by Brits wanting to sit in the sun (and people act like I'm being difficult if I don't want to)

I coat my DC in suncream but at four my kid already has a tshirt tan this summer and I'm upset that I have allowed even that to happen.

My DS is 18 months, blonde and olive skinned.
Always has factor 50 on (applied several times throughout the day) and wears a hat.
He hasn't worn a top today as he was just too hot. I made sure that he was playing in the shade (kept moving his toys round the garden!) and he hasn't got burnt.
I don't want to judge the kids you saw with no top on as my DS suffers terribly with the heat, always has. But there is no excuse for not putting sun cream on them.

We are on holiday in Southern Spain. DS has knee length board shorts, long sleeved rash vest and legionnaire’s hat on plus factor 50.
He’s just about changed colour on his face and legs.
YANBU
Sunburn not worth risking in a child.

I saw a pic social media earlier of 7 month old baby and a 1 year old in paddling pool with no hat on just a swim outfit , in the blazing sun 🤦‍♀️

Why are so many posters here upset about their children having a tan?

Ds1 is 2 and is fair with blond hair. He goes really red in the face when he’s hot, and gets hot easily in warm weather as he’s always running around. He’s always covered in factor 50 and has never been sunburnt but it does look that way when he’s red in the face. We’ve had a few comments on it and I hate that people think I’m letting him get burnt.

But what are you meant to do OP when you have a child who refuses to wear a hat or clothes and actually has the ability to remove them themselves?!

In all honesty, it's been that bloody hot today I wouldn't have taken a baby out in it!!

I got regularly sun burnt as a child. It wasn’t an issue. Becoming overheated due to being over dressed in the other handcaused vomiting, fainting, blood noses and headaches for a lot of children (grew up in Australia so it was hit enough for this kind of stuff to happen really often. My children don’t burn (at least I e never left them out in the sun long enough for it to happen) but I don’t judge parents of children who do. I burn after 20 minutes in the sun and will either throw up or pass out if I overheat. I have pale skin and sun cream has no effect so the only solution is clothing but I often overheat even while wearing the bare minimum. Their children may be the same.

Oh and obviously eczema is common in children and is triggered by sweatiness. I would sooner risk a mild sun burn than eczema flare up.

Can't wear sunscreen due to it aggravating eczema and at over thirty degrees, not a good idea to be in long sleeves and a hat.

I live in the middle east and my blue eyed blonde haired boy does not leave the house without a hat and long sleeved top on. He swims in a full suit with a swim cap.

Of course I bring him back to scotland and his grandmother was in charge, shoved him outside in a shirt and he got sunburnt arms! I was heartbroken

A tan is skin damage
https://www.who.int/uv/faq/uvhealtfac/en/index2.html

I'm a KS1 teacher. Hardly any children come in wearing / with suncream or hats. Many also don't have water bottles.

I judge.

How hard is it to pop some suncream on?

I manage to put suncream on both DDs (both KS1) every morning before dropping them to breakfast club. It's not hard - it's bloody essential!!

I’ve only ever seen English kids in those awful rash tops/suits and hats with the flaps

We are crazy about suncream. Of course an 18mth old shouldn’t be sunburnt. But there is a definite scale and rash tops, factor 50, hats and shade are way over the top

We're not in uk and sun safety is drummed into the kids at school. My 4 yo knows slip slap slop - slip on a T-shirt, slap on a hat and slop on some suncream. They are both covered from 11-4 and usually inside between 12-2. It's a whole thing in the uk with people not reacting to the sun appropriately. The number of my adult friends that have posted sun burnt photos of themselves today is astounding. Sunburn is awful.

@trotesio, I judge people walking around sucking on water bottles all day like babies

I grew up abroad in tropical hot countries, we never took water to school with us. You had a drink with breakfast, water fountain at school and a drink at lunch.

Nobody dies from dehydration if they don’t constantly have a water bottle with them. It’s a horrible habit fuelled by bottled water companies

Some people really are too stupid to have children. Poor kids will be in agony with burnt skin.

Solar Buddies Refillable Sunscreen Applicator - For Children & Adults. Fill With Sunscreen Of Choice https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06XBPB9T4/ref=cmswwrcppapiii_WK3nDbERWHH3P

I always recommend these - the dc can do their own suncream top ups with a minimum or fuss and mess.