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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to feel a bit cross with all the people I can see with horrible sunburn - including their kids ...

99 replies

Weegiemum · 31/05/2009 20:23

At 4pm I walked to the shops with my 3 dcs - all slathered in suncream, hats on, sunglasses, ds (fairest of them) even in a SPF 50 swimming tshirt.

Almost every other adult I saw, and half of the children, were scarily lobster red. Some of it might have even been from yesterday!

This is Glasgow - we don't get a lot of sun. But AIBU to think people are ridiculous to have their small kids (some were smaller than mine - my dd2 is 5) out in it all day with little or possibly no protection.

BTW if you think IABU making my kids walk to the shop in the heat we bought ice lollies while we were there!!

OP posts:
nancy75 · 31/05/2009 20:26

no yanbu, this is a pet hate of mine too. i have olive skin that never burns and my dd has it too, but she never goes out in the sun without being smothered in cream, it takes 5 minutes. if adults want to burn themselves to a crisp thats their own stupid fault but to not bother with kids suncream/sum hat is just bloody lazy.

Blondeshavemorefun · 31/05/2009 20:34

yanbu

i HATE seeing burnt children

it really annoys me when i see the adult in sunglasses, strappy top etc

yet the child/toddler doesnt have a hat/parasol etc

and normally look red, hot and burnt

Mspontipine · 31/05/2009 20:34

My mum applied my sun cream this week on hols - you would think she would be efficient enough sadly no - now peeling on back vest armhole area.

Lovely!!

My son got caught a bit - we're such whities - but was gone by next day. We did slip slap slop most of the time but still got caught out. Sadly good intentions are no protection :-(

doulalc · 31/05/2009 20:35

Can't for the life of me figure out what IABU stands for... but no, you are not being unreasonable. Many people either are not properly informed (which in this day and age is difficult to imagine) or choose to ignore the facts regarding sun damage and protection. Parents especially need to understand that the sun damage their children experience during childhood can have direct effects to their risks when they are older.

It may be partly due to human nature....no one thinks anything bad will happen to them because it always happens to someone else. They don't always realise that to other people, they ARE the someone else!

Sadly, as with many things, habits don't often change until either someone themselves, or someone they love, has a major health concern because of it.

Curiousmama · 31/05/2009 20:36

yanbu it's scientifically proven that skin cancer is caused by young burnt skin.

doulalc · 31/05/2009 20:37

Ahhh, ok, got the IABU....

Curiousmama · 31/05/2009 20:37

it's I Am Being Unreasonable doulac. She said if you think IABU....

roisin · 31/05/2009 20:37

Stacks of burned people here. It's very shocking in this day and age.

Morloth · 31/05/2009 20:40

Adults - I don't care.

Kids - I am really shocked that their parents don't care.

My neighbours all think I am mad. Boy is in full sun suit, sunscreen on exposed bits and a legionnaire's style hat. So many kids at the park and paddling pool today either naked or just pants on. Ouch.

nickytwotimes · 31/05/2009 20:40

YANBU at all.
I always feel really sorry for very small kids especially.

nancy75 · 31/05/2009 20:40

i do think that maybe we need more sun warnings of some kind, as obviously the message is not getting through. mp dp is australian (and the whitest gingerest person in the world)even he has never been burnt because they are force fed from a very young age dont go out without suncream.

CarGirl · 31/05/2009 20:41

This morning loads of children in buggies and most of the didn't have the hoods up to offer them some shade let alone, shade a babes or parasols grrrrrrrrr

Original poster
Weegiemum · 31/05/2009 20:42

I am partly feeling bad for my dh who is working this evening in A&E, and dealing with a swine flu area, who has about a dozen cases of sunburn lining up for treatment .. some are blistered!

My children have never been sunburnt, evenwhen we took them to Central America! I really feel like there's no excuse.

(although they have had the occasional sausage roll and fruit shoot!)

OP posts:
abraid · 31/05/2009 20:46

Sometimes people make mistakes. I'd be very careful that you are perfect parents before you come over all judgmental. What are your menus like? Are your children overweight? Do they ever eat junk food? When did you last read to them? Have you ever driven your children while taking a call on your mobile? When you bathed your children as babies, did the water ever go over their faces and scare them? Did you breastfeed for six months exclusively?

badgermonkey · 31/05/2009 20:47

No, YABU. I am the whitest person in the world, but I sat out in the sun all day and am just the tiniest little bit pink, because I put on lots of suncream. No need to get burnt - it's not like the sun's come out unexpectedly in the middle of the day and caught people by surprise.

golgi · 31/05/2009 20:48

As a PP said - I took mine to the paddling pool the other day (UV suits, hats, suncream) and felt like "overprotective mum" as many of the other kids were running about in pants (or nothing)

My mum is always telling me how she never put sunscreen on me as a child, how I used to get burnt every year (well thanks mum, if I get skin cancer I'll know who to blame). To be fair I'm not sure they'd invented sunscreen in the 70s.

poopscoop · 31/05/2009 20:48

YANBU - but the only thing is that some sunshine is needed for skin to be healthy and although it is good to use sunscreen, we must be careful not to go overboard with panic that every ray of sunshine will kill our children.

FluffyBunnyGoneBad · 31/05/2009 20:50

I'm with you on this aswell. I took ds to the park today, (hat, sunscreen, t-shirt etc), I was at the amount of people half dressed and looking like lobsters. Why do this to themselves??? People should listen to advice, cover up, put sunscreen on, wear a hat and drink plents. It's not hard. I really do fail to see what's so attractive with burnt skin! It's also not a good example to set children.

abraid · 31/05/2009 20:50

Actually it IS possible for children to get burned, even if you think you've been careful. My daughter was playing in the sea in a legionnaire's hat and UVF sunsuit from Australia. As she jumped up and down the sunsuit rose about 1cm up her legs and she got burned there (she is very pale). We didn't notice this was happening at the time and we felt terrible when we realised: really, really awful. We had done all we thought was necessary but we hadn't expected the sunsuit to rise up like that. What would you like us to do: flagellate ourselves?

TheOtherMaryPoppinsDiets · 31/05/2009 20:51

YANBU.

No excuse in this day and age for not being aware of the risks of sun damage.

Do what you want to yourself as an adult, but babies and children cannot make the choice to protect themselves, so be responsible so they don't have to suffer skin cancer in later life. Sure they won't be thanking their parents for that

At DC nursery they won't let them out to play if they have no sun cream and sunhat which is the way it should be.

Overmydeadbody · 31/05/2009 20:53

YANBU

It's not hard to rub a bit of sun cream in at the begining of the day and then quickly reapply it every once in a while.

Red burnt skin is not an attractive look.

littlelamb · 31/05/2009 20:53

I am burnt. Totally my fault, we were at the beach all day yesterday and I was too busy making sure the dc were properly covered to even think about reapplying my suncream I considered going out completely covered up today as I knew people would be looking. It's my own stupid fault, and I'm living with the back that feels on fire. Judge away

Morloth · 31/05/2009 20:53

abraid there is a vast difference between a missed spot and a child that is lobster red from nose to toes. Which is what I saw a bit of today and I assume what the OP is referring to.

The tops of my feet always get burned, because I am a dummy and always forget to do them. I don't however think well the top of my feet are burned so I might as well not bother with anywhere else.

Hormonesnomore · 31/05/2009 20:56

YANBU. There is no excuse. I am like a boiled lobster a bit pink today but I would never let my children get sunburned.

Ninkynork · 31/05/2009 20:56

God I saw a family last week in the scorching heat when we visited a farm, so they were obviously going to be out for a while. Three boys between about 3 and 8 years old, blonde, shaven-haired and fair-skinned as you like with no hats or tops on. They may have been wearing sunscreen, I couldn't tell, but I doubt it. Poor kids.

And one boy was called Harley which my MIL thought fit to pull her judgey-face at