Are car window shades for a baby a necessity?

[Fagin99]

I'm due my first child soon and am currently panicking about things I may or may not have bought yet. One thing I've only just thought about are those window shades you sometimes see stuck onto car back windows to block out the sun.

What I thought would be a simple online purchase has led me down another rabbit hole and now I'm wondering if I need to bother at all.

I suppose I'd like to ask: are they a necessity for UV safety or just "nice to have?"

Thank you in advance from my tired brain!

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MNHQ

My baby now
Toddler hated the sun in his face. Winter sun. Summer sun whatever. We use carshades.com bought them to fit the windows specifically for my car. Easily to fit and they haven't fallen out yet 2 years down the line. You can also still open the window.

Depends on amount of driving, where and your car make and model - some have tinted windows. A tea towel trapped in the window works as an alternative

@lborgia thank god someone with actual knowledge.

I found myself massively frustrated at a woman the other week who won’t give her baby vitamin D drops but instead sits her out in the sun, and was showing off her very visible tan lines. I just couldn’t believe it, explained that tanning is skin damage, not just burning but when your skin changes colour from the sun it’s because it’s being damaged and trying to protect itself and not healthy at all.

She replied by stating that tanning is just her genetics and lack of sun can also cause melanoma (which in part may have some truth behind it but not as much as putting them in it!)🙄

Mine absolutely hates the sun on her face, so they’re a necessity for us. She’s nearly 2 now and even more dramatic about it. She’s starting to get the concept of closing her eyes and turning away but it’s not very comfortable for her so why wouldn’t I want to make it more so?

And I’m confused by those saying it’s only in the height of summer. March in the north west and we’ve needed them quite a few times this month already - and I’ve needed my sunglasses for driving too.

My son literally screams if the sun is bright and it gets in his eyes. It's super stressful and really unpleasant for them! The John Lewis ones that go over the top of the whole door are safe and worj brilliantly. I only have it on one side unless I want him to sleep and I can pop one over both sides! Total lifesaver!

@Suzi888

Of course you can burn through glass . IMO they’re essential. No one wants to have the sun blazing in their eyes and on their face on a boiling hot day, not even for ten minutes.

I've never heard of anyone getting sunburn through glass. A quick Google suggests that glass absorbs 70-100% of UVB which is the one which causes sun burn. Visible light is a different wavelength and can travel through, so that fact that you can see through glass doesn't mean you can burn through it too.

I never had window shades for my car and me or my children have never got so much as a slight tan from being in the car on a sunny day.

I ended up paying to get the back windows tinted. Bloody brilliant idea and no annoying shade things

Thank you everyone for your replies. I apologise if I caused any disagreement, and I appreciate all the viewpoints.

You're right, I am feeling overwhelmed so I'll try not to stress over this too, but it's great to have some options so thank you for all the recommendations. I don't do a lot of driving so thankfully don't need it on day one. Great tip about a muslin over the window if desperate though!

Thank you all.

@MadameDragon - I hope to God they take you advice, not to wade through misinformation, because you are utterly wrong.

FFS - what about this ?

Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology - "There was a significant left-sided predominance of nonmelanoma skin cancers, except in patients who used automobiles with tinted windows."
Link Here

Or this?

Up to 50 percent of UVA radiation can penetrate this glass and reach your exposed skin.

Oh, and "a quick google" is only as useful as the person doing it

I said UVB doesn’t pass through. I didn’t say anything about UVA.

I've never had them, but my cars have always had a dark tint on the rear windows so not much sun gets in anyways. If I didn't have a tint I would totally use them as the UV can be very damaging.

@KittenWithoutPortfolio

UV light cannot pass through glass, so please ignore the previous posters who might be alarming you. They really are nice to haves

UVA can't pass through glass but UVB can.

Nope because my car has tinted rear windows.

For us the sun was an issue so we've had limo tint fitted. It's brilliant, no problems since

Get the material ones that go over the whole windows the others are crap.

There’s a whole generation of Australians with very visible right sided face, hand and arm skin damage from UVA rays passing through driver’s side and windscreen glass. UVA rays penetrate your skin more deeply than UVB rays. UVA are the rays present on cloudy days.

I put on sunscreen to walk yesterday so yes, I would use them on baby’s side all year round. We’ve just paid for our new car to have the rear windows tinted dark for this very reason.

We didn't but our car has tinted rear windows.

I found I couldn't see through my back windows when manoeuvring, so they were a hazard. This was because my back windows are already tinted though.

You don't need to stress. The trip home from hospital doesn't need one and you won't be going out much in the early days. At a push, put the car window up with a muslin trapped in it so that gives a bit of shade. You can do the same putting a muslin over a pram hood.

I think the sock type ones are better too, they go all the way over and kids can't mess with them too much.

Never had them when we lived in the U.K. Abroad now and yes they are built in and always up from May until October!

Depends on the time of year. It was blistering hot and sunny everyday after DS was born so definitely a necessity then. Presumably you put the shade down at the front when you have the sun in your eyes? And the sun can get very hot an uncomfortable through a window. You would put a baby in the shade outside so why is within the car any different?

UV light cannot pass through glass, so please ignore the previous posters who might be alarming you. They really are nice to haves

Oh dear, not a good thing to presume. I believe certain rays don’t - like you can’t get vitamin d through glass from what I know you have to be outside for that (might be mistaken though) but you can most definitely get burned through glass and I’m sure it’s a thing where long time professional drivers have more extensive skin ageing (i.e. extra wrinkles) on the side of their face that’s by the window.

We always use them on sunny days in the car, my eldest is nearly 4 and has always been very light sensitive and cried and bothered if the sun was in her eyes in the car.

@MadameDragon

I said UVB doesn’t pass through. I didn’t say anything about UVA.

and implicit in that is "....and therefore you're fine".

You're not. So in posting half truths (and implying it's all that matters), you are giving OP bad advice.

We had stick on ones for ours. Worked fine. Now they're teenagers, DW's car has built in ones which you pull up and mine's got rear 'privacy' glass.

But back in the dark ages when I was a baby they hadn't even been invented, and my siblings and I are still here . . .