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 “Outdoor sports and being active are important for kids to be
healthy globally, but we need to balance that with taking reasonable
steps to prevent skin cancers,” Dr. Ian A. Maher told Reuters
Health.
Maher worked on the pilot study at Saint Louis University in
Missouri.
Sunscreen, sun protective clothing and finding shade can all help
reduce sun exposure, he said.
“We wanted to know if we put money into these shade structures,
would kids use them,” Maher said.
The researchers observed kids at a summer soccer camp in Richmond,
Virginia over two weeks. Shade tents donated by Virginia
Commonwealth University Medical Center and the Sun Safe Soccer
program of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery were placed
within 10 yards of the field.
Kids weren’t told whether they should use the shade tents. They were
given frequent five- to 10-minute rest periods during each session.
On average, about 71 percent of kids used the shade tents during
rest periods. During the first week, when the weather was sunnier,
98 percent of kids used the tents.
Campers in their mid to late teens were less likely to use the tents
than younger kids, according to findings published in JAMA
Dermatology.
“The results of this study suggest that if a culture of being 'sunsmart'
is put in place that people will use it,” said Dr. Robert S. Kirsner,
chief of dermatology at the University of Miami Hospital in Florida.
He was not part of the new study.
The Florida Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery offers
free shade structures to several schools in the state, and similar
programs may be in place elsewhere, he told Reuters Health by email.
The tents cost between $100 and $150 at sporting goods stores, Maher
said. Currently, some parents provide the tents at games and there
may be one or two available at a tournament.
Ideally, he said, these tents will become a part of standard soccer
team equipment, alongside balls and uniforms.
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“This is a fairly cheap, common sense step to reduce the amount of
sun exposure,” Maher said.
He has had success with a program in Missouri in which local
businesses pay for and sponsor the tents.
Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the U.S. and the
deadliest forms are caused by exposure to ultraviolet light,
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“You get the majority of your sun exposure before 18 years of age,
when you spend a lot more time outdoors than as an adult,” Maher
said.
Soccer, especially, is a very exposed sport, he said. Baseball
players wear caps and have dugouts for shade breaks and football
players wear helmets, which offer some sun protection.
“Soccer teams should develop a culture of being 'sunsmart' ranging
from practicing and playing at off peak sun times, if possible,
wearing sun protective clothing and applying and reapplying
sunscreen, and if possible using shade,” Kirsner said.
“Coaches, parents, family members and other spectators are also at
risk, and thus should also take efforts to reduce excessive sun
exposure,” he said.
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1eFUc6O
JAMA Dermatology, online July 30, 2014.
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