Importance of the Sun for Child

Host: Is this that time of the year the sun is out and parents want the kids to play in the sun, and I knew you wrote an article one time call How to Summer Rise Your Child, what is that all about? Dr. Warren Seigel: Well, we think in the winter time of taking our cars to the mechanic to winter rise our cars. I think at this time of the year after kids spend the entire winter inside, in the cold, in gloomy days, the sun comes out and everybody is ready to go out and play. But there are some very, very important things that parents need to know and educate their kids about having fun in the summer. We think about the sun as being a wonderful thing to play in. And it's true, we have a great time, but some safety is really important. Kids really need to learn to put on some kind of protection with an SPF of at least 50 or greater and they need to put it on at least 15 to 20 minutes before they go out in the sun. The sun can do significant damage and we know everybody thinks that a tan is sign of health, but it's actually a sunburn and a tan, it's actually a sign that your skin has been burnt and we know that repeated exposure to sun and sun damage can be two things like wrinkles and a long-term can cause skin cancer. So it's really important that kids and parents be aware that part of sun safety really means using some sun screen, some sun block at least 15 to 20 minutes before they go outside in the sun. Host: A very common question like babies under six months old, the sun is not a good thing to get exposed. Dr. Warren Seigel: Kids under a year, I don't think should be in the sun at all. Certainly the younger year child the less on exposure they have. They can't regulate their body temperature well, their skins are very, very sensitive to the sun and they can have significant burn. Host: They can dehydrate pretty quickly. Dr. Warren Seigel: They shouldn't be out in the sun at all and if you have to take them out they have to be covered and you have to make sure to give them a lot of fluids because they will dehydrate very, very quickly and that can lead to long-term complications and actually can lead to death. Host: The other thing is they play a lot in the sun, good safety would be like if they are roller-skating and stuff they should have head gear, wrist protection, knee protection. Dr. Warren Seigel: One of the things that you need to do when you summarize your children is to talk about road safety. Kids are going to be on bicycles, they are going to be on skateboards, they are going to be out on the streets using their roller blades. They need to know that they must have a bicycle helmet, in many states it is illegal to be out bicycle without a bicycle helmet and the parents can actually give a fine. But it's just good safe bicycling to wear a helmet. But also remember that when you fall off even if you are wearing a bicycle helmet your elbows are going to scratched, your knees are going to scratched. So elbows and knees should be protected whether it's on bicycles or skateboards or inline skating. Host: If you go like walking your wooded area you've got to some like worry about ticks and other little bugs so what suggestion would you give for that? Dr. Warren Seigel: Well, you need to be completely covered, you need to be wearing long sleeve shirt which we rarely do during the summer, you need to be wearing long pants. One thing that kids also should be told specially when they are walking in the woods is they need to put their socks on top of their pants, it looks stupid, but it's much safer because those ticks can go right underneath the pants, even if they are wearing long pants and can bite them and can lead to some terrible diseases. Host: Okay, and if you do go in the woods, you come back, you inspect the body when they come back. Dr. Warren Seigel: You should be checking your child's body from head to toe including behind their ears, in between their toes, in between their fingers looking for very small animals like a tick, and if you find a tick, first thing I think you should do is call your pediatrician. But some people will have a kit at home that is a tick-remover which can help, but then call your pediatrician Host: And the last thing they go near a beach what kind of tips do you give if you go by the beach? Dr. Warren Seigel: The summer is really a serious times talking to children about swimming safety. They should never be in a pool, even if it's 18 inch or 24 inch pool in your backyard, kids should not be in the pool unsupervised, and that means by an adult, it can't be a six or seven-year-old sibling. Children should never be left anywhere where they could drown and they could drown in very, very small amounts of water. Kids should also be taught how to swim. Certainly by the time kid is two or three and you start toilet training your child, when they are toilet trained you really should think about rolling them in summer. It's all supervised swimming lessons. I think the earlier kids learn to swim, more likely they're going to enjoy the water and most importantly they are going to be a lot more safe. Host: In other words, enjoy the sun but think before you -- Dr. Warren Seigel: Enjoy the summer, but make sure that you are as safe as possible. Host: Thank you very much! Dr. Warren Seigel: Thank you!