Irish Set for a Sunburnt Summer

New research shows the Irish are still not taking sun protection seriously enough.

The shocking findings show that most of us would risk sunburn just to improve a holiday tan and half of us do not wear sunscreen. It comes as no surprise then that figures show 4 in 5 of us have experienced painful sunburn.

The survey of 2,000 adults also showed that:

• 45% use a sunscreen below the recommended minimum sun protection factor of 12.
• 50% admit to waiting until their skin feels hot before getting out of the sun.
• Over 50% admitted to staying out in the sun for too long, just to improve their holiday tan
• 30% said they would be disappointed to return home from a trip abroad without a sun tan.
• Half only use sun cream when on holiday
• 30% believe they are less likely to get burnt at home than when abroad

In addition, almost one third of people believed they were less likely to get burnt at home than when abroad. Consultant Dermatologist, Dr John Ashworth, said this is a myth. “You are actually more likely to do serious damage to your skin at home than abroad because people are conditioned to apply some sunscreen on holiday, but think it’s safe to sit out in the park for 45 minutes,” he said.

“If skin is burnt then people should be sun safe by staying out of the sun and using a hydrating treatment to soothe the area and to help repair the skin.”

The survey was carried out by AfterBURN Sunburn Rescue Gel, a specially developed treatment for sunburnt skin.

Posted Monday 14th July 2008