NEWS RELEASE
PR 1774
For Immediate
Release
18 June 2004
The great
clothing cover-up
PHOTO
OPPORTUNITY
BATH & North East
Somerset Council is using Child Safety Week (June 21-27) to remind
parents of the need to protect their children from the sun.
Children’s
delicate skin burns easily, causing pain in the short term and the
possibility of serious illness in the long term.
Most parents
believe that an ordinary T shirt will give as much protection as
high protection sun block.
However, members
of Avonsafe – a group of local safety experts which includes Bath &
North East Somerset Council – is warning parents not to rely on
normal clothing giving worthwhile protection.
Sue Green, the
Council’s Health Development Officer and Chairman of Avonsafe, said:
“Bath & North East Somerset Council is urging parents to follow the
advice issued by Sun Smart – the UK’s national skin cancer
prevention campaign which is to stay in the shade between 11am and
3pm, make sure you never burn, always cover up, remember to take
extra care of children and use factor 15 + sunscreen.”
However, a recent
survey of clothing likely to be worn on the beach showed that
children’s T shirts can offer as little as the equivalent of factor
seven protection – even less when the T shirt is wet.
The survey by
South Western Trading Standards Departments – which Bath & North
East Somerset Council’s Trading Standards Team took part in – has
shown that ordinary clothes usually provide less protection than
even the weakest children’s sun block.
Only clothing that
is specifically designed to give extra protection will give real
security against damage from the sun’s rays.
Roger Pope, the
Council’s Principal Trading Standards Officer, said: “Look out for
clothing labelled as manufactured to EN13758 - it’s easily spotted
by the distinctive logo, and gives protection equivalent to factor
40.”
Neil Simpson,
Consultant Paediatrician at the Child’s Health Department of Bath &
North East Somerset Primary Care Trust, said: “Young children need
to be protected against the sun’s rays.
“Keep them out of the sun in the middle of the day, especially on
sunny foreign beaches. And don’t forget to follow the Sun Smart
code!”
Notes to Editors:
Photographers are
invited to come along to the Trading Standards offices at 9-10 Bath
Street in Bath on Monday, June 21 at 2.30pm when officers will be
illustrating the do’s and don’ts of sun protection.
For more
information, contact:
Sue Green, Health Development Officer, on Tel: 01225 477508 or
e-mail sue_green@bathnes.gov.uk
Jeremy Parsons,
Trading Standards Officer, on Tel: 01225 476751 or e-mail jeremy_parsons@bathnes.gov.uk
For comment, contact:
Cllr Vic Pritchard, Executive Member for Community Safety and
Housing, on Tel: 01275 333159 or e-mail vic_pritchard@bathnes.gov.uk
Issued by: Bath & North East Somerset Press Office, tel 01225 477827
or 477283, email: pressoffice@bathnes.gov.uk |
