Sun habits in the children of Southern Italy.
Skin cancer represents an increasingly worldwide public health problem. Because an estimated 50% to 80% of the skin's lifetime sun damage is thought to occur in childhood, it is during this critical period that excessive sun exposure is considered a risk factor for later development of skin cancer. Our objective was to investigate sun habits of children of Southern Italy. The population was a randomly selected sample of 800 parents of children who attended primary schools in Campania between December 2005 and September 2006. Interviews were conducted using a questionnaire, which provided information about sociodemographic characteristics, parents' knowledge about the risk of skin cancer, their level of education, and their and their children's sun-protection and sun-exposure habits. Our results show that 45% of the children were exposed to the sun less than 2 hours a day; it is important to notice that 71.2% often stayed in the sun from 11 am to 4 pm. About 40% of children had sunburns during holidays. These data show that prevention should imperatively be emphasized for improving sun-protection and sun-exposure habits.
Balato
Nicola
N
Department of Dermatology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy. balato@unina.it
Gaudiello
Francesca
F
Balato
Anna
A
Monfrecola
Giuseppe
G
D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D006184:Habits; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D012307:Risk Factors; D013471:Sunburn / Q000453:epidemiology; D013472:Sunlight / Q000009:adverse effects; D013473:Sunscreening Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors
D013473:Sunscreening Agents