The sun has got his hat on, but little Jimmy has not.

Every year between the end of May and the start of June it happens. We have the first patient of the year presenting us with a very sunburnt child of a varying age. Today's baby-mother had decided that her baby needed an, I quote "healthy tan." Quite why you would expect a child to need a tan of any description I know not. I surmise from the fact that this three-month-old child had pierced ears that it may be fashion related. I'm not sure how long the poor little fellow had been roasting in the sun- long enough that he was bright red and blistered. I referred him on to the out-of-hours service as he did not look very well at all. I imagine he'd need a little more than aftersun.

Tans seem to be in fashion at the moment. At the turn of the century it was fashionable to be pale and interesting. Having a tan at that point in time meant that you worked outside, not something to be aspired towards. When Coco Chanel made tanning fashionable, in the 1920s, foreign travel was prohibitively expensive. Having a tan meant you could afford to travel abroad. Now that you can fly on Easyjet to the south of France for £3 maybe that will change. The poor man can now as easily afford that golden glow as the rich man.

I will spend the next few months in silent amusement dispensing prescriptions to elaborately sunburnt patients. I think I'll stick to maintaining my programmer's tan
Many of my patients do not seem to understand the SPF system. Theoretically, if you apply it as recommended, a sun preparation with an SPF of ten means you can stay out for ten times as long as you can without sunscreen before you have problems. So, if you follow that logic, someone that normally burns in half an hour could stay out for 50x0.5=25 hours . Possibly not that useful on Earth where it'll be nighttime by that point. You are not really going to get a benefit in using anything with an SPF of higher than 15-20. Plus, higher SPF preparations tend to contain a higher concentration of UV filters and these can cause skin problems in some patients.
Using sunscreen has been shown to prevent squamous cell skin cancer. The evidence for the effect of sunscreen use in preventing melanoma, however, is mixed. Sunscreens that block both ultraviolet A (UV-A) and ultraviolet B (UV-B) light may be more effective in preventing squamous cell cancer than those that block only UV-B light. However, people who use sunscreen alone could increase their risk for melanoma if they increase the time they spend in the sun.

UV exposure increases the risk for skin cancer among people with all skin types, but especially fair-skinned people. Those who sunburn readily and tan poorly, namely those with red or blond hair and fair skin that freckles or burns easily, are at highest risk for developing skin cancer and would benefit most from sun protection behaviors. The incidence of melanoma among whites is 20 times higher than it is among black-skinned people
Observational studies indicate that intermittent or intense sun exposure is a greater risk factor for melanoma than chronic exposure. These studies support the hypothesis that preventing sunburn, especially in childhood, may reduce the lifetime risk for melanoma. So, "Little Jimmy" and his day in the sun today may cause problems for far longer than his parents might think. If you really need a tan then I advise you to get one out of a bottle and not from the sun or a sunbed. If you must venture outdoors then wear a big hat and don't sit outside in the sun between 10:00 and 16:00. Or, you could just sit inside and read blogs, that should work too. More information here.