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Shaded Nation

Shaded Nation – Shade Sails

Don’t let sunburn ruin your outdoor fun

After months of wet, windy and downright miserable weather, the UK finally got a bit of sunshine over the bank holiday weekend.

With such glorious hot and sunny conditions, it’s understandable that people wanted to spend as much time outside as possible.

What’s more, being out in the fresh air is a great way to spend time with friends and family and can also boost your sense of wellbeing.

However, this can easily be spoilt if you don’t take precautions against sunburn. A recent study of residents in Queensland, Australia found that an alarming number of people don’t do enough to protect themselves from the dangers of the sun.

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research and Queensland Health discovered that one in eight men and one in 12 women in the Australian state got sunburnt on an average weekend.

While warm countries such as Australia see more sunshine, these findings are still relevant to places like the UK where sunbathing is a hugely popular and potentially dangerous activity.

The survey also discovered that people aged 18 to 24 are seven times more likely to suffer sunburn than those over 65. The chances of someone aged 35 to 44 getting burnt are five times more common.

Dr Peter O’Rourke, one of the report’s authors, said the time lapse between people getting sunburn and developing skin cancer may mean individuals are failing to appreciate the risks.

“You don’t get sunburnt and then the next day develop skin cancer, there are several decades of lag and it is often difficult to associate, when you are young, that these things are going to happen to you years later.

“The consequences are not obvious at the time of the behaviour,” he stated.

Mr O’Rourke added that people may need to be constantly reminded of the dangers of sunburn and the benefits of staying protected.

An easy and practical way to limit the harmful impact of the sun is to install a shade sail, which can block as much as 98.8 per cent of UV rays.


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