Summer Safety and Health

The Summer Sunshine Review

Your best protection against the sun is to cover yourself up.

Wear a hat with a three-inch brim or a bill facing forward. (Yeah, you look much cooler with the hat on backwards, but it doesn’t work as well.)

Summer clothing should be light-colored and lightweight. Limit yourself to one layer of absorbent material to help sweat dry.

If you’ve been working outside and your clothes are loaded up with sweat, change into some fresh dry clothes.

Use sunglasses with a UV-protective coating.

· Stay in the shade whenever you can and reduce sun exposure during from 10 am to 4 pm. That’s when the sun’s at its most harmful.

· Use a sunscreen with an SPF (sun protection factor) of 15 or more. Don’t skimp when you put it on.

· Reapply every two hours, or right after swimming or sweating.

· Be extra careful near water and sand; they reflect UV rays and you catch a whole lot more of them.

Summertime, Summertime

You’re at a family party. The sun sets, the sky darkens, and you’re finally safe from one big summer hazard: skin cancer. Zzzzzz. Uh-oh. Where’s that coming from? Why don’t bugs come with blinking lights? We might stand a chance if we could see where they were.

Whether you’re at a family party, minding your kids or grandchildren, or walking through woods or a grassy field as part of an inspection, there are some things you can do to minimize exposure to bugs and bites.

· Avoid areas where insects nest or congregate, such as stagnant pools of water, uncovered foods and gardens where flowers are in bloom.

· Don’t use scented soaps, perfumes or hair sprays. This is especially true of putting them on children.

· Avoid dressing in clothing with bright colors or flowery prints.

· If you get stung, remove a visible stinger from your skin by gently scraping it off horizontally with a credit card or your fingernail.

· Avoid combined sunscreen/insect repellent products. Sunscreen needs to be reapplied every two hours, but the insect repellent should not be reapplied.

· Insect repellents containing DEET are most effective against ticks and

mosquitoes, and can prevent Lyme Disease.

· The concentration of DEET in products may range from less than 10 percent to over 30 percent. The benefits of DEET reach a peak at a concentration of 30 percent, the maximum concentration currently recommended for infants and children. DEET should not be used on children under 2 months of age.

Little children are especially tender targets for insects and they’re the most vulnerable to the chemicals we use to repel bugs.

The amount of DEET in any product can vary a lot. If you buy an insect repellent and plan to use it on yourself or some little member of the family, read the label. You may need to buy a magnifying glass first; warning labels can be small, real small. Once you can read it, take the warnings seriously