Sun Protection Expert: Obamas Put Themselves, Children At Risk

Sept. 2, 2009 - PRLog -- In addition to putting themselves and their family at risk, a prominent sun protection author and activist says that during their recent vacation on Martha’s Vineyard President and Mrs. Obama missed an important chance to educate the country about the need for safe sun habits.
    “Skin cancer is being diagnosed at epidemic rates in our country,” says Mary Mills Barrow, the author of several books on sun protection. “It’s ironic that during a period when the health care discussion is focused on prevention, most of our prominent figures, including the Obamas, do not appear to know that they can protect themselves and help prevent this disease by wearing sun protection clothes.”
   Barrow said the steady stream of media images coming from Martha’s Vineyard showed the Obamas bicycling, swimming, walking on the beach and golfing, all activities associated with potential harmful exposure to the sun’s UVR rays.  “Only a few showed anyone in the family wearing sunglasses or hats.  None showed the children wearing sun protective clothing, which is actually now recognized as the most important method of protection by the American Academy of Pediatrics.” Barrow said.  
       Barrow said this is a health issue for people of all colors.  While skin cancers occur less often on dark skin, the lack of education about the disease in these segments of the population means that it is often diagnosed too late for a cure.  
       Many studies show that malignant melanoma is the fastest growing cancer affecting both sexes in the United States. The U.S. Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry reports that today the lifetime risk of an American developing is 1 in 68 individuals compared with 1 in 1500 individuals in 1935.  The American Cancer Society estimates more than 68,720 new melanomas will be diagnosed in the United States during 2009.
   “Skin cancer is almost entirely preventable,” says Barrow who created SunAWARE, an easy to remember acronym describing safe sun habits. “Experts, including the Amaerican academy of Pediatrics and American Academy of Dermatology and many others, agree that wearing sun protection clothing is the first line of defense against skin cancer. As role models, the Obamas could and should be leaders in the fight against it.”
       The SunAWARE acronym is endorsed by several organizations including the Dermatology Nurses Association (www.dna.org), the Children’s Melanoma Prevention Foundation (www.melanomaprevention.org), and Coolibar (www.coolibar.com). Safe sun habits described by SunAWARE are:
A – Avoid unprotected exposure at any time and seek shade
W – Wear sun protective clothing including a hat with a three inch brim and sunglasses
A-   Apply broad spectrum sunscreen with an SPF 30+ and reapply every two hours while exposed
R- Routinely check your skin and report any suspicious changes to a health care provider
E – Educate your family and community about the need for sun protection.
       Barrow is the co-author of “Sun Protection for Life” (New Harbinger Books) and “Pretty Prom” and “Lake Vacation” aimed at developing sun safe habits in teens and children.  These books were awarded the Gold Triangle by the American Academy of Dermatology for public service in 2005 and 2009. Barrow’s SunAWARE blog can be found at http://sunaware.org/blog/

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Not-for-profit activist in war on skin cancer epidemic. Provides material/education/support to schools and other organizations to educate public regarding safe sun habits. Creator of SunAWARE acronym endorsed by a number of leading cancer organizations.