Health Unit Kicks Off Second Annual "Sun Hats for Kids" Campaign

FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2007

To promote National Sun Awareness Week from May 28 to June 3, the Sudbury & District Health Unit and its community partners kicked off the second annual “Sun Hats for Kids” campaign today at O’Connor Park, 140 St. George Street. The campaign kick-off educated children about the risks associated with being exposed to the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays.

According to the Canadian Cancer Society, there has been a 30 per cent increase in skin cancer compared to 10 years ago. Children are more at risk of sun-damaged skin because a child’s skin is thinner, more sensitive and therefore less protected from the harmful UV rays of the sun. This means that the more time children spend unprotected in the sun, the higher their risk for developing skin cancer down the road. April Grenon, a public health nurse with the Sudbury & District Health Unit, suggests that teaching and reinforcing sun safety strategies with children, and incorporating them into all outdoor play and leisure activities, is an important way of preventing burns and long-term skin damage.

Over 270 wide-brimmed sun hats have been donated and Sudbury Steam Cleaners dry cleaned them. The hats were distributed at the campaign kick-off to encourage children to wear them at all times when they’re outside. Through various activities, children taking part in the “Sun Hats for Kids” launch learned the importance of practising sun safety strategies every day.

The winner of the 2007 “Ugliest Schoolyard Contest” was also announced. A panel of judges from the City of Greater Sudbury’s VETAC committee chose Pinecrest Public School from 13 contest participants as a school with great need and an ongoing commitment by staff, students and parents to improve the schoolyard environment. This innovative contest reinforces and supports local efforts to provide shade for children in schoolyards through planting trees and shrubs, thereby reducing the risk of ultraviolet radiation from the sun’s rays.

According to the Canadian Cancer Society, skin cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer in Canada, accounting for about one-third of all newly diagnosed cancers. It can take from 10 to 30 years to develop skin cancer as a result of exposure to UV rays. Frequent severe sunburns and intense sun exposure in childhood increases the risk, so early prevention is very important.

For more information about the “Sun Hats for Kids” campaign kick-off, or to learn more about sun safety, please contact April Grenon, public health nurse, at the Sudbury & District Health Unit.

-30-

Media Contact:
April Grenon, Public Health Nurse
(705) 522-9200, ext. 455