Wristband that warns us:That’s enough sun

A WRISTBAND has been developed that could help us enjoy the sunshine safely by telling us when we have soaked up enough rays.

The cheap plastic band contains a coloured ink that reacts with the sun’s harmful rays, causing it to disappear after the wearer has been in the sun for the maximum recommended length of time.

The device measures UVB rays, which cause 80 per cent of skin cancer cases.

Parents can protect their children further by putting sun cream on the wristband, which will then mimic how the skin reacts to sun when covered in sunscreen.

It would also be able to ‘recharge’ overnight as the dye is not permanently destroyed by the sunlight, The Guardian reported. It will even come in three versions for different skin tones.

The device, which has been devised by UK researchers is expected to go on sale in time for summer next year, at a cost of between £5 and £10 for enough disposable bands for a two-week holiday.

The idea for the wristband arose after experts found that the fear of skin cancer caused by UV rays stops some people from venturing outside at all, and so depriving themselves of vital vitamin D.

Dr David Hazafy, of Queen’s University Belfast’s school of chemistry and chemical engineering, who developed the wristband, said it would help to tackle the problem of vitamin D deficiency.

‘People are quite scared of getting skin cancer so they don’t go out at all. They cover themselves and then there is a problem with vitamin D deficiencies,’ he said.

‘You need a little bit of sunshine to create vitamin D. If you don’t go out at all because you think the sun is dangerous, you don’t get it.’