Helpful hints for family life You don’t have to go red first to suntan...

After a largely disappointing spring, the bank holiday weekend brought with it the warmest weather of the year so far. A chance, therefore, to sun bathe – and get sunburn! Here are five sunburn myths that could be putting your health at risk…

1. The UK and Irish sun isn’t strong enough for sunburn ‘The sun can be strong enough in the UK between mid-March and mid-October to burn you,’ says Karis Betts, senior health information manager at Cancer Research UK. ‘You’re most likely to get burnt in the middle of the day, when the sun is at its highest point, not necessarily its hottest.’ UV rays are generally strongest between 11am and 3pm.

2. You have to go red before you go brown

Not true at all. ‘This is one of the biggest myths in sun protection, and it contributes to skin damage and skin cancer cases,’ says Abi Cleeve, MD of Ultrasun UK. ‘The fact is that as soon as the skin reddens, it’s in trauma. A ‘trauma tan’ occurs from inadequate protection where the skin appears to tan more quickly, but hasn’t – it has burned. This only ensures that the skin peels, leaving the skin tan-less in days.’

3. The odd sunburn doesn’t make a difference

‘This is something I hear a lot but unfortunately, it’s just not true,” says Betts. “Damage to our skin from the sun is the number one cause of melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer.’ That’s why wearing sunblock is crucial – even more so for children.

4. People with darker skin don’t get sunburnt

While people with lighter skin tones are generally at higher risk of sunburn and skin cancer, you should still use sunblock if you’ve got darker skin or a tan.

5. Aftersun products repair the damage done by sunburn

‘No, they don’t,’ says Cleeve. ‘While aftersun products may soothe the unpleasant symptoms of sunburn, they won’t fix any damage that was done to the DNA inside your cells.’