Barriers to Practicing Sun Protection

Julia Siegel, MD is a Board-Certified Dermatologist at Boston Dermatology and Laser Center.

In this video, Dr Siegel discusses patient barriers to practicing sun safety and how to overcome them by focusing on education and promoting easier sunscreen access.

TRANSCRIPT-

Dr Julia Siegel:  Everyone knows that they should be protecting themselves from the sun, but they don't necessarily know why. I think that makes people less motivated to do it. One of the biggest things is spreading knowledge and educating our patients about the risks of sun exposure and the risks of, in particular, blistering sunburns.

I used to work with IMPACT Melanoma, which is a New England foundation. We would do this program at high schools where we would present about the importance of sun protection. The students were always shocked when we would say things like, "Five or more blistering sunburns in between age 15 and 20 increases your risk of melanoma by 80%."

No one would ever think of that, so people don't even realize those risks. Then, also, access to sunscreen, like we've been talking about, is important. Sunscreen's expensive, no matter where you buy it. Even if you're just buying it in a Target, it's still expensive if you're trying to keep a family covered for a full day of outdoor activities.

Then, especially if you go on a vacation, and particularly if you're going to islands where it's having to be imported, then it's really marked up. People aren't buying as much because they've already spent a lot on their vacation. They're trying to budget, and they end up getting burnt, so improving access in that way.

Also, improving people's use of sun protective clothing is important and then also addressing the beauty standards. Tan, for a long time, has been considered beautiful. A lot of people want to look tan. They think it makes them look thinner. They like it better. They don't realize the implications of that for something like photoaging.

The same people who care about their looks, wanting to look tan, also don't want to be developing wrinkles earlier than they need to. There's a lot of different angles we can come at it, but it's important to educate people and to improve access.