Summer is here! It‘s time to remind ourselves to stay safe and take precautions to deal with hot weather. You need to take good care of yourself and your children to protect from the sun’s heat. In this article, we share a few summer safety tips for children and adults; make sure you and your family follow them for a safe and fun filled summer.
Summer safety tips for children
Summer is a time when schools are closed and children are in a very happy mood. One thing that they like most is to play outside the house or in parks. They will be so active and engrossed in playing that they don’t even care if they are sweating, thirsty or hurt. But, as parents we should monitor our children while playing and protect them from sun.
- Keep your child hydrated and make sure you give him/her plenty of water to drink every day.
- Make it a habit to give fluids like glucose water and fruit juices such as lime juice, sugarcane juice, butter milk, to prevent dehydration.
- To protect your child’s skin from harmful ultraviolet rays, make them wear a hat, sunglasses with UV protection and apply low SPF sunscreen lotion on the exposed parts.
- Try to avoid children play at mid-day (11 am to 4 pm) when the sun’s rays are strongest. Let them play where there is shade.
- Dress your children in cottons or hosiery and make sure the clothes they wear are light coloured and loose fitting.
- It is necessary that you give your child a bath with lukewarm water twice a day. It keeps them fresh. After bath apply mild talcum powder all over the body (especially armpits).
- Avoid sun exposure for babies younger than six months old, keep them out of direct sunlight. Dress them in protective clothes and remember not to apply sunscreen on babies younger than six months.
Summer safety tips
- Protect yourself from getting burned. Cover up with clothes, wide-brimmed hat and UV sunglasses. Prefer wearing clothes that are of pastel (light) colours, lightweight (better to prefer cottons), and loose-fitting clothes.
- Drink enough fluids/juices, if you see a fresh juice centre stop by, have a glass of juice (make sure the juice shop is hygienic) or better prepare juice at home.
- Drink water regularly throughout the day. Ideally, one should drink at least 2 to 3 litres of water per day. Don’t leave home without a bottle of water.
- Limit yourself from drinking alcohol and coffee (caffeine) beverages. Because drinking too much of these beverages may cause dehydration.
- Avoid sun exposure when it’s at its hottest (11 am to 4 pm), during this time the sun’s UV rays are damaging to your health and skin. It is advisable to plan your outdoors later in the evening.
- Use sunscreen with SPF of 15 or higher that has both UVA and UVB protection. Apply sunscreen 15-30 minutes before going out in the sun and also when it is cloudy. Make sure you apply on the exposed parts of the body and reapply after every 2 or 3 hours.
- Avoid eating fried items completely; it can be very harsh on the stomach, causing digestive problems. Better to avoid them as much as possible. Instead have ice-creams to beat the heat.
- Maintain good hygiene in summer. Take bath with warm water twice a day. Apply prickly heat talcum powder all over the body. Wash your hands regularly or use hand sanitizers especially before eating and after going to the toilet.
- Use antiperspirant deodorants.
Share your tips
If you have any tips that we have missed out, please feel free to share them with us. If the tips are really helpful, we will surely add them in this article. In our next article, we will discuss about food and beverages to take during summer. Until then, keep reading and sharing with your friends and relatives.