At IT`S LOVE THE SUN® we are concerned with the effect of the sun on our skin.

What can we safely do to protect ourselves and our children from the sun‘s radiation?

We should be aware that the sun‘s Ultra Violet (UV) radiation is not part of the spectrum of visible light. This means that we cannot observe directly how much dangerous UV we are being exposed to.

Generally, UV intensity increases the closer we move to equatorial regions, but high altitude regions also receive greater UV intensity due to a reduction in the protection afforded by the ozone layer.

The environment in which we find ourselves when exposed to the sun is also important. For example, snow reflects 80% of the radiation itreceives - dramatically increasing our UV exposure. This compares with 10% for normal grassy vegetation, 15% on beaches, and up to 25% on the sea.

We should take these variables into account, but the most effective and comfortable way to guarantee a safe UV dosage is to cover up, permitting us to relax and enjoy our outdoor activities.

What should we know about how UV radiation affects us?

When we are exposed to an excess of UV our skin can suffer photoaging forming areas of rough skin ("actinic keratosis") which can on occasion be premalignant and they can transform into a malignant cancer. Cancers are probably the most dangerous of the negative effects of the sun‘s UV radiation, and these are strongly related to having suffered sunburn - not only recently, but throughout our lifetime. Sunburn in early life will predispose our children to sun related cancers in later life - it is the cumulative dose over a lifetime that is critical - and for this reason it is so important to always protect our children adequately.

What is the best protection for my children?

To protect them correctly we have sunscreen creams and protective clothing. CREAMS should protect against both UVA and UVB, and suffer the inconvenience of having to be applied 30 minutes before

exposure to the sun, and then reapplied every two hours to guarantee their efficacy. They may also need to be applied after bathing or if they have been rubbed off during activity. Failure to take all this into account may leave us with a false sense of security - leading us to believe we are protected from the sun when in fact we are not. This is a particular problem with children. Furthermore, recent studies have demonstrated that very few of the creams commonly sold have the level of protection they advertise, a particularly serious situation that we should not ignore. Another option is to use GARMENTS WITH GUARANTEED SOLAR PROTECTION. These offer many advantages given that they cover and protect much of the body. IT‘S LOVE THE SUN® adopt this approach and place great care in choosing materials that offer the best protection, but also offer comfort whether dry or wet. We have developed unique designs - fruit of the collaboration between our research team andrenowned artist Alejandro Lucadamo - achieving garments that protect but that are also desirable, bright and modern.