Sun-Protection Habits of Primary Students in a Coastal Area of Greece

• Published in: Journal of Skin Cancer Vol. 2012; no. 2012; pp. 139 - 147
• Main Authors: Saridi, M., Toska, A., Rekleiti, M., Wozniak, G., Liachopoulou, A., Kalokairinou, A., Souliotis, K., Birbas, K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Limiteds 01.01.2012; Hindawi Puplishing Corporation; Hindawi Publishing Corporation; Hindawi Limited
• ISSN: 2090-2905; 2090-2913
• DOI: 10.1155/2012/629652

Aim. The aim of the present study was to record habits and attitudes of primary school students in Greece regarding sun-protection measures. Materials and Methods. 2,163 students with an average age of 9.9 (±1.1) years, studying in 14 schools of a Greek region, constituted our sample. The SPSS 17.0 software was used for the statistical analysis and significance level was set to P≤0.05. Results. Our sample had an equal gender distribution. 16% of the students belonged to the high-risk group, 70.2% of the participants lived 0–5 km away from the sea (urban area), 84.2% of the students were Greek, and 15.8% had non-Greek nationality. Half of the participants said they wear a hat when under the sun and 72% of them said they use sunscreen. 33.1% of the students said they had a sunburn last summer. Greek students as well as those who lived near the sea had better behaviour patterns regarding sun protection. Finally, children who did not use a sunscreen systematically had suffered sunburns more often than the rest. Conclusions. Health education programmes are necessary for students and parents/teachers alike, in order to raise awareness about everyday sun protection.