Skin care is something that everyone — young, old, and in between — should take seriously. And the earlier you get your children to adopt and stick to a good skin care routine, the better it will be for them. Whether because of excessive sun exposure, lack of proper care, or skin sensitivities, lots of skin problems can occur if you don’t take proper precautions. So you need to protect your kids’ skin and inform them of the importance of being vigilant on this front.
In order to give you the tools you need, what follows are some tips to protect your kids’ skin.
Sun Protection
Skin protection is critical year round, but it takes on even greater meaning during the summer months when your children may be out and about in the great outdoors quite a bit. While the warm weather can provide ample opportunities to get exercise, you need to be aware of the potential problems of too much sun exposure, namely sunburn, tissue damage, and rashes. Here are some tips that are specific to protecting your kids’ skin from the sun:
- Apply sunscreen — the water-resistant variety — to your children’ skin at least half an hour before they go out into the sun, and ensure that the solution has a sun protection factor rating of no less than 30.
- Since sunscreen will potentially wash away from water or sweat over time, be sure to reapply sunscreen to your kids regularly. Once per hour should be sufficient.
- Use extra sunscreen that has titanium oxide or zinc oxide on your kids’ lips and nose regions since those parts of the body are more at risk if over exposed to the sun.
- Dress your kids in clothing with sun-protection properties. For instance, you can get clothing that lists the ultraviolet protection factor.
Skin Maintenance
Too much sun exposure can definitely wreak havoc on your children’s skin, but so too can a lack of proper maintenance. That’s why your skin care plan for your little ones should include tips to nourish and maintain healthy skin — which will prevent many problems from materializing. What follows are some things you can do to help your children keep their skin healthy:
- If your kids have dry skin, then what you need to do is find a way to moisturize it. Fortunately, there are some natural remedies you can use to achieve this goal. For instance, you can put a few drops of essential oils like geranium, myrrh, or sandalwood into mineral water or distilled water for a soothing moisturizing mist. These essential oils can, among other things, eliminate dry skin and prevent sun damage.
- There are lots of skin care products — soap, skin cream, and other things — that can help your children to protect and nourish their skin. You will, of course, have to do due diligence when it comes to finding the right protect for your children.
Skin Sensitivities
If your children have sensitive skin — that is, skin that reacts adversely to different things it comes into contact with — then you will need to take this into consideration. For instance, some people have sensitive skin when it comes to ingredients in different types of soap or cream. Here are a few suggestions to help you protect the skin of children with sensitive skin:
- Babies, as you likely already know, have very sensitive skin. So it’s best to keep kids who are less than half a year old out of the sun. Applying sunscreen to babies could irritate their skin, so it’s best to avoid taking any unnecessary chances.
- Giving your kids too many baths could remove natural oils, which will leave their skin unprotected. So if your children have sensitive skin, you might want to consider reducing the number of baths you give them each week to three or four times per week rather than daily. And it also helps to steer clear of harsh soaps that can strip the skin of its natural oils.
- Steering clear of scented detergents can help your children who have skin sensitivities. Making the switch will cut down the odds of irritation. While you’re at it, opt for unscented versions of fabric softener, bathing soap, skin lotion, and more.
Protecting your kids’ skin is important, but you also need to ensure that they know how to do it themselves and that they understand why it’s important. The earlier you teach them proper skin care habits, the better off they will be. These tips will get your moving in the right direction.