Caregivers' perspective regarding children's sun exposure and protection in Greece: an epidemiological study

Prolonged sun exposure during childhood has harmful effects and increases skin cancer risk. To record the views of parents/guardians regarding children's sun protection practices and risk awareness in Greece. A total of 2,042 caregivers with at least one child aged 0-16 years participated in the study, which was conducted in physicians' practices, through the completion of a four-section questionnaire in a single visit. The questionnaire was developed for the purposes of this study. Most caregivers were females (82.41% [95% CI: 80.67-84.01]), aged 35-39 (35.81% [95% CI: 33.74-37.93]) and university-educated (42.22% [95% CI: 40.07-44.40]). Paediatricians were their main (87.85% [95% CI: 86.36-89.20]) and most trusted (88.34% [95% CI: 86.88-89.67]) source of sun protection advice. Perceived knowledge was generally high, with 71.5% (95% CI: 69.5-73.41) of responders considering themselves well informed and over 80% acknowledging increased sun exposure from sand and sea reflection. Nevertheless, misconceptions were reported, regarding vitamin D and the need for direct sun exposure. Reported protective practices were frequent, particularly frequent sunscreen application (88.1% [95% CI: 86.63-89.45]) and re-application (70.7% [95% CI: 68.64-72.62]), staying in shaded areas (78.1% [95% CI: 76.27-79.86]), and using hats (75.8% [95% CI: 73.88-77.60]). Most caregivers preferred a sunscreen of SPF 50+ (68.2% [95% CI: 66.16-70.23]), purchased from pharmacies (72.8% [95% CI: 70.86-74.74]). Despite the above practices, 9.5% (95% CI: 8.27-10.84) of caregivers reported that their child had experienced sunburn the previous summer. These findings should be interpreted with the understanding that the study population was mostly well-educated and resided in urban areas, and that the data were self-reported. Caregivers in Greece demonstrate high awareness on sun exposure and protection and follow the general recommendations.