Assessing sun protection practices for children: knowledge and behaviours of parents

Abstract Background The development of melanoma in adulthood is strongly associated with sunburns during childhood. Parental knowledge and behaviours play a key role in sun protection behaviour from which children can acquire general and integrated learning patterns. With this being known, numerous positive preventive health behaviours can be initially shaped in the family, with children having parents as a model. Methods A cross-sectional approach (web-based questionnaire) was conducted to gather information regarding parents’ knowledge and behaviours of children’s sun protection, alongside the predictors that might influence the adoption of these behaviours, between April and May 2021. The survey was disseminated to 53 primary school teachers from 9 schools in Cluj-Napoca Romania, and the data set included 355 valid surveys (parents with at least one child aged between 0 to 12 years old) out of 476 total surveys. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests of association and logistic regressions were computed. Results The study showed differences in children’s sun exposure patterns, their sunburn and parental sun protection behaviour. Overall, parents reported fair sun protection behaviours and children’s sunburn frequency was overall moderate among all children in the previous summer season. However, an increase in children’s age generates an increase in parents’ sunscreen application for their children in both planned and incidental situations. There were statistically significant associations between parents’ sex and their knowledge about the fatal consequences of skin cancer or their level of education and the damage produced by tanning bed usage or sunscreen efficiency measures. Conclusions These results are a starting point for various program interventions that can be done for parents in order to increase their knowledge on sun protection practices for their children. Key messages • Skin cancer is substantially preventable if unprotected exposure to ultraviolet radiation is reduced during the first years of a child’s life. • Parental knowledge and behaviors play a key role in sun protection behavior from whom children can acquire general and integrated learning patterns.


Background:
The development of melanoma in adulthood is strongly associated with sunburns during childhood. Parental knowledge and behaviours play a key role in sun protection behaviour from which children can acquire general and integrated learning patterns. With this being known, numerous positive preventive health behaviours can be initially shaped in the family, with children having parents as a model.

Methods:
A cross-sectional approach (web-based questionnaire) was conducted to gather information regarding parents' knowledge and behaviours of children's sun protection, alongside the predictors that might influence the adoption of these behaviours, between April and May 2021. The survey was disseminated to 53 primary school teachers from 9 schools in Cluj-Napoca Romania, and the data set included 355 valid surveys (parents with at least one child aged between 0 to 12 years old) out of 476 total surveys. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests of association and logistic regressions were computed.

Results:
The study showed differences in children's sun exposure patterns, their sunburn and parental sun protection behaviour. Overall, parents reported fair sun protection behaviours and children's sunburn frequency was overall moderate among all children in the previous summer season. However, an increase in children's age generates an increase in parents' sunscreen application for their children in both planned and incidental situations. There were statistically significant associations between parents' sex and their knowledge about the fatal consequences of skin cancer or their level of education and the damage produced by tanning bed usage or sunscreen efficiency measures.

Conclusions:
These results are a starting point for various program interventions that can be done for parents in order to increase their knowledge on sun protection practices for their children.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, individual and collective public health measures were undertaken to control the spread of the virus. Their effectiveness relies on people's abilities to understand and adopt the correct behaviors. This study aims to evaluate the role of Health Literacy (HL) in influencing the adherence to Covid-19 preventive measures and risk perception of a sample of workers employed in various activities involving close contact with the population in the province of Prato (Tuscany, Italy) in the second pandemic wave (November-December 2020). A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample of public workers (e.g., teachers, educators, assistants/aides, other health personnel). Data on knowledge, attitudes and practices towards (KAP) Covid-19 preventive measures and risk perception were collected. HL was measured with the HLS-EU-Q6 tool. Spearman correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between HL and KAP and Covid-19 risk perception. Multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to evaluate the role of HL in predicting KAP and Covid-19 risk perception, adjusted for sex, age, comorbidity, educational level, country of birth. A total of 402 people participated in this study; 47.8% had a problematic HL level. The HL level was correlated with KAP and practices towards Covid-19 prevention measures; no significant associations were found with Covid-19 risk perception. In multivariate models, HL significantly and positively predicted a higher level of knowledge of Covid-19 preventive measures (B = 0.413 for problematic HL; B = 0.542 for sufficient HL). Confirming a previous study conducted in Prato in the first pandemic wave, HL did not predict adherence to Covid-19 infection control measures, probably due to fear of the disease and attention towards prevention behaviors being still higher in the second pandemic wave.