Safety Tidbit 4.36 - Sunburn

Safety Tidbit 4.36 – Sunburn

Reference:        OSHA Webpage - https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3166/osha3166.html

I hope everyone made it through the heat wave okay. In the last Safety Tidbits, we talked about the temperature and how to protect yourself. How many of you enjoy the warm summer sunshine and like a good tan?

Note: There are no safe UV rays or safe suntans. Sunlight contains ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which causes premature aging of the skin, wrinkles, cataracts, and skin cancer. The amount of damage from UV exposure depends on the strength of the light, the length of exposure, and whether the skin is protected.

Skin Cancer

Sun exposure at any age can cause skin cancer. Be especially careful in the sun if you burn easily, spend a lot of time outdoors, or have any of the following physical features:

• Numerous, irregular, or large moles.
• Freckles.
• Fair skin.
• Blond, red, or light brown hair.

If you find such unusual skin changes, see a health care professional immediately.

Controlling Exposure

Engineering controls:

            Shelters - Stay under a room, Use portable shelter, tarps or umbrellas to keep the sunlight out.

Administrative Controls:

            Limit your duration of exposure. UV rays are most intense between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. If you're unsure about the sun's intensity, take the shadow test: If your shadow is shorter than you, the sun's rays are the day's strongest.

Personal Protective Equipment:

Skin - Cover up. Wear tightly-woven clothing that blocks out light. Try this test: Place your hand between a single layer of the clothing and a light source. If you can see your hand through the fabric, the garment offers little protection.

Head - Wear a hat. A wide brim hat (not a baseball cap) is ideal because it protects the neck, ears, eyes, forehead, nose, and scalp.

Eyes - Wear UV-absorbent shades. Sunglasses don't have to be expensive, but they should block 99 to 100 percent of ultraviolet radiation.

Last resort - Use sunscreen. A sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15 blocks 93 percent of UV rays. You want to block both UVA and UVB rays to guard against skin cancer. Be sure to follow application directions on the bottle. Remember: Swimming or sweating reduces sunscreen protection.

Hope this was helpful and thank you for reading my Safety Tidbits! Comments and questions are always welcome. ~ Bryan

P.S. If you have a new safety or health question, please let me know.