Researchers call for mandatory Sun Safe clothing in preschools

James Cook University researchers are calling for mandatory sun-protective clothing standards at preschools after a multi-year study comparing mole counts on more than 500 under four-year-olds.

The number of pigmented moles is one of the most important risk factors for melanoma, explained Dr Simone Harrison, Director and Principal Research Fellow of JCU’s Skin Cancer Research unit.

“While almost all preschool centres mandate sun-safe hats (such as bucket, broad-brimmed and legionnaire style hats) and sunscreen, we wanted to see what effect sun-protective clothing had on the risk of developing pigmented moles,” Dr Harrison said.

The researchers provided children at 13 childcare centres in Townsville with high Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) hats, elbow-length T-shirts, knee-length shorts and protective swimwear, and monitored the number of moles that appeared on the children. They then compared these with children at 12 other childcare centres.

“Children where the clothing was provided had 24.3 per cent fewer new moles overall and 31.6 per cent fewer moles on clothing-protected skin after 3.5 years,” Dr Harrison shared.

The study is the first to show that it is possible to prevent a significant proportion of pigmented moles in young Caucasian children by dressing them in UPF 30-50+ clothing that covers at least half their body on a daily basis.

“Although Australians have been exposed to 40 years of skin cancer prevention campaigns, the most recent statewide survey conducted in Queensland in 2020 revealed 45 per cent of children had been sunburnt during the previous year, with about 33,000 of these children experiencing five or more episodes of sunburn in 12 months,” Dr Harrison explained.

Previous research has shown a single episode of sunburn during childhood is sufficient to almost double the likelihood of developing melanoma in the future.

“Increased clothing cover is recommended for children exposed to high levels of ultraviolet radiation. In addition, industry standards for sun-protective clothing should specify the minimum amount of the body the clothing must cover in their definition of what constitutes sun-protective clothing,” Dr Harrison added.