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Health Topics
Skin Cancer
School Health Guidelines
How You Can Help
Everyone can make a difference in helping young people adopt sun-safe
behaviors to prevent skin cancer. If you are a parent or guardian,
student, teacher, athletic coach, school administrator or board member,
health care provider, or anyone else who cares about the health of young
people, here are some steps you can take.
Everyone Can
- Support school policies that reduce exposure to ultraviolet (UV)
radiation.
- Encourage school administrators and board members to support skin
cancer prevention programs and policies that reduce exposure to UV
radiation.
- Set a good example by demonstrating sun-safe behaviors, such as:
- minimize exposure to the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- seek shade from the mid-day sun when possible.
- wear clothes, hats, and sunglasses to protect the skin.
- use sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or more.
- avoid sunlamps and tanning beds.
- Tell young people about the importance of sun-safe behaviors.
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School
Administrators and Board Members
- Adopt, communicate, enforce, and monitor policies to reduce exposure
to UV radiation.
- Identify and, when appropriate, change existing policies that might
deter skin cancer prevention (e.g., bans on wearing caps).
- Design new school buildings with adequate shade coverage next to
play and sports fields.
- Provide shade by planting trees.
- Use athletic, band, and physical education uniforms that reduce
exposure to the sun.
- Provide inservice training and health promotion programs for faculty
and staff that address sun safety.
- Recognize teachers, staff, and students who practice sun safety.
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Teachers and Coaches
- Use curricula that follow CDC's Guidelines for School Programs to
Prevent Skin Cancer and the national standards for physical education
and health education.
- Integrate sun-safe lessons into health education and other subject
areas.
- Remind students to practice sun-safe behaviors.
Parents and Guardians
- Encourage your children to adopt sun-safe behaviors.
- Make sure your children have the clothing, hats, sunglasses, and
sunscreen needed to participate safely in outdoor activities.
- Participate actively with the Parent/Teachers Association to address
the need for sun-safe school policies.
- Seek resources to support environmental improvements on school
property.
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Students
- Set goals for adopting sun-safe behaviors and monitor your progress.
- Encourage friends and family members to practice sun-safe behaviors.
- Encourage the student council to advocate for school policies that
reduce exposure to UV radiation.
Health Service Providers
- Promote and reinforce skin cancer prevention practices during
check-ups.
- Assess patients’ sun exposure patterns and counsel youth with
sunburns and their parents on sun-safe behaviors.
- Deliver presentations about skin cancer prevention to students,
families, and school staff.
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