Evening star., 1935-07-17
'Sparing Use
|OfSun nUrged
For Children
Exposure Should Be
According to Doc
tors Orders.
BY ANGELO PATRL.

A FEW years back we discovered
the sunlight and since then we
have been using it to excess, burning
children's skins. injuring their eyes,
doing the foolish things.
A child's skin is sensitive. It burns
easily and the pain Of sunburn Is hard
to bear. It does skin no good to
be burned. A burn is an injury
and there is no way that one can
interpret injury as helpful. The sun
shine is good for children, for every
body; but, like all good things, only
in moderation.
Ask your physician about the sun
baths before you begin giving them
to your little child. We take too
much for granted in this matter Of
treating children. 1t takes skilled
physicians a lifetime to learn some
of the things they tell mothers to
do for their children, yet some people
think health and hygiene of child
hood are such simple matter that
anybody with a heart knows it by
instinct. A heart is most essential.
would not question that. But where
children are in question am anxious
| until I see that there is a head in
charge of the heart. A good head will
prevent the mistake of stripping an
infant and exposing it to full sun
, Shine until it is badly burned.
Ask the physician who knows about
children and do as he says about
giving them sunbathS. All children
cannot profit by the same program
of sunbathing. No two children are
alike and even in the matter of bath
ing-be it in the sunshine, the sea or
| the ub-t the differences must be
maintained to protect the health Of
the children.
1t is not good to allow any child
to lie with the sun full on his eyes.
| OF course he closes them, but that
is not going to prevent trouble. Screen
his eyes, put light cap on his head,
expose him only Tor the time allowed
| by his physician. The time differs
with the child, the hour. the atmoS-
phere, the place. All this must be
taken into consideration before giving
a sunbath. Otherwise, don't give IL.
Let the child go about fully dressed,
and with hat on his head, unless
you have careful directions from the
physician who understands the child
in question.
Fresh air on the skin is fine. What
| good will the fresh Air do If the child
cuts his foot on bit of broken glass
or a sharp edged clam shell? Or
scratches his legs on blackberry hriars?
| Or is bitten by flies and mosquitoes?
| Or gets poison ivy rash? Wouldn't
a pair of stockings and sandals be
better under the circumstances? One
ought to use ones head in such mat
tiers. Don't you think so?
The beach is likely to have bits Of
glass and shell strewn in the sand.
A pair of light sandals will protect
! the child'S feet. He can do without
stockings, as there are no brambles.
But if there are mosquitoes, stockings
| help. If he runs on a lawn that
has been swept and cleared Of cut
ting edges of stones and glass and
broken rubbish he can go barefooted,
Se sure there is no poison ivy
E N he edges. He will always
II ing the edges and that is where
this pest likes to grow best.
Summertime ought to be the hap
piest season for the children, and
it can be if one is Just a bit more
cautious about seemingly simple things
like sunshine and fresh air and ivy
poisoning.
(Copyright 1935)