What Are the Best Ways to Protect the Skin From Summer Heat?

As seen in the July/August 2019 issue of Advancing Care.

We all know that the sun can cause sunburn, but it’s easy to forget that concrete surfaces, strollers, metal bleachers, slides and other play equipment also can burn sensitive skin after just one to three seconds of exposure.

“To test hot surfaces, touch them with your forearm, not your hand,” says Dr. Francis Winski, MD, a surgeon with expertise in both burn and plastic surgery at Westchester Medical Center, the flagship of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth).

Be especially wary with children. “People don’t realize that if you fall on hot concrete and don’t get up right away, you can get severely burned,” he says.

Sometimes, teenagers and young adults will “lay down at the beach for a few minutes, fall asleep for an hour and contract such acute burns that they require a trip to the hospital for pain control,” he says.

Regarding sunburn, despite widespread use of sunblock, Dr. Winski and his colleagues are seeing an uptick in sun-induced skin cancer cases involving 20- to 30-year-olds. He recommends using new UV protection clothing, including pants. And, he advises, “Wear flip-flops or water shoes around pools and at the beach.”

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