SOME 430,000 more Australian adults are getting sunburnt on the weekend than they were four years ago, according to new research by Cancer Council.
Findings from Cancer Council’s National Sun Survey suggest the downward trend in adult sunburn since 2003-’04 has hit a hurdle, with adults potentially becoming more complacent about the dangers of excessive exposure to UV rays.
Cancer Council National Skin Cancer committee chair Vanessa Rock said the latest data shows that on a summer weekend, roughly 2.4 million Aussies were getting burnt.
“This means that compared to four years ago, about 430,000 more Aussie adults are getting burnt and putting themselves at risk of skin cancer,” she said.
The data is a wake-up call for the government to re-invest in national mass market skin cancer prevention campaigns to ensure adults remained vigilant about skin cancer, Ms Rock said.
“While this latest research demonstrates the number of Australians who were getting burnt is still significantly lower than 10 years ago, the recent increase is cause for concern,” she said.
“The survey suggests men in particular are neglecting sun protection, with 18 per cent getting burnt on the weekend, compared to 12 per cent of women.”
Ms Rock said possible explanations for the higher rates of sunburn included an increase in the amount of time adults spend outdoors during peak UV periods.
“Our survey indicates adults are spending more time outdoors in peak UV times than four years ago, increasing their chances of getting sunburnt,” she said.
“We also know that 18 per cent of adults didn’t protect their skin from the sun when they spent more than an hour outside during summer.”
Ms Rock said almost all skin cancers were caused by UV exposure, so it was important to remind people that skin cancer was largely preventable and encourage them to take simple steps to lower their skin cancer risk.
“Slip, slop, slap, seek and slide,” she said.
