Skin Cancer and Sun Safety

I know it’s a little early for this but since the weather has been so warm in most parts of the county and it is getting closer to summer, I thought I’d share some links on skin cancer and sun safety.  It’s never too early to start protecting yourself.

So you think a tanning bed is safer than being out in the sun?

For information on tanning equipment, visit the EPA website:

http://www.epa.gov/radtown/tanning-equipment.html#resources

Skin cancer treatment: sources of authoritative information

There are many kinds of treatments available depending on the type of cancer.  For melanoma, the options are surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and biologic therapy.  For more information on all aspects of melanoma, visit http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/skin/patient/

For basal cell carcinoma information, visit http://www.cap.org/apps/docs/reference/myBiopsy/SkinBasalCellCarcinoma.pdf

 For treatment information on Merkel cell carcinoma, visit http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Sites-Types/merkel-cell

Squamous cell carcinoma treatment information can be found at http://www.cap.org/apps/docs/reference/myBiopsy/squamous_cell_skin_cancer.pdf

Treatment options vary widely depending on the type of cancer and the stage of the cancer.  It is important to ask your doctor proper questions in order to make an informed decision about your treatment.  The previous links provide authoritative information on the various types of cancer.

For more information on all aspects of skin cancer, visit the MedlinePlus skin cancer page at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/skincancer.html#cat3

Types of Skin Cancer

To see what Basal Cell Carcinoma looks like, please visit the following website from the American Academy of Dermatology:

http://www.skincarephysicians.com/skincancernet/basal_cell_carcinoma.html

To see what squamous  cell carcinoma looks like, please visit the following website from the American Academy of Dermatology:  http://www.skincarephysicians.com/skincancernet/squamous_cell_carcinoma.html

To see what melanoma looks like, please visit the following website from the American Academy of Dermatology: http://www.skincarephysicians.com/skincancernet/melanoma.html

To see what Merkel cell carcinoma looks like and for more information, visit the following web site from the American Academy of Dermatology:  http://www.skincarephysicians.com/skincancernet/whatis_merkel_cell.html

Skin Cancer Self-Examination and Prevention

It is important to protect yourself in order to prevent skin cancer or to find it early.  For a great sheet with instructions for skin cancer self-examination, check out:  http://www.melanomamonday.org/documents/08_96%20Melanoma%20Monday%20Mole%20Map.pdf

For more information on protecting kids from the sun, visit http://kidshealth.org/parent/firstaid_safe/outdoor/sun_safety.html

With the overwhelming amount of sun protection products, it’s important to understand what all those claims mean.  The FDA is in the process of finalizing its long-awaited label changes to sunscreens.  One of those changes would be that no sunscreen would have higher than a 50 SPF.  All those claims of high SPF numbers and all the other claims can be very confusing.  To find out more information on sun protection and sunscreens, visit http://www.medicinenet.com/sun_protection_and_sunscreens/article.htm

Have you seen all those ads for special sun-protective clothing and wondered if it’s worth it?  Here’s a great article from the Mayo Clinic answering that very question:  http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sun-protective-clothing/AN01975

The CDC has some great information on skin cancer and covering up when out in the hot summer sun.  Although the campaign has officially ended, they still have a lot of great information available online.  Check out these sites:

Choose Your Cover Campaign Materials

Brochures

Sunscreen for Your Sun Day [PDF-248KB]

Play It Safe in the Sun: A Guide for Parents [PDF-147KB]

Choose Your Cover [PDF-85KB]

Bullying Awareness

Bullying has become a big problem in this country.  There are many kinds of bullying from cyberbullying to bullying people with special needs and more.

Not all children show warning signs of bullying but here are some warning signs that may show that your child is being bullied:

- Unexplainable injuries

- Lost or destroyed clothing, books, electronics, or jewelry

- Frequent headaches or stomach aches, feeling sick or faking illness

- Changes in eating habits, like suddenly skipping meals or binge eating. Kids may come home from school hungry because they did not eat lunch.

- Difficulty sleeping or frequent nightmares

- Declining grades, loss of interest in schoolwork, or not wanting to go to school

- Sudden loss of friends or avoidance of social situations

- Feelings of helplessness or decreased self esteem

- Self-destructive behaviors such as running away from home, harming themselves, or talking about suicide

For more information on bullying, including how you can help your child if they are being bullied, visit these web sites:

www.stopbullying.gov

Bullying: It's Not OK (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Helping Kids Deal with Bullies (Nemours Foundation)

Avoiding Bullying (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Cyberbullying (National Crime Prevention Council)

Bullying (MedlinePlus Health Topic)

Some Great Parenting Links

It’s a challenge to be good parents.  There are so many things to think about when raising children.  Below are some parenting topics with links to some useful, authoritative information.

Helping Children Cope With Crisis

If your child has experienced a crisis in their life, they may exhibit some warning signs that parents should be aware of.  The following changes or behaviors may be signs of a problem:

- Clinging behavior

- Fears that won’t go away

- Nightmares

- Bedwetting

- Difficulty paying attention

- Jumpy, edgy

- Behavior problems in school

- Headaches, stomachaches, or dizziness for no known reason

- Sad or less active

- Always talking about or acting out a disaster

- Irritability

- Changes in eating behavior

- Decrease in academic performance

For more information, visit:

Helping Children Cope with Crisis: Just for Parents (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)

Talking to Children about Terrorism and War (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)

Sometimes it’s hard to find the right words when you need to talk to your child about certain subjects.  Here are some links to information to help you:

Talk to Your Kids about Sex (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)

Talk to Your Kids about Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)

Teaching Your Child Self-Control (Nemours Foundation)

General Parenting Links:

Effective Parenting (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Learn Some Positive Parenting Tips (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Parents: ABCs of Raising Safe and Healthy Kids (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Positive Parenting (Nemours Foundation)

Parenting MedlinePlus Health Topic

Food Allergy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires food manufacturers to list ingredients on their products.  They also require food allergy labels for the eight most common ingredients that trigger food allergies.  The eight foods listed below account for an estimated 90 percent of allergic reactions.  The eight foods are:
 
- Milk
- Eggs
- Peanuts
- Tree nuts (such as almonds, cashews, walnuts)
- Fish (such as bass, cod, flounder)
- Shellfish (such as crab, lobster, shrimp)
- Soy
- Wheat

All domestic or imported packaged foods are labeled with an allergy warning if the product contains one of the above allergens.

The label lists the type of allergen, such as soy or wheat.  (see photo below)

It is very important to pay attention to these labels if you have food allergies.  Food allergies can cause serious illness or death.

Here are the most common symptoms of food allergy:

- Tingling or itching in the mouth

- Hives, itching or eczema

- Swelling of the lips, face, tongue and throat, or other parts of the body

- Wheezing, nasal congestion or trouble breathing

- Abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting

- Dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting

Treatment

The only way to avoid an allergic reaction is to avoid the foods that cause signs and symptoms. However, it is almost impossible to totally avoid all foods that cause allergies so if you have a reaction, you will need treatment.

For a minor allergic reaction, over-the-counter or prescribed antihistamines may help reduce symptoms.

For a severe allergic reaction, you may need an emergency injection of epinephrine and a trip to the emergency room.

For more detailed information of treatment and food allergies in general, check out these web sites:

Food Allergy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Treating an Allergic Reaction (Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network)

Have Food Allergies? Read the Label (Food and Drug Administration)

Tips for Managing Food Allergies (Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network)

Food Allergy (MedlinePlus Health Topic)