Personalised electronic messages to improve sun protection in young adults

The incidence of all skin cancers, including melanoma, continues to rise. It is well known that ultraviolet (UV) radiation is the main environmental risk factor for skin cancer, and excessive exposure at a young age increases the risk of developing skin cancer. The aim of this study was to determine the acceptability and feasibility of delivering sun protection messages via electronic media such as short message services (SMS) to people 18-40 years, and explore factors associated with their acceptability. Overall, 80% of participants agreed that they would like to receive some form of sun protection advice; of these, 20% prefer to receive it via SMS and 42% via email. Willingness to receive electronic messages about the UV index was associated with being unsure about whether a suntanned person would look healthy and greater use of sun protection in the past. Careful attention to message framing and timing of message delivery and focus on short-term effects of sun exposure such as sunburn and skin ageing should increase the acceptability of such messages to young people. We conclude that sun protection messages delivered to young adults via electronic media appear feasible and acceptable

Comparing the effects of sun exposure and vitamin D supplementation on vitamin D insufficiency, and immune and cardio-metabolic function: the Sun Exposure and Vitamin D Supplementation (SEDS) Study

BACKGROUND Adults living in the sunny Australian climate are at high risk of skin cancer, but vitamin D deficiency (defined here as a serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentration of less than 50 nmol/L) is also common. Vitamin D deficiency may be a risk factor for a range of diseases. However, the optimal strategies to achieve and maintain vitamin D adequacy (sun exposure, vitamin D supplementation or both), and whether sun exposure itself has benefits over and above initiating synthesis of vitamin D, remain unclear. The Sun Exposure and Vitamin D Supplementation (SEDS) Study aims to compare the effectiveness of sun exposure and vitamin D supplementation for the management of vitamin D insufficiency, and to test whether these management strategies differentially affect markers of immune and cardio-metabolic function. METHODS/DESIGN The SEDS Study is a multi-centre, randomised controlled trial of two different daily doses of vitamin D supplementation, and placebo, in conjunction with guidance on two different patterns of sun exposure. Participants recruited from across Australia are aged 18-64 years and have a recent vitamin D test result showing a serum 25(OH)D level of 40-60 nmol/L. DISCUSSION This paper discusses the rationale behind the study design, and considers the challenges but necessity of data collection within a non-institutionalised adult population, in order to address the study aims. We also discuss the challenges of participant recruitment and retention, ongoing engagement of referring medical practitioners and address issues of compliance and participant retention. TRIAL REGISTRATION Australia New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry: ACTRN12613000290796 Registered 14 March 2013

Predicting the cognitive correlates of sun protective behaviour : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University

Previous research has explored the cognitive correlates of sun protective behaviour and has found that intention to use skin protection is likely to affect an individuals decision to use such behaviour. Other research has used social cognition models such as the Theory of Planned Behaviour to predict the use of sun protective behaviours with mixed results. The present study examined sun protective behaviour on beaches in New Zealand (n=80) and used a modified version of the Jones, Abraham, Harris, Schulz & Chrispin (1998) model of sun protective behaviour to predict sunscreen use. This modified version of the model contained variables from social cognition models, including the Theory of Planned Behaviour and Stage models of Health Behaviour such as that of Gollwitzer (1993). Knowledge, norms, threat likelihood, perceived threat, self-efficacy and motivation to prevent negative effects of sun exposure together accounted for 36.5% of the variance in intention to use sunscreen. The findings also suggest that motivation to prevent negative effects of sun exposure and threat likelihood consistently have the strongest correlational relationship (of all the prior cognitions) with both intention and sunscreen behaviour. A measure of planning did not mediate the effects of intentions on sunscreen use as was originally expected, rather, intentions had the largest effect on sunscreen use. It is reasonable to assume that planning may not always be necessary for the prediction of sunscreen behaviours. It was concluded that a modified version of the sun protective behaviour model may be useful in predicting such behaviours but refinement is required of the model and its measures. Implications for further research and model modification are noted

Sun exposure drives Antarctic cryptoendolithic community structure and composition

AbstractThe harsh environmental conditions of the ice-free regions of Continental Antarctica are considered one of the closest Martian analogues on Earth. There, rocks play a pivotal role as substratum for life and endolithism represents a primary habitat for microorganisms when external environmental conditions become incompatible with active life on rock surfaces. Due to the thermal inertia of rock, the internal airspace of lithic substratum is where microbiota find a protected and buffered microenvironment, allowing life to spread throughout these regions with extreme temperatures and low water availability. The high degree of adaptation and specialization of the endolithic communities makes them highly resistant but scarsely resilient to any external perturbation and thus, any shifts in microbial community composition may serve as early-alarm systems of environmental perturbation, including climate change.Previous research concluded that altitude and distance from sea do not play as driving factors in shaping microbial abundance and diversity, while sun exposure was hypothesized as significant parameter influencing endolithic settlement and development. This study aims to explore our hypothesis that changes in sun exposure translate to shifts in community composition and abundances of main biological compartments (fungi, algae and bacteria) in the Antarctic cryptoendolithic communities. We performed a preliminary molecular survey, based on DGGE and qPCR tecniques, of 48 rocks with varying sun exposure, collected in Victoria Land along an altitudinal transect from 834 to 3100 m a.s.l.Our findings demonstrate that differences in sun radiation between north and south exposure influence temperature of rocks surface, availability of water and metabolic activity and also have significant impact on community composition and microbial abundance

Acute Skin Sun Damage in Children and Its Consequences in Adults

Children spend more time outdoors than adults and there is compelling evidence that childhood is a particularly vulnerable time for the photocarcinogenic effects of the sun. The negative effects of solar radiation are accumulated during the entire lifetime; however 80% of total lifetime sun exposure is taking place before the age of 18 years. Child skin is more sensitive than adult skin because natural defense mechanisms are not fully developed. A short exposure to midday sun will result in sunburns. Epidemiologic studies show a higher incidence of malignant melanoma in persons with a history of sunburns during childhood and adolescence. Sun exposure among infants and pre-school children is largely dependent on the discretion of adult care providers. Sun protective habits of mothers may predict the level of sun exposure in children. It is very important to transfer the knowledge and positive habits of proper sun protection to children. The purpose of sun-safety behavior is not to avoid outdoor activities, but rather to protect the skin from detrimental sun effects. Proper sun protection of children includes protection from excessive sun exposure, sunburns and other forms of skin damage caused by sun, which may lead to the future development of skin cancers. This paper reviews acute skin reactivity to sun in childhood and adolescence that causes damage in skin structure and function and produces undesirable chronic changes in adults

Conjunctival ultraviolet autofluorescence area, but not intensity, is associated with myopia

Background:Conjunctival ultraviolet autofluorescence (CUVAF) has been used as a biomarker of time spent outdoors and smaller CUVAF area is associated with myopia in Southern Hemisphere cohorts. Further research is to determine if this association is replicated in northern latitudes and whether average CUVAF intensity is a valuable metric. This prospective study explored the association between myopia, CUVAF (area and intensity) and additional indicators of sun exposure (vitamin D3 and self-reported sun exposure preferences) across seasons at a location 55°North.Methods: Young adults (18-20 years) provided blood samples biannually (Mar/Apr and Sept/Oct) over an 18-month period (four phases) for the assessment of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D3) concentrations (liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry). CUVAF (total area, average intensity) and self-reported sun exposure preferences were recorded at each phase. Axial length and corneal radius were measured. Refractive error was measured by autorefractor and spherical equivalent refraction (SER) used to classify participants into refractive groups: myopic (SER ≤-0.50DS) or non-myopic.Results:Fifty-four participants (24 myopes, 30 non-myopes) participated. CUVAF area was negatively associated with the presence of myopia (OR=0.94, 95% CI=0.90-0.98, p=0.002. Myopes=4.5mm2 (Interquartile range (IQR) 0.95-6.4mm2), non-myopes=7.0 mm2 (IQR=2.0 mm2-10.7 mm2)). No significant association was found between CUVAF intensity and refractive group (p=0.17). There was no significant association between sun exposure preferences or serum concentration of 25(OH)D3 and refractive status (all p≥0.21). CUVAF measures were not associated with ocular biometry measures (all p≥0.084). CUVAF area was unaffected by season (all p≥0.45) and variations in CUVAF area over the study period did not exceed the repeatability of the measurement technique.Conclusion:Myopia was associated with smaller areas of conjunctival ultraviolet autofluorescence indicative of less cumulative UVB exposure. These findings suggest that CUVAF measures are a useful, non-invasive biomarker of the time spent outdoors in adults in Northern Hemisphere populations