Summer time. Sea, sand and sun. Or city, parks and sun. Or mountains, trees and sun. Or farm, animals and sun. No matter how you spend your summer, there is one likely element you can’t escape: the sun.

Having grown up in a very hot and sunny country, I think I have a much deeper respect for the sun than many of my northern hemispherian friends do. Bitter experience has taught me just how brutal an afternoon spent in it can be. I’ve had sunburn so bad, the affected areas were swollen. I even fell asleep partly in the sun once and woke up hours later with half my face red and blistered and the other half totally normal looking! That made for an entertaining few weeks…

I believe in the ‘between 11 and 3 stay under a tree’ philosophy and, these days anyway, I practise it. I also believe in sunscreen.

Having a child with sensitive skin has led me to really investigate every product we buy and use. Before our first swim, I spent a couple of hours in our local pharmacy looking at the ingredients in everything, and eventually left empty-handed.  A few weeks later I attended the Allergy Show in London, where I came across Green People.

Green people Organic Children sun lotionThe Green People is a company started by a mother, Charlotte Vøhtz, looking for solutions for her child, who suffers from eczema. With a history in nursing and working in a pharmacy, she was already well aware of the chemical culture we live in, and how this, along with diet and lifestyle, was affecting our health. In response to her child’s eczema, Charlotte began making natural remedies to help her daughter and immediately noticed the difference, and so began a new business.

I have been using Green People’s Organic Children Sun Lotion on my daughter Ameli and cannot recommend it highly enough. At factor 25, it provides sufficient cover that she has not once burnt, while still allowing the beneficial vitamin D from the sun’s rays to permeate her skin. It offers 96% UVB protection and is available in lavender and unscented forms, making it ideal for sensitive skins, and is suitable for use from birth

Organic Children Sun Lotion is made from 81% organic ingredients, including spring water, olive oil, sunflower oil, palm oil, plant wax, aloe vera powder, chamomile, edelweiss, myrrh oil, rosemary and vitamin C. It also contains beeswax, making it suitable for vegetarians, though not vegans. It does not contain any parabens, lanolin, phthalates, artificial perfumes, petrochemicals or colourants. There are also no eggs, nuts, dairy or wheat products, making it the perfect solution for children with allergies.

Even with a skin that often flares up with most typical ‘baby’ creams and moisturisers, Ameli has had no reaction at all to the Green People cream. Unlike some other similar products, it is not overly thick – in fact, it is more like an aqueous cream in texture, making application much easier. Indeed, the hardest part of covering Ameli in it is trying to prevent her eating it out of my hand due to its lovely smell (the lavender, that is).

This lotion can be purchased in 150ml at £14.75. It is also available in 30ml travel size for £3.75 and 10ml trial size for £2.75.

A few things to remember if you are heading outdoors this summer:

  • Younger skins are softer and thinner and therefore burn much faster
  • Just because you’re not in the sun doesn’t mean you don’t burn. Many a child has suffered terribly from cloud burn and wind burn
  • Water reflects the sun, so make sure to apply sun cream under the chin and down the neck, as well as under arms
  • Remember the back of the neck! It’s one of the most common places to forget to put sunscreen, along with the tops of the feet
  • Double check the cream you use – some need regular reapplication
  • Always reapply after coming out of the water
  • Keep well hydrated
  • A half a bath with a couple of cups full of vinegar after a day in the sun will draw out any burn that may have happened, without removing the brown

Green People have kindly offered to give one Diary of a First Child reader £30 worth of products. They are offering a set of  the Lavender Sun Lotion, Mum & Baby Moisturiser & Lavender Baby Wash. In order to be in with a chance to win, just answer the following question by looking at their website and then leaving a comment below:

The winner is Emma Button

What is your favourite Green People babies and children product?

Competition closes at noon (GMT) on 26 July 2010 and the winner will be drawn randomly using Random.org

Diary of a First Child is a blog about natural parenting and learning how to be a natural parent. If you like what you see here, please subscribe to my RSS Feed or become a friend on Google Friend Connect (sidebar on the right). I would love to hear from you, so please feel free to contact me by email on diaryofafirstchild @ googlemail.com or on twitter @diaryfirstchild.

Small print:

Please leave an email address/blog address/twitter name where I can contact the winner. If I am unable to make contact within one week I will select a new winner and the previously selected winner will have no recourse to the prize.

Prizes are sent out by sponsors directly. Please get in touch if you do not receive your prize within four weeks of the closing date.

16 Comments

Green People’s Organic Children Sun Lotion

  1. I love the lavender baby wash and shampoo, it lasts ages and smells divine! Oh and is gentle on baby’s and it’s great for children too!
    The nappy cream is great also.. Cleared up Dot’s nappy rash quicker than the alternatives. 🙂

    Twitter @BethGoodLife

  2. I have to say that I have used the shampoo when the boys were smaller and really loved it, espeically as they have reaction to SLS and SLA’s. I would love to give their shower gel and suncream a go though.

  3. I’ve never tried any of their products so can’t comment on what my fav is but they look great and even if I don’t win I will be investing in some.

    I have been looking for an alternative nappy cream recently as we have been using baby vaseline which is not good apparently? Thankfully she has only ever had nappy rash once in her 16 months but I would love a green alternative!

    As for suncare I am so paranoid with Soraya! I always cover her up and apply the “under the tree” philosophy too 🙂

    So anyway…I would have to say fav products are nappy balm and suncream, but like I said never actually tried them.

    My twitter ID is @MummysShoes xxx

  4. Children’s Shampoo Lavender and the Lavender Conditioner as smells lovely and doesnt sting if gets in eyes which is really important with kids:)

    xxx have rt too@kikicomp

  5. i love Greenpeople unscented sun lotion – especially that it doesn’t contain vitamins, which are now being linked with skin cancer 🙁 We use UV sunshirts and shorts and widebrimmed hats too, but there’s always a bit of skin somewhere that needs cream.

  6. They just had a news story on our local TV station about the rashes some kids are getting from the ingredients in these sunscreens. I think they should have mentioned something like this product right with the story. I think it would be bad if people stop using sunscreen without checking to find a more gentle application.

  7. I can’t agree more about suncare! I am so paranoid, Neil is finally getting some colour, after 3 years on this earth. Slip, slap slop, Slip on a shirt, slap on sunscreen, slop on a hat. Then you are covered! I just read an article that said that even when you do remember to wear sunscreen, many people don’t use enough, cup your hand, and fill it up, that’s how much you need! Also, don’t forget about Mom and Dad, I have often been so preoccupied trying to get the boys covered that I’ve forgotten about myself!

    1. @Andrea, Too true Andrea! I did today, went out on the beach with a painted white Kyra, and nothing on myself… There was a terrible story on our news recently about a 29 year old woman whose three or four month old was taken off the beach by community police because they saw he was blistering already. I was so angry when I heard that. Poor child was in ICU being treated for burns. How dumb can you get? They didn’t even charge the woman. Anyway – I am totally paranoid about it too, but I do love this cream. It’s highly recommendable!

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