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.
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:
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.