Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years

Objective: Reducing ultraviolet radiation exposure is important for preventing skin cancer. Parents’ behaviors can reduce the risk of their children developing skin cancer in the future. In this study we evaluated the knowledge and attitudes of mothers with children aged 3-6 years regarding sun prot...

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Main Authors: İlknur Demir, Seda Özmen Sever, Güzin Zeren Öztürk, Gizem Kara Elitok
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Istanbul University Press 2024-09-01
Series:Çocuk Dergisi
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/BD0A0D8E6E3C4A65B6AF65721FC2D5BB
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author İlknur Demir
Seda Özmen Sever
Güzin Zeren Öztürk
Gizem Kara Elitok
author_facet İlknur Demir
Seda Özmen Sever
Güzin Zeren Öztürk
Gizem Kara Elitok
author_sort İlknur Demir
collection DOAJ
description Objective: Reducing ultraviolet radiation exposure is important for preventing skin cancer. Parents’ behaviors can reduce the risk of their children developing skin cancer in the future. In this study we evaluated the knowledge and attitudes of mothers with children aged 3-6 years regarding sun protection behaviors. Methods: The study was conducted at the Family Medicine outpatient clinics of Şişli Hamidiye Etfal Training and Research Hospital in Turkey. A data form with 20 questions was administered to the participants which assesses demographic data, attitudes toward sun protection, sources of sun-related information, and knowledge about sunscreen. A p-value<0.05 was considered significant. Results: The study included 278 participants with a mean age of 33.05 years. Of them, 61.2% (n: 170) had at least a high school education, 30.2% (n: 84) were white-collar workers, and 12.6% (n: 35) were blue-collar workers. While 87.2% (n: 242) reported taking sun protection measures, 60.4% (n: 168) used sunscreen for their children. The most common method was wearing a hat (82.7%, n: 230). The mean knowledge score was 10.14 ± 3.92 (min: 0, max: 18), No one could give correct answers to the questions. The most frequently incorrect item was “sunscreen should only be used in summer.” Most mothers’ source of information were healthcare professionals (%71, n: 199). Mothers who had more than one child, had higher education, and were white-collar workers had higher scores (p< 0.05). Sunscreen users had higher knowledge scores than non-users (p< 0.05). Conclusions: While most mothers reported taking sun protection measures, their knowledge was insufficient. Healthcare professionals, as a key source of information for mothers, should be more educating them during the routine follow-ups.
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publishDate 2024-09-01
publisher Istanbul University Press
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series Çocuk Dergisi
spelling doaj-art-e3971b38dff348e99beba8b3127a03ea2025-08-20T02:58:40ZengIstanbul University PressÇocuk Dergisi1308-84912024-09-0124316216710.26650/jchild.2024.1539826123456Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Yearsİlknur Demir0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0055-7186Seda Özmen Sever1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2451-6074Güzin Zeren Öztürk2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7730-2929Gizem Kara Elitok3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5760-5009Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Istanbul, TurkiyeSağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Istanbul, TurkiyeSağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Istanbul, TurkiyeSağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Istanbul, TurkiyeObjective: Reducing ultraviolet radiation exposure is important for preventing skin cancer. Parents’ behaviors can reduce the risk of their children developing skin cancer in the future. In this study we evaluated the knowledge and attitudes of mothers with children aged 3-6 years regarding sun protection behaviors. Methods: The study was conducted at the Family Medicine outpatient clinics of Şişli Hamidiye Etfal Training and Research Hospital in Turkey. A data form with 20 questions was administered to the participants which assesses demographic data, attitudes toward sun protection, sources of sun-related information, and knowledge about sunscreen. A p-value<0.05 was considered significant. Results: The study included 278 participants with a mean age of 33.05 years. Of them, 61.2% (n: 170) had at least a high school education, 30.2% (n: 84) were white-collar workers, and 12.6% (n: 35) were blue-collar workers. While 87.2% (n: 242) reported taking sun protection measures, 60.4% (n: 168) used sunscreen for their children. The most common method was wearing a hat (82.7%, n: 230). The mean knowledge score was 10.14 ± 3.92 (min: 0, max: 18), No one could give correct answers to the questions. The most frequently incorrect item was “sunscreen should only be used in summer.” Most mothers’ source of information were healthcare professionals (%71, n: 199). Mothers who had more than one child, had higher education, and were white-collar workers had higher scores (p< 0.05). Sunscreen users had higher knowledge scores than non-users (p< 0.05). Conclusions: While most mothers reported taking sun protection measures, their knowledge was insufficient. Healthcare professionals, as a key source of information for mothers, should be more educating them during the routine follow-ups.https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/BD0A0D8E6E3C4A65B6AF65721FC2D5BBchildrenparentssun-related behaviorssun protection
spellingShingle İlknur Demir
Seda Özmen Sever
Güzin Zeren Öztürk
Gizem Kara Elitok
Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
Çocuk Dergisi
children
parents
sun-related behaviors
sun protection
title Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
title_full Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
title_fullStr Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
title_full_unstemmed Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
title_short Mothers’ Attitudes Toward Sun Protection for Children Aged 3-6 Years
title_sort mothers attitudes toward sun protection for children aged 3 6 years
topic children
parents
sun-related behaviors
sun protection
url https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/BD0A0D8E6E3C4A65B6AF65721FC2D5BB
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AT gizemkaraelitok mothersattitudestowardsunprotectionforchildrenaged36years