Skin specialists at Queensland Health are urging people to heed the sun safety advice of experts, not ill-informed social media posts.
Dermatologist at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Erin McMeniman said false claims about sunscreen had no place in a State like Queensland, which had the highest rate of melanoma in the world.
“There are a lot of myths about sunscreen being shared and some of them are dangerous,” Associate Professor McMeniman said.
“A lot of them are being shared widely on social media and unfortunately, a lot of people seem to believe them,” she said.
“This is particularly the case when it’s a celebrity spreading the misinformation; it’s irresponsible because it can cause long-term harm to impressionable people who won’t question their qualifications, credibility or motives.”
Associate Professor McMeniman said she wanted to make it clear that sunscreen protected people’s skin from dangerous ultraviolent rays and could help to prevent skin cancer, including life-threatening melanoma.
“That’s backed by science,” she said.
“We urge everyone to make applying sunscreen a part of their daily routine.”
She said the lifetime risk for melanoma for Queenslanders was one in 15, or approximately two children in every class at school.
Associate Professor McMeniman said Queensland Health data showed more than 32,000 people were hospitalised in the State each year because of skin cancers, including 3,500 for melanoma.
She said some the false claims perpetuated on social media included that it’s safe to not use sun protection outside; darker skin doesn’t burn; a tan prevents sunburn or people who tan easily don’t get skin cancer; chemicals from sunscreen are more dangerous than UV rays; sun protection causes Vitamin D deficiencies; sunscreen causes cancer; sunscreen is unnecessary when it’s overcast; and sunscreen causes coral bleaching.
None of them are true.
