Prevalence of Sun Protection at Outdoor Recreation and Leisure Venues at Resorts in North America.

BACKGROUND

Exposure to solar ultra violet radiation (UVR) is a primary risk factor for skin cancer. Vacationers often fail to protect themselves from harmful UVR.

PURPOSE

The study assessed the sun protection practices of resort guests in various outdoor leisure and recreation venues during warm-weather seasons.

METHOD

41 North American resorts were enrolled in a quasi-experimental randomized controlled trial. Adult guests were observed (n=4091) and surveyed (n=3694) in a cross sectional sample. Data collection was conducted in recreation and leisure venues with outdoors commons/reception areas acting as the comparison condition.

RESULTS

The mean percent of vacationers at pools and beaches were more likely (p < 0.001) to wear sunscreen than in commons areas but less likely (p < 0.001) to wear cover-up clothing or use shade. In both samples, the combined sun protection scores were higher in commons areas compared to all venues except for outdoor dining (p < 0.001).

DISCUSSION

Sun safety was suboptimal in all venues and was potentially mitigated by venue type.

TRANSLATION TO HEALTH EDUCATION PRACTICE

Approaches are needed to encourage vacationers to practice comprehensive sun protection and to work with resorts to construct built environments that facilitate rather than act as barriers to sun safety.