We all love summer and the sun!

We asked Anne, the founder of Swimwear brand Petit Crabe, for her top tips on keeping your kids safe in the sun while on the beach or at the pool.

Who doesn't love the sun! It has obvious benefits as a provider of vitamin D and is a natural mood enhancer. 

However, it is very important to treat the sun with caution as the UV rays may cause sunburn and skin damage.

It is even more important to remember that children's skin is thinner and more delicate than adult skin, therefore they are even more sensitive to UV rays.

The most important is to try and cover as much as your child's skin as possible when the UV index is high. If you do this you only have to put sun protection cream on the hands and legs/feet. Great for them and great for us as we all know how much kids "love" having sun cream put on!

Petite Crabe - Top Sun Safe Tips

• While your babies are tiny, it is best to keep them out of direct sunlight. If your baby is not mobile yet, they will probably be happy to lie and kick in the shade of a tree, an umbrella, or a sun tent.
• If your kids are crawling or walking, encourage them to sit and play in the shade when the sun is at its strongest.

Our recommendation to sun protection, when the UV Index reaches 3:

• Wear UV-swimwear to cover as much of the body as possible.
• Apply sunscreen to areas left uncovered such as hands, feet and face. Put on the sunscreen 20 minutes before you go outdoors and every two hours afterwards – or after swimming.
• Seek shade between 10 AM and 3 PM
• Use sun hats. Choose a wide-brimmed hat that protects face, neck, and ears.

What is UPF?

There is a lot of jargon around buying swimwear for kids but it is important to check the Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) as this measures the amount of UV radiation that penetrates a fabric and reaches the skin.

UPF 50+ is the highest fabric rating available, providing maximum sun protection by blocking out more than 97% of the sun’s harmful rays.

Petit Crabe swimwear garment offers a sun protection factor of 50+ 

The sun protection comes from the thread density, weave structure and dye components. No chemicals or treatments are added to the fabric to provide the rating.

Remember some sun exposure is good for you but you just have to be sensible - especially with your kids skin!

Enjoy the sun.

You can find our Sun Edit here and Petit Crabe here

Thank you to Anne from Petit Crabe