When the heat is on - Keep Your Top On A sunny day makes most of us feel good but too much strong sunlight can be hard on the skin. The problem is caused by the ultraviolet -UV- rays in strong sunlight. The Health & Safety Executive did run a campaign in 2001, aimed at external workers, highlighting potential risks of working outside in strong sunlight during the summer.

What are the dangers?

In the short term sunburn can blister your skin and make it peel. In summer, even on cloudy days, enough UV can filter through to cause burning.

In the longer term the most serious effect is an increased risk of skin cancer later in life. This cancer is almost always easy to cure but it needs to be caught early. Also, too much sun could speed up the ageing of your skin, making it leathery, mottled and wrinkled.

What can I do about it?

You should protect yourself from direct sunlight, particularly if working outdoors in the summer in the three to four hours around the middle of the day. The sun is most intense at these times.

The best protection is to shade your skin from the direct sunlight by "Keeping Your Top On". Ordinary close woven clothing, such as a long sleeved workshirt and work trousers will stop most of the UV. Wearing your safety helmet will protect the top of your head or BT logo baseball caps, Item Code: 021361, are also available.

BT also provides, via the engineering stores catalogue, sunblock cream (Sun Protection Factor SPF 30, Item Code: 003286) which can be used to protect those parts of your skin which you cannot cover up, e.g. your face and forehead, the back of your neck and the back of your hands and arms.

Sunglasses (Eyeshields Sun Glare Protection Item Code: 999009) are also available.

You also need to check your skin:

The first warning sign is often a small scabby spot which does not clear up after a few weeks. Look for changed or newly formed moles or any skin discolouration, if you notice any of these things - check them out with your doctor. The smaller the spot the easier it is to cure so don't delay going to the doctor when you know you should.

Further Information

Two leaflets giving further information hve been produced by the Health and Safety Executive and are available via the following links:-

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg147.pdf

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg337.pdf

For further information please look at the following BT intranet URL:

http://humanresources.intra.bt.com/hrbv-bin/hr article.jsp?cont OID=11263