How Long Will My Kids UPF Clothing Last? What kind of clothing provides the best way for my kids to have UFP protection?
How long will my kids’ UPF clothing last? How long will their skin be safe from the sun?
Have you considered investing in some UPF clothing for your children? You know they need protection from the sun. But special stuff can get expensive.
Kids need clothing to protect their skin. Sunscreen is not enough by itself A plan that uses both sunscreen and UPF clothing is an important part of successful skin protection planning.
Have you thought about the options of what will be best for your kids? What will protect your kids best, for the lifestyle your family lives? You may have to consider the cost of what you may want for your kids. Kids’ clothes are expensive and rarely does your child wear them out.
We do have some choices we can make for our sun blocking clothing. Some sun blocking clothing is available at Walmart and Target. We can even boost up the sun blocking ability of clothing from your kid’s closets with additives at laundry time.
Sun blocking clothing or UPF rated clothing usually lasts for about 30 laundry cycles. So it is according to how much your youngster wears his sunblocking shirt.
So let’s think about the fabric that is a special weave and also has extra sun blocking power right in the fabric.
Basics Of Your Kids UPF Clothing
If your child’s favorite shirt is sheer, lightweight, loosely woven, or maybe been laundered many times, it may feel better to wear, but probably won’t protect your kids’ skin at all. Hold the shirt up between you and the sun. Can you see little pinpricks of light where the fibers cross in the weaving?
Yes? The sun can see through to the skin as well. This shirt won’t protect your child’s skin very well. The UV radiation will easily penetrate that fabric. If it gets wet, there is less protection.
What kind of clothing is best to wear for UV protection? Naturally, the fabric that can screen out the sun! The special fabrics, the unique blends of artificial fibers with natural fibers. The special finishes to keep the sun out. There are so many ways UPF garments will work for your kids.
UPF Clothing Does Have A Place In Your Childs Wardrobe
UPF fabric and the ability to keep the sun off your child’s skin plus the fact that the shirts from this fabric can be so well designed make this purchase a winner. Add to this the ease of care.
Be sure and follow the guidelines on care from the hangtags on the garment. This will ensure the longest life for the shirt.
Yes, the value is in the protection, and if your child will wear the shirt, he will be protected wearing UPF clothing.
Does UPF clothing keep you cool? Because UPF Clothing can be styled with vents, for air to dissipate from your body quickly, using a wicking fabric, you may feel cooler.
UPF Rating For Clothing
Like sunscreen, which is rated using SPF, the higher the UPF rating, the more protection you’re getting. Dermatologists don’t consider a rating of under 15 for sunscreen or UPF clothing as offering any extra protection. They may get more sun protection than a factor of 15 from a favorite in the closet.
Do make sure you are getting at least a UPF of 15. A UPF of 30 is better, with a UPF of 50 the best you can get.
If the claims are for any more than a 50 rating, it is an advertising gemmic.
Because these garments are for wearing in the sun, they are lightweight and often breathable. This gives them the extra benefit of keeping your kids cooler than cotton can.
Again I refer to my favorite long sleeve cotton denim shirt. It will protect me but will be very warm in the warmer times of the day, and year.
Shirts From Your Kids Closets
Yes, any shirt is better than no shirt. So your kids already have some shirts that can help protect them from the sun. You also already know that a new shirt with a UPF of 15 offers some protection from the sun for your kids. However, a rating of 30 or 50 is better.
What is the UPF of a cotton Tee-shirt? This is just a “plain ole shirt” from the closet.
Look at your sunscreen label. Manufacturers use the term “SPF,” or the more familiar sun protection factor. Your shirt will be rated with the fabric rating system, so will use UPF.
Most cotton shirts that have been washed a few times give you an equivalent of about a UPF of 5 when you’re wearing it. Most fabrics that we wear are made from a looser weave fabric in warmer weather. The looser weave lets visible light peek through and get to our skin.
When the sun can be seen through your shirt, this will allow ultraviolet rays to reach your skin. A tighter weave will give you more protection. It really is simple to find some sun protection from shirts in your closet.
Hold the shirt up to the sun. Can you see the sun through the pinpricks where the fabric is woven? If you can’t, that shirt should offer some protection for your child. Just remember, some shirts are too hot and get uncomfortable to wear all day. Your child will need to wear the shirt to get protection.
Will UPF Wash Out Of My Kids Clothes?
Yes, eventually UPF protection will decline from the fabric after a couple of years of wear. The laundry cycle will remove the special finishes after a while.
However, most of the loss of protection is from the general wear and tear that is natural from a garment worn often.
The fibers weaken and pull away from each other and sag. This allows the UV radiation to penetrate through the garment. When you wash and wear a garment often, you can expect it to show wear.
The most common reason your shirt will not protect your youngster is that he outgrows it. When the fabric is pulled too tight against their skin, the sun will have an easier route through to the skin. The fit should be loose and easy. With kids growing, this can present a problem.
Can UVB Pass Through Clothes?
Yes, if the fabric is not tightly woven. If the shirt is of fabric that has seen too many washings. Or if the shirt gets wet. Most fabrics work better when dry. So if your child’s shirt gets wet, they will be ok for 20 minutes, but any longer, and playing in the shade to let the shirt finish getting dry is a safer choice.
This wet fabric warning is for the UPF fabrics as well as items from your closet. If you are shopping for a UPF shirt, check the label and make sure the sun protection will be going on if the garment gets wet. Just another of those things to look for.
With all this said, UPF garments should do a great job of keeping you protected. You can be assured that some of the sun’s rays are not getting to your skin. Unless the garment has a 50 UPF rating, you will not get a full block. Even then, there will be 2% of the UV getting through. That is as safe as one can get at this point, and still be out in the sun.
So, repeating, yes, some fabrics can block the sun up to 98%. Yes, these fabrics can be comfortable and lightweight with a wicking factor to dry fast.
What About Absorptin?
Here we are talking about UVB Absorption. Just like some sunscreen will block the rays and some will absorb, fabrics will do one or the other.
Blocking UVB rays can happen with the use of clothing as well as through the use of sunscreen.
When you wear loose clothing that is densely knit, the level of UVB rays that will be blocked will be greater than if you have a more loosely knit, tight-fitting shirt.
All UVC radiation is absorbed by the earth’s ozone layer, so we shouldn’t worry about it? Wait a minute! Don’t you know that the ozone layer is disappearing? This is not 100 percent true, that we don’t have to worry about UVC.
“Invisible rays are part of the energy that comes from the sun. Most UVC radiation from the sun is blocked from the Earth’s surface by the ozone layer.
In medicine, UVC radiation may also come from special lamps or a laser and is used to kill germs or to help heal wounds.”
Definition of UVC radiation – NCI Dictionary of Cancer Termshttps://www.cancer.gov › dictionaries › cancer-terms › def
Is UVC cancerous?
The use of UV-emitting tanning devices is carcinogenic to humans. Remember all UV radiation (including UVA, UVB, and UVC) is carcinogenic to humans. Expose your skin with caution.
Do Long Sleeves Protect From The Sun?
Should your kids wear long sleeves to help protect their skin from the sun?
Yes, long sleeves are important for your kids to wear for skin protection from the sun. When you are out in the sun, wear clothing to cover your skin. Preventing sunburn is a better move than learning how to treat that same sunburn.
Clothes will provide different levels of UV protection for your kid’s skin. Loose-fitting long-sleeved shirts, long pants, or long skirts cover the most skin and are the most protective.
The higher the UPF rating is, the higher the protection from UV rays.
How You Can Help Your Kids Learn Safe Sun Habits
With increased knowledge about how long will my kid’s UPF shirts last you can also help them make smarter fun in the sun choices.
During the hotter times of the year, scheduling playtimes to avoid the more direct sun rays is better. Before 10 AM and after 4 PM is better for their skin.
If the playtime ends after 10 AM, have the last bit of time in the shade. Either under an umbrella or an awning. As well as fun in the sun time that starts before 4 PM, staying in the shade for a while is better.
When your child is wearing sun blocking clothing, he won’t need sunscreen on his skin where he is covered. However, whatever skin is exposed to the sun needs to have sunscreen applied. And reapplied as needed to stay safe.
Make sure your kids drink enough water when having fun in the sun. They will sunburn faster without hydration.
Your kids can expect a reasonable length of wear from their UPF clothing. Most outgrow their UPF shirts before they wear out.
Sami’s Take On How Long Will My Kids UPF Shirts Last?
Raising kids is an ongoing effort. Making sure they have what they need to be healthy and thrive is important to us.
Keeping their skin healthy seems a little farther down on the list. All it takes is to find one skin cancer on your skin to make you know that the way our parents did things may have had a few flaws.
They didn’t set us up for skin problems, they just didn’t know what the results of too much skin could do to our skin.
Adding some information to allow you to help them make better decisions is the best way to ease your family into better skin protection from the sun.
One sunburn is one too many. We are all guilty of not stepping up and suggesting better baseball practice times, better soccer game times. Yes, it may mean getting up earlier, but if it protects your kids and yourself from too much sun, what a payoff!
Habits are hard to change, but again so worth the whole effort.
Don’t allow skin cancer to plague your family’s life as it has my family.