61% of Brits admit to getting sun burnt on their last holiday

A recent survey by the tour operator Sunshine.co.uk suggests that we Brits aren't very good at staying safe in the sun with 61% of respondents admitting that they got sunburnt on their last holiday.

The survey asked 2117 UK adults who had holidayed in a hot destination within the last year.

When respondents were asked why thought they had got sun burnt, the most common reason given was that they had forgotten to re-apply their sun screen regularly and the second most common reason was that sun protection is too expensive.

The survey found that on average holiday makers were missing 2 days of sun by having to cover-up after burning.

Whilst it can be disappointing if getting sun burnt spoils your enjoyment of your holiday for a couple of days, it can also have much more serious consequences for your health, such as skin cancer.

You can avoid the risk of skin cancer by protecting your skin with sunscreen of at least SPF15 and avoiding strong sunlight, particularly at the hottest times of day.

As the survey highlighted, it's not enough to put sunscreen on once and then forget about it, it's important to remember to re-apply sun screen regularly and make sure you use a high enough factor.

If you are worried about the cost of sun screen, spend a bit of time shopping around before you travel, many high street shops and supermarkets will run special offers on sun protection products during the summer. Don't wait until you get to your holiday destination to buy sun screen because then it might be very expensive and you won't have any choice.

If you do suffer severe sun burn whilst on holiday you should seek medical attention immediately. The risk of requiring medical treatment abroad due to severe sun burn or other sun or heat related illnesses is reminder why it pays to have travel insurance every time you go away.

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Our tips on staying safe in the sun on holiday >>

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