Hot, hot, hot!!! Blazing sun and the mercury popping. We thought it the perfect time to share DCMF Canada’s and Cancer Council Australia’s videos about protecting yourself … 

Sun safety

With the temperatures hitting all time highs this summer even in cities and towns, we thought it time for a gentle reminder on the dangers of that big ball of fire in the sky – aka getting sun smart on sun safety.

One of the most moving things we’ve seen of late regarding sun safety is the David Cornfield Melanoma Fund (DCMF) Canada video entitled: “Dear 16 Year Old Me … “

After watching you’ll know why it went viral and hit 1 million views in 1 week.

Views are now at well over 9 million, and along the way DCMF Canada has received multiple creative awards for the way the content educates against the risk of melanoma.

Is that tan worth it?

When I first started out ski teaching – a long time ago – it was sunnies, no sunscreen, and the more tanned the better!

Back-to-back seasons or summers on beaches rarely gave any chance to escape the heat.

Beers and good times made the stinging sunburn bearable.

However, a recent trip to the doctors made me wish I’d known at 16 years old I’d be having some very deep knife incisions this spring to remove a basal cell carcinoma from my temple – one of the most frequent, but luckily non-melanoma, occurring forms of skin cancer.

Now it is suncream each morning and plenty more throughout the day.

A good instructor checks their group

Funny thing is as an instructor you know to check the kids in your group, or mention the strength of high altitude sun to the unsuspecting adults in your group … it’s just, you can easily forget to live by your own words.

So be sure to slip!, slop!, slap! – as Sid the Seagull in the Aussie sunscreen ad made famous back in 1981 – wherever you are this summer and winter.