How to Protect Your Baby in the Sun – 5 Sun Safety Tips for Babies

How to Keep Your Baby’s Skin Safe in the Sun

As beach lovers who had a summer baby, sun safety for babies was one of the first things that we had to learn about when Harrison was born! Baby skin is soooo sensitive, and sunscreen isn’t recommended before they’re six months old, so what do you do if you want to bring your baby outside? Don’t worry. it’s still possible! But preventing direct sun exposure is super important! Since we live so close to the beach and Harrison loves summer days outside just as much as we do, we’ve gotten our baby sun safety routines down! So, what should you do if you want to take your baby out and about in the summer or you’re going on vacation to the beach?! Here’s what we have learned!

1. Keep Babies in the Shade and Out of Direct Sunlight

We always keep Harrison shaded! Whether it’s under a beach umbrella or covered from the sun in his stroller, he’s shaded whenever we go outside. This is the single most important tip for baby sun safety, especially when they’re under six months and unable to use sunscreen yet! We love our dock a tot baby beach cabana (Harrison’s throne) and always set him up in a shaded spot.

We’re obsessed with our stroller!! We use the Uppa Baby Vista 2 with the bassinet attachment to keep Harrison shaded during our neighborhood walks. 

Business & Pleasure has the most gorgeous beach accessories!! I love this beach umbrella or the tent options to create a chic, shady beach spot for the day. Also, the fact that they have beach blankets with built-in umbrella holes is genius!

2. Use Hats, Baby Sunglasses, and Rash Guards

Baby skin is SO sensitive and sunburns are a big deal for babies, so we try to cover his skin as much as possible if we’re in direct sunlight (and we never stay in direct sunlight for very long)! We always have him wear a bucket hat that shades his neck and ears (extra sensitive and burn-prone areas!), and we’ll also put him in a matching rash guard if we need to cover his body. All of Harrison’s bucket hats and rash guards are from Kenny Flowers!

The Cutest UV-Protective Beachwear for Babies:

Babies’ eyes are also more susceptible to sun damage, so baby sunglasses are a must! All of these things are to protect your baby, but they literally couldn’t be cuter! I mean, imagine seeing a beach baby in a bucket hat and babiators!!!

3. Use Fans to Keep Your Baby Cool

Babies under three months old can’t regulate their body temperature well yet (they can’t sweat right away!), so you have to be extra careful that they don’t get overheated. We always bring a portable fan with us for beach days and for his stroller whenever we go on walks. Here’s the fan that we use and LOVE! 

4. Watch the UV Index and Temperature

We always avoid being outside at the highest UV times of the day (usually 11 am – 2 pm). That way, if there are brief moments of more direct light, the sun is less powerful. This also helps us avoid the hottest part of the day so we can keep him from overheating and/or getting dehydrated! As a general rule, we don’t go out if the temperature is above the mid-80s.

5. Once Your Baby is Six Months Old, Use Baby Sunscreen

Sunscreen isn’t recommended for babies under six months old because they’re more susceptible to side effects from sunscreen (like rashes). But once your baby is over six months, talk to your pediatrician about what kind of sunscreen will be best! Since every baby’s skin is different, be sure to test a small patch of your baby’s skin for 48 hours before you apply any new sunscreen fully. Sunscreen with zinc oxide (the same ingredient in most diaper rash creams) is what is usually recommended for babies.

I’ll definitely share what we end up trying on Harrison and what works well once he’s old enough, but looking ahead, these are some of the options I’ve seen recommended. We’ll probably try BabyBum from SunBum first!!

The Best Pediatrician-Recommend Mineral Sunscreens for Babies:

All of this being said, we definitely don’t stress if part of Harrison is exposed to the sun for a minute – it happens! Often, he will TRY to lean back and full-on BASK in the sun, and I have to stop him (he is his mother’s son, LOL)! Just try to keep your baby covered up and in the shade, and you can definitely still enjoy the beach with your little one. These beach days with Harrison have been some of our (and his!!) favorite days. It’s soooo cute how he gets in such a good mood when we go to the beach. We can’t wait to see him enjoy the pool and beachside days on all of our trips to come!!

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Christina is a leading luxury lifestyle and travel blogger with over 2 million readers. Follow her on instagram @jetsetchristina.

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