search by
Copyright @ Pol J Cosmetol
Pol J Cosmetol 2011, 14(1): 57-61pl  Evaluation of the awareness of negative effects of UV radiation carried out among university studentsMagdalena Prusińska-Bratoś Klinika Dermatologii Ogólnej, Estetycznej i Dermatochirurgii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Łodzi Summary Introduction. In recent years there has been a dynamic increase in the number of people developing skin cancer, which results from excessive exposure to UV radiation. Despite numerous educational campaigns and programmes many people do not understand the hazards of excessive exposure to solar radiation. Aim. The research has aimed at evaluation of the university students´ awareness of the negative effect of UV radiation on the skin and their behaviour while sunbathing. Material and methods. 143 students of the Medical University of Łódź and the University of Łódź participated in the experiment. The participants were asked to fill in a specially designed questionnaire. Its aim was to evaluate the knowledge of the respondents on the negative effect of UV radiation on the skin and their behaviour while sunbathing. Results. Mass media, the Internet and the university have proved to be the main sources of knowledge on solar radiation for the greatest number of students. The findings of the statistical analysis show that the students who have completed the dermatology course significantly more often used sun protective preparations all year round rather than the students of the University of Łódź (p<0.001). Above 60% of the students of the Medical University and only 45% of the students of the University of Łódź had a profound knowledge on when they should apply sun protective preparations. As for groups II and I, the percentage was 61 and 45 respectively. A considerable number of students of the University of Łódź and the Medical University of Łódź (80%) stated they got suntanned at midday, i.e. when the solar radiation was the strongest and the number was statistically significant (p=0.007). Conclusions. Educational campaigns and programmes make people become aware of the hazards of solar radiation as the students of the Medical University of Łódź, especially those who have completed the dermatology course proved to be more knowledgeable about the issue than the other respondents of the questionnaire. Key words: UV radiation, protection against the sun, students, awareness |