Slopping on the sunscreen is not deemed to be enough anymore, skin cancer specialists now advocate we wear clothes with sun protection factor (SPF) embedded in the fabric.

The appropriate SPF provides better protection against harmful ultraviolet light (UV) than sunscreen creams, says Krista Rubin, nurse practitioner of the melanoma programme at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

"We advocate this more than sunscreen because the majority of people do not properly apply sunscreen," said Ms Rubin. "It should be applied every one-and-a-half to two hours and it's also important that the right SPF number is being used.

"And most people don't realise that there is no such thing as waterproof or sweatproof, when it comes to a sunscreen cream or lotion. When children go swimming and come out of the water, the sunscreen has to be reapplied."

Even exercising or doing anything that makes a person sweat, will decrease the strength of the sun protection cream. "Many people do not realise this, but they will not get the advertised SPF if they have been sweating or get wet in any other way," said Ms Rubin.

There are several clothing brands that manufacture items in fabrics that contain a degree of SPF. The Bermuda Cancer Centre's education officer Rhonda Smith-Simmons said retailers Daisy & Mac, Makin Waves and Groovy UV all stock such products.

According to Ms Rubin, natural fibres like cotton are used to make the clothes. For those whose summer outfits are skimpy – no sleeves, low backs and hems way above the knee – Ms Rubin said a combination of SPF clothing and sunscreen creams should be used. "I give people options so that they can minimise their risk of developing skin cancer," she said.

Of course staying out of the sun altogether or arranging your day so that you are not outdoors when the sun is at its strongest, are also good measures of protecting your skin. But more important than protecting your skin, is that you protect your children's skin. According to Ms Rubin sun exposure in childhood causes the vast majority of skin cancers. The skin is actually the body's largest organ – in infants and children it has not sufficiently developed to effectively filter out UV rays. Since the radiation is not filtered it damages the DNA altering what would otherwise be normal cells, to cancerous ones.

Skin cancer experts deem that by the time you are 18 years old, your body can filter out much of the harmful UV rays.

Given the importance of protecting the skin of young children and teenagers against the sun, I asked Ms Rubin how this could be achieved in the school setting. Students have lunch at midday – often the hottest time of the day. In many schools it is compulsory that they go outside for the break.

"Bermuda could learn from Australians," she said. The Australian government took action when it was discovered that one in 25 get skin cancer there. All children must have a hat and sun protective clothing in order to be allowed outside during lunch and recess breaks. In Australia if the child does not have its hat, it will not be allowed out. Also playgrounds have to have shaded areas. Some have swingsets and trees have been planted specifically to provide shade.

According to Ms Smith-Simmons, Bermuda High School for Girls has a strict hat policy during sunny days and Warwick Academy ensures there's shade for students while they are eating lunch.

The Bermuda Cancer Centre has also given thousands of hats to children in the public schools through its SunSmart programme. This summer the organisation has over 3,000 hats it expects to distribute to Island children.

Ms Rubin will be giving a free talk on skin cancer tonight at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute at 6.30 p.m. If you set out a bit earlier, from 5.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. information tables, free skin analysis and refreshments will be available in the lobby.