RT journal article
T1 Sun Exposure and Photoprotection: Habits, Knowledge and Attitudes  Among Elite Kitesurfers
A1 Castro Maqueda, Guillermo Ramón de
A1 Gutiérrez Manzanedo, José Vicente
A1 González Montesinos, José Luis
A1 Vaz Pardal, Carmen
A1 Rivas Ruiz, Francisco
A1 De Troya Marín, Magdalena
A2 Didáctica de la Educación FísicaPlástica y Musical
K1 Sunprotection
K1 Sunburns
K1 Kitesurfing
K1 Skincancer
AB Kitesurfing is one of many water sports that are growing in popularity throughout the world. In such sports, practitioners are exposed not only to direct sunlight but also to reflection from the water surface, which aggravates the impact of solar radiation on the skin. This study sought to analyse the photoprotection and photoexposure habits and knowledge of elite kitesurfers and their beliefs and attitudes in this respect. A sample of convenience of 72 male kitesurfers completed a validated questionnaire in full. ByFitzpatrick phototype, the most common classes weretypes I and II(69.4%).Onaverage,kitesurfers had beenpractising their sport for 10.93 years, at a rate of 13.93 h per week. During the last sports season, 84.7% of respondents had suffered at least one sunburn, while 43.1% had been sunburned at least three times. The sun protection practice most commonly adopted was the use of sunscreen cream, which was used by 79.2% of respondents. Although 43.2% of respondents recognized to be worried about they might get skin cancer from the sun, 31.9% does not like using sunscreen and 44.4% like sunbathing. Regarding the respondents’ knowledge of facts about sun exposure, the average rate of correct answers for the items evaluated was 66.9%. In conclusion, elite kitesurfers are potentially exposed to dangerous levels of UV radiation, which caused numerous sunburn episodes during the last sports season. It is necessary to raise these athletes’ awareness of their risk of developing skin cancer and of the need to improve their sun protection and skin surveillance practices.
PB Springer
SN 0885-8195
YR 2022
FD 2022-06-22
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/34395
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/34395
LA eng
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz
RD 08-nov-2026