5 Star Protection for Kids - Soltan Kids Once Suntan Lotion (Soltan Kids Once Lotion Pouch Suncream)

Member Name: foreveramber

Product:	Soltan Kids Once Lotion Pouch Suncream
Date:	02/06/09 (111 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: High Protection against UVA and UVB rays, lasts well, handy pouch

Disadvantages: Exclusive to Boots

After what feels like the longest winter on record, it seems summer is finally making an appearance. The kids can't wait to spend time outside after a long winter cooped up indoors. But I've become paranoid about my children's skin burning after learning that it can lead to skin cancer in later life.

When I was a child, applying sun cream was a matter of choice. Some kids used it, usually the ones with very pale skin or who had red hair and burned easily. My mother might remind me to put cream on from time to time, so I'd put on a thin layer when I remembered and that would be it for the rest of the day. I became brown eventually but still had to be careful as I could burn.

With my own children, I'm a lot more fussy. If I know they're going to be outside in blazing sunshine for a long time, or if they're splashing around in swimsuits in the sun, then I always make sure they're covered with a decent sun cream. We've also been asked by their teachers to make sure they have sun cream on before they come to school if it's going to be a sunny day.

Last year I purchased a small 50ml pouch of sun screen from the Boots Soltan range, called Once Kids. I still have plenty left over for this year, probably because we only saw about two days of sunshine last year. The Soltan range of sun screens from Boots have an extremely good reputation and are often rated among the best buys from Which? magazine.

~~~The Product~~~

Soltan Once Kids is packaged in a plastic pouch, a bit like those squeezy yogurts for kids. It has a screw top and extracting the cream just involves squeezing the pouch. The cream itself is very thick and when squeezing it out of the tube it emerges with a white sausage like appearance. It doesn't smell overpowering but leaves a subtle fragrance of suncream on the skin once it's been applied.

The SPF (sun protection factor) rating is 40 which means the burning effect of the sun the UVB rays, is reduced by up to 40 times. Additionally it has been given a 5 star UVA rating which is the maximum protection.

~~~Application~~~

You only need one application for up to six hours of protection. This includes allowances for three hours of water exposure. Of course, if they've been swimming and then towelled dry, you need to reapply.

When applying sun screen, people often don't use nearly enough to achieve the desired SPF. This may have something to do with them costing so much. I know I've often spread sun creams over my skin very thinly, eeking out as much as possible to make it go further. However, if you do this you won't achieve the level of protection as stated on bottle.

The recommended amount of this sun cream is to apply approximately three tablespoons for the entire body. That's about the entire contents of one of these pouches! Of course you would adjust this down if you're just covering the face or arms for instance. The instructions tell you to rub the cream into the body and allow it to dry for 15 minutes before exposure to the sun.

~~~My Experiences~~~

Well, it's not actually me who's been wearing this sun cream, rather it's my three children, mainly the two girls as my son rarely ventures away from his computer.

My kids are never too happy when it comes to putting on the sun cream. They're always in too much of a hurry and impatient to make their escape into the sun. However, I make sure they're properly protected with cream first.

I generally squeeze out a large blob of cream into my hand and bit by bit rub it into their skin as and where it's needed. The cream is very thick, as mentioned earlier, and it needs to be rubbed in very well otherwise they're left looking paler than Michael Jackson.

The cream has very good staying power and even when they've been splashing around under water sprinklers, I can see the cream is still on their skin. And despite spending several hours in the sun, they've not come close to burning. In fact, it's kept their skin quite pale while it's been on.
This cream has been dermatologically tested and is specially formulated for children's vulnerable skin. One of my daughters has eczema and this cream hasn't aggravated it in any way.

The packaging of this product, the squeezy pouch, is very handy to pop into your bag if you're going to be away from home for a while with kids and you think you may be outside for any length of time. There isn't much danger of it leaking out as it's so thick and the top keeps the contents securely inside. It weighs practically nothing and takes up very little space.

It's not that expensive, costing £5.99 and of course is available in Boots stores. At the time of writing, there is a buy one get one free offer.

Summary: A trustworthy brand of sun screen for children