Poll Reports

9 in 10 parents say it is very important to use sunscreen to prevent sunburn and skin cancer. Nearly half of parents choose a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 45 for their child. 1 in 3 parents do not re-apply sunscreen on their child on a cloudy day.

1 in 3 parents use a bug repellent on their child that contains DEET. Nearly half of parents give their children oral antihistamines to help with itching from bites. Parents are twice as concerned about ticks transmitting diseases than they are about mosquitoes.

1 in 20 parents say their tween currently uses health apps. 2 in 3 parents are concerned about their tween being targeted by ads from health apps. Most parents want input from their tween’s health care provider on using health apps, but only 3% have talked with their tween’s provider. 38% of parents would not allow their tween to use an app that tracks health information.

3 in 4 parents of school-age children say they have talked about inappropriate touching, compared to less than half of parents of preschoolers. 2 in 5 parents report not receiving any information on how to talk with their child about inappropriate touching. 3 in 4 parents want their child’s school or preschool to provide information for parents on how to talk about inappropriate touching.

3 in 4 parents say their home tap water is safe for their child to drink. 1 in 3 parents believe the city or county would notify them if there was a problem with their home water supply. Two-thirds of parents from higher-income households report that both home tap water and school drinking fountains are safe for their child to drink, compared to only half of lower-income parents.

Almost 9 in 10 parents agree teens spend too much time playing video games. Parents are twice as likely to report their teen boys play video games every day compared with parents of teen girls. 4 in 10 parents try to restrict the type/content of the video games played by their teen.

Parents' top reasons for having a family pet are fun/companionship and teaching children responsibility. Parents' top reasons against having a family pet are hassle, allergies, and cost. Only 1 in 6 parents would allow their child to receive a pet as a gift.

1 in 4 parents say their middle or high school age-child knows a peer or classmate with depression. Though most parents are confident they would recognize depression in their middle or high school-age child, two-thirds cite barriers to recognizing signs and symptoms. 7 in 10 parents think schools should screen all students for depression; 6th grade is the most preferred age to begin depression screening.

Parents' top concerns about playdates include children being unsupervised, hearing inappropriate language, getting into harmful substances, and getting injured. Half of parents have declined a playdate because they did not feel comfortable leaving their child in the other parent's care. Only 1 in 4 parents have been asked about safety issues by another parent before a playdate.

1 in 3 parents say their teen rides at least once a week with another teen driving. 3 in 5 parents report their teen has been a passenger in a car driven by a teen distracted by loud music, cell phones, or other teens. Parents say they limit their teen riding with a teen driver in bad weather (68%), after midnight (67%), and/or if the driver has had a license for less than 6 months (53%).