It is safer to have a golden tan using commercial tanning beds. Just
ask the more than one million Americans visiting tanning salons each
day, bronzing their skins with these beds.
Or is it?
More and more research studies have shown that while the $2
billion-a-year tanning industry promotes that tanning indoors are safer
than sunbathing, ultraviolet exposure from these commercial tanning
beds is just as dangerous as direct tanning from lying in the sun.
These findings add credibility to the assertion of most skin experts that tanning is not safe, no matter how it is done.
No Such Thing as a Safe Tan
According to findings published in the May 2001 issue of the Journal of
the American Academy of Dermatology, tanning using commercial beds does
not mean one's skin is safe from the harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation
as opposed to direct exposure to the sun.
"When the skin is exposed to ultraviolet radiation, either through
direct sun exposure or at a tanning salon, it produces a tan to prevent
further damage. There can be no tan without the DNA damage," said
dermatologist James M. Spencer, MD, tells WebMD Medical News in an
online report.
The study found out that after a single tanning session, molecular
changes linked to melanoma, a deadly skin cancer, are routinely
triggered. As a result of these biologic changes from tanning bed use,
one could get skin cancer, according to the findings.
Many tanners seem privy to this information. In a study made by two
researchers at the Brownman Gray School of Medicine in Wake Forest
University, Winston Salem, North Carolina, those who regularly go use
tanning beds may be aware of the harmful effects of the sun to the
skin, but may not be aware that tanning beds can also do the same.
Even teens know the risks associated with tanning, including tanning
bed use. Surprisingly, many teenagers still do it anyway, visiting
tanning salons and tan themselves using tanning beds. The Associated
Press (AP) on May 2, 2005 reported that the American Academy of
Dermatology (AAD) conducted a nationwide survey of 505 respondents aged
between 12 and 17 on their views about tanning, including commercial
tanning bed use. The AAD found out that most teens preferred having a
tan. Almost 80 percent said they knew tanning can be dangerous, but 66
percent said it looks better to have a tan.
Skin-related ailments, therefore, come not as a surprise. In 2001, over
50,000 Americans are diagnosed of melanoma, with 8,000 people dying of
the disease. Eighty percent of those who died of skin cancer are caused
by melanoma. Findings also show that one in five American will develop
skin cancer at some point. Worldwide, according to the World Health
Organization, there are between two to three million people diagnosed
with various skin cancer ailments.
That is why medical experts warn tanners of indoor tanning claims that
it has no harmful side effects or that it will not skin cancer or skin
aging. Even the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said that tanning using
commercial tanning beds damages your skin. One gets a tan because the
skin produces coloring or an additional pigment to protect itself
against burn from UV radiation. Too much UV exposure can cause you skin
cancer, not to mention, eye injury and early skin aging.
