Indoor Tanning

Abstract

Welcome to Public Health Moment from the University of Minnesota. Nearly 1 in 5 women say that they use indoor tanning facilities, yet only 13 percent of women say that people should avoid tanning salons when considering ways to prevent skin cancer. That’s according to a nationwide study that involved nearly 2,900 people. The University of Minnesota led the study. Kelvin Choi, a public health researcher at Minnesota, says that about 6 percent of men reported tanning indoors. Choi says that young adults are even more likely to tan at indoor salons. He says that 36 percent of women and 12 percent of men between the ages of 18 and 24 reported using indoor tanning salons. <Choi: “Indoor tanning use is common, particularly among young women. The proportion of young women who tanned in the last year is even higher than cigarette smoking in this age group. While the World Health Organization considers both as carcinogenic to humans. The popularity of indoor tanning among young women may also contribute to the recent increase in melanoma skin cancer in women under the age of 40.”>Choi says more awareness is needed. <Choi: “I think the take-home message here is that consumers need to know that the World Health Organization concluded that indoor tanning use causes skin cancer. And avoiding indoor tanning beds and booths are probably the easiest way to reduce their chances of getting skin cancer.”> For Public Health Moment, I’m Mark Engebretson