Article #5:  Tanning Beds and Skin Cancer

Do tanning beds increase your risk for skin cancer?

A recent study in the medical journal Lancet confirms once again that exposure to ultra-violet light from tanning beds increases your risk for skin cancer, particularly melanoma.

This increase was seen in particular in young adults who frequented tanning salons; those between the ages of 16-29. The study showed these young individuals were more than 75 times more likely to develop skin cancer and eight times more likely to develop the most serious kind: melanoma.

Tanning beds expose you to 12 times the UV radiation of the sun. Once again, there is no such thing as a safe tan. "Ultra-violet-light" tanning from the sun or tanning beds is not healthy. The American Cancer Society advises bronzing or self-tanning creams instead of tanning beds.

The good news is skin cancer is preventable. It's a simple matter of minimizing your exposure to UV rays.


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