The 2012 edition of The Skin Cancer Foundation Journal features medically reviewed, reader-friendly articles such as tanning, the increasing incidence of skin cancer diagnoses among young women, & the prevalence of melanoma among white males over 50.
Issue link: https://skincancer.epubxp.com/i/319518
Beauty & Anti-Aging Getting a "base tan" before vacation protects you from sunburn. A tan is your skin's reaction to DNA damage from ultraviolet (UV) rays, and damage is no way to prevent damage. When skin is overexposed to UV radiation, its cells produce melanin, a dark pigment, to shield against further harm. But this protection is extremely limited: a tan at most adds a sun protection factor (SPF) of 4, well below the minimum recommended SPF of 15. There is no such thing as a "healthy" tan. Tanning beds are safer than sun exposure. This myth is based largely on the false notion that UVA rays are safer than UVB rays; tanning beds mainly emit UVA rays, while sunshine abundantly produces both UVA and UVB. UVB, the "sunburn ray," was once considered more dangerous, but re- cent research has shown that UVA rays can be just as harmful. In fact, they penetrate deeper into the skin than UVB. Plus, new high-pressure sunlamps emit a much more concentrated dose of UVA than the dose you receive from sun exposure. 1 Using a tanning bed before age 35 increases melanoma risk by 75 percent. 2 Indoor tanners are also 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell carci- noma and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell carcinoma. 3 Tanning beds are a good source of Vitamin D. While Vitamin D is vital for bone health and vari- ous cellular functions, tanning is not a safe way to obtain the nutrient. It's not an effcient way, either: tanning beds mainly produce UVA rays, and vitamin D is mainly manufactured by the sun's UVB rays. You can safely take in suffcient vitamin D through your diet and vitamin D supplements. 4 People who tan easily or have naturally dark skin don't have to worry about skin cancer. While having fair skin, blue or gray eyes and red or blond hair puts you at higher risk for skin cancer, all skin types can develop skin cancer. It's safe to visit a tanning salon once in awhile, say for the prom or another special occasion. According to Gery, et al, using a tanning bed at all before age 25 increases skin cancer risk by 40-102 percent, and with each additional tan- ning session per year, melanoma risk increases by 1.8 percent. 5 The average young female tanner uses tanning beds 28 times a year. It is this heavy and persistent use that is now so alarming. You can't tan or burn on a cloudy day, so you don't need sun protection. Some 80 percent of the sun's UV rays – above all UVA rays, the prime aging ray – can penetrate clouds and fog, so you need to practice sun protection even on overcast days. 6 UVA is equally abundant year-round. Teens and young adults can afford to tan or burn, since people don't develop skin cancer until they are much older. That couldn't be further from the truth. Melano- ma is the second most common form of cancer for young people age 15-29. 7 Furthermore, all the skin damage you do throughout your life adds up; one blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence or fve sunburns by any age more than doubles your lifetime chances of develop- ing melanoma. 8, 9 5 MYTH 6 MYTH 7 MYTH 1 MYTH 2 MY T H 3 MYTH 28 S K I N C A N C E R F O U N D A T I O N J O U R N A L UV rays, and one session in a bed that didn't; the beds were otherwise identi- cal. In subsequent visits, patrons given the choice between the two beds chose the UV-emitting bed 95 percent of the time. This strongly confrmed that the UV exposure itself biologically drove further tanning. 22 In two separate studies, Kaur, et al narrowed in on just what this bio- logical mechanism was – the body's natural opiate, endorphins. By block- ing opiate receptors when frequent tanners were tanning, the researchers triggered classic opioid withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, vomit- ing, and disorientation in many tan- ners. 23,24 Then in 2012, Harrington, et al showed that tanning stimulates the central nervous system's "reward path- ways" in frequent tanners, so that they keep coming back for more. 25 Conclusion W hen you add it up, it should be clear why you shouldn't tan. It damages and ages your skin, it can lead to skin cancer, and it can make you so addicted that you keep on tanning despite it all. So don't start. If you've already started, fnd a way to stop, the sooner the better: talk to friends who have stopped and see what worked for them. Seven Myths About Tanning 4 MY T H References available on p.95 References available on p.95