10 Shocking Facts About Melanoma and Indoor Tanning
The number of skin cancer cases due to tanning is higher than the number of lung cancer cases due to smoking.
This was found by a 2014 study published in JAMA Dermatology. This correlation is shocking considering the largely unregulated industry of indoor tanning in comparison to the highly regulated tobacco industry.
Ultraviolet tanning beds deliver more intense UV radiation than the sun.
Unlike the UV rays in sunlight, which need to travel through the ozone, cloud cover, and particles in the air, UV light from tanning beds or sunlamps is directed straight to the skin. This makes it more likely that the user will receive a higher intensity of UV light for a greater duration of time.
It only takes one session to double your risk.
One session of indoor tanning makes you 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell carcinoma.
Nearly 10 million adults nationwide tan indoors.
The American Academy of dermatologists reports that approximately 7.8 million adult women and 1.9 million adult men in the US tan indoors.
UV light is a known carcinogen.
UV light has been declared a known carcinogen by both the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the World Health Organization’s International Agency of Research on Cancer Panel.
419,254 cases of skin cancer are caused by indoor tanning each year.
According to a study published in JAMA Dermatology in 2014, 419,254 cases of skin cancer are caused by indoor tanning each year. 6,199 of these cases are melanoma.
The rate of melanoma in people aged 18 to 39 has increased by nearly 800% in the past four decades.
The skin cancer foundation reports that between 1970 and 1979, just about 5 cases of melanoma per 100,000 people were diagnosed. From 2000-2009, about 30 cases of melanoma per 100,000 people were diagnosed.
Indoor ultraviolet tanners are 74% more likely to develop melanoma than those who have never tanned indoors
According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, indoor ultraviolet tanners’ risk of melanoma is higher than non-tanners by 74%. The foundation also reports that those who tan only four times each year are still at an increased risk, though this number is much lower (11%).
55% of college students report having tried indoor tanning.
The rate of indoor tanning is higher among college students than it is among adults. 55% of college students report having tried indoor tanning while 35% of adults report having tried it.
Tanning can be addictive
Researchers have found that many tanners have an addictive relationship with indoor tanning. One study found that 70% of indoor tanners exhibited the necessary diagnostic criteria for UV light substance abuse or dependence disorders.
