How Safe are Tanning Beds?

Around one million people use tanning beds each year in the US. Yet the ultraviolet (UV) light they use causes skin cancer. The risk is so high that a recent article from researchers at the University of Michigan called for an immediate ban on the use of commercial indoor tanning by minors, and the phasing out of all commercial tanning operations in the United States over the next 5 years. Acknowledgements: This Risk Bites video is based on work by Diana Bowman, Ryan Lewis, Maximilian Lee and Catherine Yao (see first article below in Further Information) Backing track: Blue and Green by Rimsky. http://www.premiumbeat.com/royalty_free_music/songs/blue-and-green FURTHER INFORMATION: The Growing Public Health Challenges of Exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation From Use of Indoor Tanning Devices in the United States. Diana M. Bowman, Ryan C. Lewis, Maximilian S. Lee, andCatherine J. Yao (2015). NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1048291115586416 The US Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent Skin Cancer: http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/calls/prevent-skin-cancer/ The American Academy of Dermatology: Dangers of Indoor Tanning. https://www.aad.org/media-resources/stats-and-facts/prevention-and-care/dangers-of-indoor-tanning IARC: The association of use of sunbeds with cutaneous malignant melanoma and other skin cancers: A systematic review. (2006). International Journal of Cancer vol. 120 issue 5 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ijc.22453 IARC: 2009 classification of tanning beds as a group 1 carcinogen (The Lancet): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(09)70213-X US Food and Drug Administration: Indoor Tanning: The Risks of Ultraviolet Rays. http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm186687.htm Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) – Skin Cancer Foundation http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/basal-cell-carcinoma Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) – Skin Cancer Foundation http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/squamous-cell-carcinoma Melanoma – Skin Cancer Foundation http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/melanoma Risk Bites is your guide to making sense of risk. We cover everything from understanding and balancing the risks and benefits of everyday products, to health science more broadly, to the potential impacts of emerging technologies, to making sense of risk perception. If you enjoy our videos, please subscribe, and spread the word! Click here to see more videos: https://alugha.com/RiskBites

LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike

More videos by this producer

What is Epidemiology?

What epidemiology is, and why it's important? Risk Bites provides a simple introduction to what epidemiology is, and how to make sense of epidemiology studies when people's health is on the line. With Mariya Voytyuk. Written, illustrated, narrated and filmed by Dr. Mariya Voytyuk RISK BITES Risk

How do face masks and respirators work?

How do face masks and respirators prevent you from breathing in harmful particles? As respiratory protection against coronavirus becomes increasingly important, Risk Bites dives into the science of face masks and respirators, and explores what makes for good protection, whether it’s a professional

Is public engagement on science a bad idea?

Should people who aren't scientists have a say in what science gets done, and how it is used? This week, Risk Bites takes on the knotty topic of science and public engagement. This video was created to preface a conference session on engaging publics on science and technology -- synthetic biolog