Top 5 Scary Facts About Tanning
#5: Tanning Beds Increase Your Risk of Melanoma - By a Lot
Many studies from various sources have shown the use of tanning beds leads directly to skin cancer. Using a tanning bed just once in your life can increase your risk of carcinoma by 67%. You don’t need to burn to develop skin cancer- even a light tan can lead to the disease later in life. If you’ve been told that you need to tan to get Vitamin D, that’d be incorrect. Vitamin D can be consumed in various foods or supplements too.
#4: Tanning Beds May Be More Dangerous Than the Sun
The World Health Organization actually puts tanning beds with substances like plutonium in its highest risk category of carcinogens. Frequenting indoor tanning salons before the age of 35 actually increases your risk of getting skin cancer by 75%. And the more you do it, the higher the risk gets. While the types of radiation you get in a tanning bed are similar to what the sun produces, the rays you get with indoor tanning can be many times stronger because they are meant to help you get tanned fast.
#3: There Is No Such Thing as a Safe Tan
Top 100 Human Body Facts That Will Surprise You
The only way you can tan your skin completely safely is by using self-tanner products. Exposure to the sun or any type of indoor tanning is a risk, even if you only do it once or if you put on an SPF product beforehand. The idea that getting a “base tan” will help protect your skin when you go on vacation is also totally false - if you’re worried about burning on the beach, you’ll have to pack the SPF and reapply every two hours. If you want that bronze glow, there are tons of products that can help you get it safely.
#2: Tanning Without Eye Protection Can Damage Eyesight
While the risks associated with skin damage and tanning is well known and documented, one of the pieces of information that is less common knowledge is how serious eye damage caused by tanning can be. Those funny looking little goggles that you see tanners wearing are offered for good reason, but not everyone uses them. Photokeratitis and cataracts are both issues that can be caused by UV exposure and include symptoms like pain, swelling, blurry vision, or even blindness. Yet, many people fail to see the light.
#1: Skin Cancer Is the Most Common Type of Cancer for Young People
For both men and women between the ages of 15 and 29, skin cancer is the most common type of cancer. The good news is, unlike other cancers, we know exactly what the cause is. 90% of skin cancers are found to be caused by exposure to UV rays, which can be either from the sun of from tanning beds. This means that 90% of melanoma cancers are completely preventable. Even one bad sunburn can greatly increase your risk of getting skin cancer later in life.
