Indoor tanning a public health priority

May 20, 2015

Letter to the Editor: Extracts

Indoor tanning among children increases their lifetime risk for developing melanoma by 85%.¹Additionally, individuals who tan indoors 10 or more times have a 34% increased risk for developing melanoma.²In this study, we examined the prevalence and correlates of frequent indoor tanning among New Jersey high school students.

We conducted χ²analyses to examine the association between each study variable and whether students who reported past-year indoor tanning were frequent indoor tanners. As shown in Table I, the prevalence of frequent indoor tanning did not differ according to students' sex, age, race/ethnicity (Hispanic vs non-Hispanic white students), and whether they indoor tanned before a special occasion or vacation. However, frequent indoor tanning was significantly more common among indoor tanners who were current smokers, tanned to improve their mood, had used social media related to tanning salons, or indicated it would be very hard to stop indoor tanning.

More than one third of the indoor tanning high school students in the current study were frequent tanners who reported that it would be harder for them to stop indoor tanning. Frequent tanners were more likely to have engaged in social media activities related to indoor tanning. Social media may represent a viable mechanism to deliver interventions to reduce indoor tanning among frequent indoor tanners. Such interventions should also address the higher rates at which youths who frequently tan indoors do so to improve their mood. The higher rate of smoking among frequent indoor tanners suggests that they may benefit from interventions that target multiple behavioral risk factors.⁴Reducing rates of indoor tanning among US youth is an important public health priority

Source:

Coups, EJ, et al. Frequent indoor tanning among New Jersey high school students. JAAD. Volume 72, Issue 5, Pages 914-916. http://www.jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(15)00102-4/fulltext