No reduction in sunbed use with under 18 year ban

July 18, 2017

Key points

 
Findings of a previous study of Irish teenagers undertaken by the study authors showed that 7.5% of respondents had used a sunbed, with a higher rate in Dublin (11.2%).

In 2014, legislation was introduced in Ireland to ban the use of sunbeds in teenagers (age < 18 years).

The purpose of the present study was to reassess sunbed usage among teenagers aged 14–18 years, 2 years after the introduction of the ban.

The findings show no reduction of sunbed use in teenagers following the introduction of legislation banning its use in those aged < 18 years.

According to the authors, these findings may be due to a lack of enforcement of the legislation, in addition to an increasing trend for sunbed use at home.

Source:

S. Menzies, S. Daly, M. Fitzgerald and D. McKenna.  A re-evaluation of teenage sunbed use following the introduction of legislation banning use for under 18 year olds. (2017), British Photodermatology Group. Br J Dermatol, 177: 96–103. doi:10.1111/bjd.15523
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