Healthy Outlook Blog

Great Post Lisa!!!

Dante

95% of skin ‘cancer’ incidences are simply skin lesions, they do not spread and can be effectively removed if necessary. The 75% increased risk raises the risk level to approx 0.0005% and given that the analysis of data to determine this figure did not exclude skin type 1s, who should not sunbathe or use sunbeds, the actual figure is even lower. Also, the cause of melanoma is not completely understood. Lifestyle, hereditory factors are contributory factors. Research has shown that UV exposure helps prevent melanoma – so it is really too simplistic and wholly inaccurate to say that UV exposure is the cause. In any eventuality it would be over-exposure, not responsible tanning that would be a contributory factor when considering UV. Another view held by many as the reason why there has been a rise in the incidence of melanoma is the result, over a period of years, of a change to the classification process of what constitutes malignancy – ie lesions that years ago would have been diagnosed as benign, would now be classified as malignant, due to the increased compensation culture that pervades society. Do not overlook the benefit of responsible UV exposure either in the sun or on a sunbed/tanning bed to ensure and maintain adequate vitamin D levels. Cancer Research UK has recently changed its advice and recommends people get unprotected (ie no SPF suncream) sun exposure in the mid-day summer sun in the UK to help prevent vitamin D deficiency which is linked to many diseases and internal cancers.

Regarding the alleged benefits of “responsible tanning,” as Gill Perkins puts it, I would contend that there’s no such thing as a healthy or “responsible” tan. Melanoma killed my father, who had extensive sun exposure as a boy growing up in Texas in the 1930s before there was sunscreen and I am extremely passionate about preventing this killer disease. In his case, it began with a very small lesion that was removed. We thought he’d been successfully treated and he also consulted another dermatologist for a second opinion. Unfortunately, 3 years later, my father was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma that had spread to his brain, liver and lungs. Despite aggressive treatment including chemo and brain surgery at one of the top cancer centers in the US, he died 7 months later. I miss him and mourn that his life was cut short by this horrible disease.

Melanoma experts will tell you that it’s not just coincidence that this deadly disease is on the rise in young women, the very group who are most likely to bake themselves in indoor tanning beds due to the misguided belief that a tan makes them look good. In my post, I cited recent peer-reviewed studies published in medical journals that clearly link a statistically increased risk of melanoma to sunbed use. If my post convinces even one person not to tan, I think that would be a great way to honor my late father’s memory.

No thanks to tanning beds.
Respect the cycles of nature, and leave your exposure only to
the sun in moderate amounts.

toadflax,

Even after a recent Caribbean vacation, I’m pale and proud of it, since I limit myself to very moderate sun exposure and always slather on lots of sunscreen. With my family history of losing my father to melanoma, that could even help save my life or keep me around for a long time to blog about health!

Very irresponsible post, Gill Perkins. Leads one to believe you have a dog in this race. As for Cancer Research UK, this is from their own website: “We recommend using sun creams with a minimum SPF of 15. There is no sun cream that can give you total protection. 98% protection against UVB (with factor 60) is about the best you will get. Keep in the shade or cover up when the sun is strongest.”

As I suspected:

Gill Perkins, from the Sunbed Association, which represents a quarter of commercial sunbed operators.

Dear Gill, none of your statements are accurate facts and are potentially dangerous to anyone who may be putting off getting checked or making risky decisions about tanning beds or tanning in general. I am a melanoma survivor and according to researchers at Northwestern University and the American Cancer Society melanoma is the fastest growing cancer in America and is second only to leukemia is killing people of working age. In Australia there is a law that says any kids in public school must wear an SPF 50 in order to play outdoors during recess because the rate is even higher.
Currently, there are only experimental drugs that are for end-stage cases in order to lengthen life from one year to 3-5, which for melanoma is considered successful. That’s because melanoma treatment is where breast cancer treatment was 20 years ago. If it’s not caught early, there is an overwhelming chance that there is only one year left.
The two questions every oncologist will ask every melanoma patient – including me who has survived two unrelated bouts (one that took a good portion of my chin and the other that took a large section of my left leg and changed the way I walk) are: did you burn as a child and have you EVER used a tanning bed. It’s worse than smoking cigarettes because the odds of getting cancer from cigarettes is not quite as bad.
Family history is a good indicator of whether or not someone is likely to get melanoma but the incidence of people being the first in their family is rising and everyone should get a body map done of everything that is larger than the eraser end of a pencil, irregular in color or size or has changed in any way. You’d be amazed at how innocuous such a deadly disease can look.
And, get the facts before encouraging anyone to partake in risky behavior that may cost them so much.

PS Ask any oncologist who specializes in melanoma if they think there’s such a thing as “responsible tanning”. That’s a ridiculous statement and it has never been ‘necessary’ for human beings to tan their hides in order to be healthy.

Gil – I’m curious where you get your research? TanningBedsRUs?(“Research has shown that UV exposure helps prevent melanoma”) That is insane. Study after study proves otherwise. Did you read the 2010 study in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention that showed that people who have ever used tanning machines were 74% more likely to develop melanoma? Or how about the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences study which concluded “UVA radiation damages the DNA in human melanocyte cells, causing mutations that can lead to melanoma.”

There’s no such thing as responsible tanning. Why don’t you go on the American Cancer Society website and do a little real research.

In addition to the reality of tanning beds leading to skin cancer, long exposure/tanning bed treatments can penetrate the eyelids leading to cataracts. Recently, I attended a wedding where the bride was so ‘tanned’ that most people laughed at her appearance because only her very white teeth showed when she smiled! When asked where she had vacationed to get that dark tan, she proudly stated she is a regular customer of tanning salons. At 30 years of age, she already had formed facial wrinkles and, no doubt, down the line she would also have skin cancer.

Thank you, Lisa, for pointing out the dangers of tanning salons.

I think getting a tan is one of the worst things people can do, whether they do it indoors or out. I think it’s pretty scientifically clear that there’s no such thing as a healthy tan.

I recently watched an episode of “Strange Addictions” where a 20-year-old young woman looked practically orange from her compulsion to use tanning beds. Her doctor told her she’s on a quick path to a short life if she keeps it up. Our society needs to change its perception of beauty to avoid this awful disease from needlessly claiming lives. Easier said than done, of course.

Hey Gill, you’re not in the tanning bed business by any chance, are you?

I was just thinking yesterday about the harmful effects of tanning in general.

When I was younger, it was my quest to get a great tan either from a tanning bed or the sun’s natural rays. Vanity was the main drive. I suffered from many a sunburn and have the chest scars to show it today.

If anyone thinks sunning themselves through a bed or on the beach is not harming their body in some irreversible way, think again. When we’re young, we feel immune and invisible — or that we just don’t care. But it catches up with you. In my case, it catches up with a friend who can die from not taking care of one small spot on their body.

Please don’t be naive or defend the subject. It’s fun to construe facts and bend them to our will or cause, but it isn’t always the best answer.

As a seasoned swim instructor and swim blogger, it is important to protect your body from harmful rays … period.

Melanoma really scares me. I have a friend who has a big gnarly crater in his forehead because of the surgery and post-surgical treatments required to remove his aggressive tumor. He is very self-conscious about it. As for me, I am middle-aged now and I have not set out to get a tan since my honeymoon in 1981.

Sorry, Gill. In the face of independent scientific evidence, I’m as disinclined to credit your opinion as a member of the tanning industry as I was to heed the cancer denials of tobacco-industry execs.

I agree with Lisa Collier Cool in that there is no such thing as “responsible” tanning. My 78-year-old father had a significant portion of his left ear and extensive surgery on the left side of his face to remove cancerous lesions that developed after years of lifeguarding over the summers in Malibu — even after using sunscreen.

From what I understand, Vitamin D deficiency is not an epidemic — at least in developed countries that offer tanning beds. Those who may need more have other options rather than UV exposure, such as taking supplements or finding ways to increase Vitamin D in their diet. However, melanoma is a serious, deadly issue.

I’m proud to glow in the dark with my Casper-the-Friendly-Ghost-white skin.

No one’s denying the value of vitamin D. But I have to doubt the alleged benefit of “responsible tanning.” To my mind, it sounds like “responsible smoking!” I’m willing to say there’s no such thing.

I write about beauty and health, and can tell you in no uncertain terms that sacrificing future health for current beauty is as
unnecessary as it is unwise.

Chelsea Lowe

As Lisa stated, indoor tanning beds are indeed harmful to your health. Everyone should be aware of the risk and limit their exposure.

Tanning beds are a horrible health risk that should be banned – the whole Vitamin D thing is a crock. Ask any melanoma survivor, the American Cancer Society or your doctor what the sun and/or tanning beds do to your skin and you’d agree. Thinking tanning beds are healthy is not only foolish, but deadly.

As a foolish teenager before salon tanning, I baked in the sun way too often but was smart enough to stop in my early 20s. Still, I worry, as my mom and two of her siblings all had skin cancers removed. Tanning salons are a waste of time and money, IMO, and a ridiculous risk to take when there are self-tanning creams available at every drugstore.

I was an avid tanning-bed user in my 20s and finally stopped all forms of UV exposure once I turned 30 and began noticing the accumulated aging effects it had on my face. Thankfully we have great tinted moisturizers today and more salons are popularizing “spray tans” instead of tanning beds. I know 2 people who suffered from skin cancer. One is my brother in law who bears the scars on his back, and the other is a former colleague in her 20s (who used tanning beds frequently) and her upper arm is deformed from the deep and long scars to remove her cancer.

Steinsmom,

Yes, the vitamin D thing IS a crock, but the tanning industry is desperate to seize on anything to promote its dangerous products. There are plenty of other ways to get vitamin D that don’t put you at risk for skin cancer and melanoma, like drinking vitamin D fortified milk or just taking a supplement, which is what I do, instead of frying your skin and getting baked-on wrinkles, age spots and possibly cancer.

I agree that “responsible tanning” sounds a lot like “responsible smoking.” Any dermatologist or cancer specialist will confirm that there’s no such thing as a “healthy tan,” while numerous peer-reviewed studies confirm the well-established link between indoor tanning and skin cancer, including melanoma, the most deadly form.

Martha,

Great suggestion re getting the body map of your moles. I am blogging on that topic on 2/23 and how it can be valuable for both melanoma survivors like yourself and healthy people who are at high risk for the disease.

I’m beginning to see the long term results of too much time in the sun. It is appalling that anyone actually pays to have their skin fried in tanning salons. The story told here should be required reading for teens (and adults who should know better) before baking their bodies in tanning salons or on the beach.

If Gill Perkins and his profiteering ilk had their way, we’d all look like Jersey Shore cast mates. There’s a reason tanning beds look like coffins. What a dangerous, ridiculous waste of money, and how disturbing that people like Mr. Perkins peddle their products as safe.

Great post, Lisa! Ask any dermatologist and you’ll hear the same thing: There’s no such thing as a healthy tan, and no amount of tanning is considered “responsible.” And if you’re admiring that beautiful bronzed glow that a favorite celebrity is sporting, don’t be so sure it came from the sun. These days, even celebs are getting smart and choosing the spray-on variety.

Blane,

Very good point re tanning beds looking like coffins–I never thought of it that way before, but it’s so true, in more ways than one!