Diamond Airbrush Tan - Atlanta, GA
Healthy Sunless Tanning
| Tanning Booth Truths |
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Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is known to be the single largest environmental factor in the development Skin cancer rates in the United States have reached epidemic proportions. Each year, there are more than one million new cases of skin cancer diagnosed, and at current rates, one in five Americans will develop skin cancer at some point in their life. Melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, is now the second most common cancer in women aged 20-29.
Dermatologists believe it is important to protect the public through appropriate regulation of the indoor tanning industry. This includes indoor tanning facilities being open and honest with consumers about the dangers associated with indoor tanning, providing proper sanitation for tanning equipment, and ensuring that parents are adequately involved in their child's decision to tan.
New Evidence Against Tanning Beds Along with skin cancer, indoor tanning is commonly believed to cause premature skin aging-and a new
Twenty-eight million Americans flock to tanning booths every year. Even more staggering, however, is how many of them are being kept in the dark. More than a third of tanning parlors deny that their UV bulbs cause skin cancer, according to a Consumer Reports survey of 296 facilities nationwide As for those claiming that their low-UVB tanning beds discourage burning and offer "safe" tans, there's simply no such thing. Research shows that UVA light also generates enough DNA-damaging free radicals to raise the risk of skin cancer (and ultimately leave the skin feeling like cheap leather). "Tanning beds are akin to cigarettes," says Howard Fein, attending dermatologist at Harbor UCLA Medical Center. "How many years did it take for tobacco manufactures to admit that smoking caused harmful health effects? Unfortunately, many people still have the notion that if a product is available, it must be safe." Reprinted from Allure Magazine |
of skin cancer. It is further known that UV radiation levels in indoor tanning devices can be up to fifteen times greater than what one would be exposed to outdoors. Additionally, recent studies at Wake Forest University and the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have shown that frequent tanners exhibit some of the same characteristics as other substance abusers.
study is the first to provide direct proof of this. Eighteen young adults who used tanning beds regularly for three months) and had never done so before!) had a 2.6 to 3.6-fold increase in an aging-related mutation on their skin. (forty-one other volunteers with a history of sun -bed use also showed elevated levels of the mutation) In skin cells, the mutation leads to oxidative stress, reduced collagen production, and increased collagen breakdown, say Jean Krutmann, director of the Institute for Environmental Health Research at Heinrich Heine University of Dusseldorf Germany. Surprisingly, "we saw the greatest damage in the youngest users, "Krustmann says. He Points out that by going to tanning salons with the intent to look better, "what you end up with is more wrinkles. So you don't increase but decrease your own beauty by doing that."