One in 3 White, Teen Girls Have Used Tanning Booths

Bloomberg no url | 9/8/3

[NativeNewYorker]

Sept. 8 (Bloomberg) -- More than one-third of white, teenaged girls in the U.S. have used a tanning booth, which may age the skin and raise the risk of cancer, and about 30 percent have used the devices at least three times, according to a study.

Repeated use increased with age, rising to 47 percent among 18- and 19-year old girls from 11 percent among 13- and 14-yearolds, said study leader Catherine Demko, a cancer epidemiologist at Case Western University School of Medicine in Cleveland.

Researchers once thought the dominant form of ultraviolet rays in sunlight, called UV-B, posed more risk of skin cancer than another type of light called UV-A. Recent research suggests that UV-A radiation, which composes a large portion of the light in tanning beds, may risk raise the risk of skin aging and cancer nearly as much as UV-B, Demko said in an interview.

``Girls are exposing themselves to UV-A and UV-B radiation through indoor and outdoor tanning,'' she said. ``They could be setting themselves up for greater risk.''

More than 1 million skin cancer cases are diagnosed each year, and more than 50,000 of those are the most serious form, malignant melanoma, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Melanoma cases have increased 7 percent annually since 1981, and it is the most common form of cancer in people 25 to 29 years old, the agency's Web site said.

Use of tanning beds among teen-age boys was much lower, with less than 7 percent using them three times or more, the study said. Parents should help teen-aged children find other ways to alter appearances besides tanning booths, Demko said.

The study, which appears in the September Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, looked at 6,900 white adolescents in 1996 and was funded by the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

[swarthyguy]

Swarthy Envy?

[ctlpdad]

I won't beleive it till I see the photo's

[ElkGroveDan]

One in 3 White, Teen Girls Have Used Tanning Booths

At first I thought this might have been a story from The Onion. What a lame headline.

[NativeNewYorker]

Every study and survey I've seen has validated my personal observation and learning: Many females are driven to maximize their self-perceived attactiveness, even at the expense of their long-term health, and *knowlingly* harm themselves in the pursuit of beauty.

[Always Right]

How long before the class-action lawsuit against 'Big Tanning' happens?

[Always Right]

How long before the class-action lawsuit against 'Big Tanning' happens?

[Ladytotheright]

In my opinion them things are RACIST! They must find a way to make them appeal to blacks.

[swarthyguy]

Sure seems that way; the media driven image of the female body is not for most. But most do slavishly worship it and berate themselves when they don't adhere to it.

Of course, I've yet to figure out how pierced tongues and eyebrows are attractive.

[BossLady]

Liquid Sun is the latest 'thing'. No sun rays, no lights....just stand in a booth type deal and get spray painted. (Of course, a couple girls I saw right after looked like Oompa Loompas....but, hey, to each their own....):o

[Hildy]

Huh? What's an Oompa Loompa?

[xm177e2]

Charlie & the Cholocate Factory... they're rotund dwarves with the same skin tone as the guy from "The Price is Right."

[BossLady]

From Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory....

[proust]

grrr now I have that stupid song in my head!

[CanadianLibertarian]

yum yum yum....gimme some of that fake tanned bum.

gotta love tanned,white teenage girls....

(perv disclaimer.....I'm referring to one in particular....and she is over 18 :-)

[BossLady]

Sorrrrrryyyyyyy........ ;)

[Cogadh na Sith]

Q: How is a naked woman with a tan like a Thanksgiving Turkey?

A: The white meat is the best part....

[danneskjold]

FYI

[sinkspur]

I had bad acne in high school, and--if you can believe it--back in the 60s, my dermatologist stuck me in a room with these UV lights twice a week for nearly a year, for about 15 minutes at a time.

I guess nobody knew.

[Tacis]

I know one reason why the use ratio isn't higher and I'll bet it was overlooked by this medical researcher.

I had a friend who owned a tanning place that was located near I high school. I mentioned that that must be good for business. He said "no, just the opposite." He sold contracts, X number of sessions for a flat fee or unlimited use for a monthly charge. But, children under, what, 16, can't be held to a contract so he wouldn't do business with them. Their parents could sign but they couldn't. So, in many states, girls under whatever that age is might want to but can't.