"Study after study has shown that sunbed tanning increases the risk of both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers." This statement comes directly from the website of The Skin Cancer Foundation of the USA. Similar concern is noted on the website of the World Health Organization. I have no misgiving about these statements. In graduate school I worked on an awareness campaign regarding the dangers of tanning beds.
This was NOT the post I had planned for today, in fact, that post is already written and on standby because when I was reading the paper with dinner I became incensed. The WSJ has an article in today's paper that discusses a new tax that is now in effect. The tax was written into the Health Care Reform Act and will basically raise the cost of a tan by 10%. There are some exemptions to the tax. If a gym offers tanning in the monthly rate of all memberships then it is not taxed, but if it is an extra that members pay for as they use it - it is taxed. Owners of little tanning shops will be taxed. In the WSJ piece the reporter noted that fitness centers might use this exemption as a way to encourage people to join their gyms. The gym member would have access to tax free tanning. A person quoted in the story said something about it being wrong to try to keep people from becoming healthy. I have no idea what he meant. Yes, exercise improves health - tanning - NO SIR. Oh yes, and in the article it mentioned that people were trying to get more tans in before the price went up. OH MY GOSH> You may be able to view the article here.
The idea for taxing the tan SHOULD be based in the theory that higher prices for a tan would be a deterrent and thus have the potential to reduce the number of cases of melanoma. That was not mentioned in the article. No mention of radiation from tanning beds and the link to cancer was made. I was just aghast and thus had to change my blog.
Please - if you are a tanning bed user- let this be the reason you give it up. Learn more about the link to cancer from The Skin Cancer Foundation.
1 comment:
After years and years of trying to get as tan as possible, which is not really possible at all given my heritage, I now wear my white LOUD and PROUD! Hard to do when everyone around me always seems so beautifully tan. But I cringe when I see friends I stared tanning with back in highschool... their skin looks like that of an old elephant. Ugh! SPF 30+ for me!
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