Jancy

Yesterday heard on the news that the WHO is making recommendations that all people under the age 18 be forbidden from tanning. Went to the WHO website, found this article that the news was reported from. The news completely overlooked the entire point of the study that the WHO did about childhood enviromental factors and choices that we make for our children. From this study the news selected one single factor and blew it up to make it as sensational as possible.... that children under 18 should never be allowed to tan. Once the news media has one idea about reporting they are like vicious dogs that never can stop the attack. It never seems to stop.

www.euro.who.int/budapest2004/documentation/20040611_2

page 25
"... increased melanoma risk for young people related to the popular habit of artificial tanning in sunbeds" from a swedish study.

From this statement and the conclusions, our local news reported that the WHO condemed all tanning activities. Go figure!

Jancy

don't know how this posted twice. Sorry.

Jancy

And yes, I read the post yesterday responding to the above article. The issue is that the news organization takes just the bits and peices of what they want and they run in only one direction with it. There is no fair or balanced reporting, our local news organization takes the most dramatic issues and makes them as sensational as possible. The sad thing, you can't convience the public that the news they hear may be wrong when they hear the same message over and over....
We can individually try to educate, but we are fighting years of negative press and the public doesn't seem to hear any balanced messages. We hear six seconds of negative press, over and over, and we begin to believe it.

Neon Beach

This was announced on the 17th, and posted by another Member the same day.

http://www.tantalk.com/viewtopic.php?topic=2344742&forum=1

http://www.tantalk.com/viewtopic.php?topic=2344764&forum=1

Jancy

We posted the following in response in our salon:

You may have read the WHO warning that getting a tan could result in an epidemic of skin cancers for young people. Go to the WHO website, read the full article: one in three cancers worldwide is skin-related, mostly due to over-exposure to natural radiation from the sun. Nowhere do they mention facts such as the relationship between smoking and skin cancers, yet smokers compose the one of the largest group of people who get skin cancer. They recommend that all teens should avoid using tanning beds. This is irresponsible. They state that this industry is unregulated, and this is false as we are heavily regulated.

Read the WHO article, and then read The International Tanning Institute article attached below it.


World Health Organization
GENEVA, March 17 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization (WHO), warned young Europeans on Thursday that their taste for getting a tan even before they hit the beach could result in an "epidemic" of skin cancer within a decade. WHO said sun beds and sunlamps, popular with many tanning-obsessed Europeans, should be banned for under-18s and avoided by everybody else because of their link to cancer. "We don't want to see an epidemic of skin cancers coming along some 10 years down the road," Michael Repacholi, coordinator of WHO's radiation and health program, said. "We recommend that you don't use sun beds. If you want to, there are a set of rules that we have identified that you should adhere to," he said, adding people ought be supervised and use goggles to protect their eyes. Recent studies have shown a direct link between ultraviolet radiation emitted by sun beds and sunlamps and skin cancers, prompting the WHO to call for stricter controls on their use. Some 25 percent of sun bed users in northern Europe are aged between 16 and 24, making them the target audience for the warning, Repacholi told Reuters. Regular sun bed use may cause disfigurement from removal of skin cancers and early death if the cancer is a malignant melanoma, the U.N. agency said, adding it would also add substantial costs to national health systems. Promoted by an unregulated, multibillion dollar industry, tanning devices in commercial studios are popular among whites, especially in western Europe and increasingly eastern Europe. Young females, many fair-skinned, often turn to "all-over tan", clam-shaped sun beds ahead of a beach holiday. "They think they are going to be protecting themselves by getting a tan before they go so they don't get sunburned when they get there. This is basically a myth, it doesn't provide adequate protection at all," Repacholi said.
One in three cancers worldwide is skin-related, mostly due to over-exposure to natural radiation from the sun, according to the WHO. There are 132,000 cases of malignant melanoma worldwide each year and more than 2 million cases of other skin cancers. The annual incidence rate for melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer as it spreads to other parts of the body, is estimated to have more than tripled in Norway and Sweden since 1960, and doubled in the United States since 1975, the WHO said. Sun beds can emit levels of ultraviolet radiation many times stronger than the mid-day summer sun, the WHO said. France and Sweden are among the few countries to regulate their use.

INDOOR TANNING ASSOCIATION
WASHINGTON, March 17 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The Indoor Tanning Association today issued the following statement in response to World Health Organization recommendations:
The WHO has tried to develop a one-size-fits-all approach to a very complex issue, an approach which is both ill-informed and paternalistic.
Regular, moderate exposure to ultraviolet light is necessary for good health, and we maintain that ANY overexposure should be avoided. It is important to achieve a balance between getting enough exposure to UV light to maintain adequate levels of Vitamin D. We encourage all consumers to make an informed decision.
The recently issued World Health Organization (WHO) note provides no new information on the link between UV exposure and melanoma; the research on this matter remains inconsistent and fails to make a compelling case. The associated fact sheet represents nothing more than recycled scare tactics.
We cannot speak for other countries, but in the United States the indoor tanning industry is already regulated; federally, by the FDA and by many states that require parental consent for persons under the age of 18 to tan. We strongly believe that decisions about whether or not teenagers tan should be made by their parents.

At our salon we feel that tanning offers distinctive advantages: It allows you to control the dosage of UV exposure and it stimulates your body into making a tan. Tanned skin does not sunburn as easily as non-tanned skin. Our state regulations make it clear that we can only advise you that tanning is for cosmetic reasons only. As an informed consumer you also need to understand that cosmetic tanning of the skin leads to increase Vitamin D formation, you get an endorphin response, and that you feel better after you tan. Your body tells you that it recognizes the benefits of tanning.

There is no conclusive study showing that UV light exposure causes skin cancer, yet there is plenty of proof that links smoking to skin cancer. There is plenty of proof showing that a lack of UV exposure causes a lack of Vitamin D, weak bones, poor immune responses, and osteoporosis. The WHO article doesn’t mention what a failure to get UV light does to the human body. We believe that modern American’s are becoming phobic to the natural environment and that these scare tactics will force people to live a life out of the sunshine. Look at it this way: our ancestors and grandparents spent many more hours in the sun than any of us do nowadays, and they also got many more sunburns that any of us.... yet, there are more reported cases of skin cancer now than ever before.... somehow blaming this on tanning salons just doesn't fit.

Stay informed. Think for yourself.

CaraYeo

ummm.....did you ever hear about the ozone layer depletion...Why our parents and grandparents did not have as much exposure to harmful UV rays....Also, many of our parents generations do have skin cancer, secondly I don't know about where your from, but Im sure when my grandmother was young tanning wasn't popular like it is today...

CaraYeo

Point two from me...for people in northern U.S. anyway and in Canada. Before sun tanning indoors came out...most people were only exposed to tanning in June, July and August. Maybe one or two more months...maybe depending on where you live. Now people can tan all year round...has to make some difference.

tan2much

I think Jancy, is completly correct. The dermotologists and sun-screen companies have teamed up against idoor tanning. The two are loosing money because indoor tanning does not require sun screen. Therefore Coppertone and other companies are trying to get people away from tanning beds, so there sales will increase. Now every one has word that indoor tanning is bad, but that not true. You never know how much UVA and UVB is comming off of some nuclar star in space (the sun). In tanning beds they control the amount of UV you get, and time it so you dont burn, therefore that should be enough proof that tanning beds are safer.

Everyone has there opinion, that was mine.

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[ This Message was edited by: tan2much on 2005-03-19 21:52 ]

CaraYeo

hmmm....just thought of something else...maybe people are going on vacations more from northern countries and are hurrying to get a tan resulting in more burns. Could be antoher reason why it is up in norther countries.

Neon Beach

Clients who are trying to develop a base tan before heading to tropical climates are smart. Even smarter if they find a tanning facility that is properly trained, not some sunshack located Grand Falls/Windsor that doubles as a Taxi Stand.
Prpoer educated people realize that moderate exposure to UV rays, especially indoors is smart, and that UV rays in moderation are essential to life and health.