Shedding Light at the Tanning Parlor: A Review of the Recent Research on Teenage Tanning Behavior

The past 20 years have brought increased public awareness to the link between UV radiationand skin cancer. Recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a division of the World Health Organization, raised tanning beds to category 1 carcinogenicity, the highest cancer risk category defined by the agency and the same category as cigarettes. Despite growing public awareness of the dangers related to UV radiation exposure, the incidence of skin cancer and use of indoor tanning beds continues to rise. Despite skin cancer being ranked as the most common form of cancer in the United States, the indoor tanning industry has grown substantially, generating annual revenues of $5 billion. This article reviews the growth and practices of the indoor tanning industry, the factors that motivate adolescents to tan, and the effectiveness of various public health interventions, and increased regulation of the indoor tanning industry in changing the tanning behaviors of the adolescent population.