The Indoor Tanning Association (ITA) responded to flawed study on links between indoor tanning and skin cancer.
We were deeply disappointed by the misrepresentations in the Journal of Dermatology special article “The Indoor UV Tanning Industry: A Review of Skin Cancer Risk, Health Benefit Claims and Regulation,” [j.jaad.2005.07.066] and the accompanying release by the American Academy of Dermatology.
There are several, significant and misleading flaws in this article. First, the authors admit that they have not conducted a systematic review of the relevant literature. If they had done so, they would have learned that 18 of 22 previous studies conducted in the last twenty years, on the relationship between UV light and melanoma show that there is no link between indoor tanning and the likelihood of developing melanoma.
Second, the authors have consistently overestimated the prevalence of sunbed use by people under the age of 18. Indoor tanning industry figures continue to show that fewer than 5 percent of indoor tanners are under the age of 18. Further, the ITA continues to educate its members on the importance of signed parental consent for any person under the age of 18 who wishes to tan. Whether or not a young person tans is a decision that he or she should make in conjunction with his/her parents.
It is not a decision in which the government has any role.
The authors continue to dismiss the results of a wide range, of credible and peer reviewed studies that indicate the substantial link between regular, moderate exposure to UV light, the subsequent vitamin D production, and the prevention of a wide variety of cancers and conditions such osteoporosis.
In the past month, researchers at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) Medical Center reported that vitamin D can dramatically lower the risk of developing common types of cancers. In fact, the report says taking the right amount of vitamin D can cut the chances of getting breast, ovarian, even colon cancer from one-third to a half. The UCSD researchers call for prompt public health action to increase intake of vitamin D3 as an inexpensive tool for prevention of diseases that claim millions of lives each year.
Finally, in its release, the AAD estimates that there are 365,000,000 visits each year to tanning salons and states that according to the Centers for Disease Control, there are 700 emergency room visits due to injuries from tanning bed use. This is an astounding injury incidence rate of .0000019; and a safety record for which all industries should strive to achieve.
It is disappointing that a respected journal such as the Journal of Dermatology has chosen to publish an article based entirely on a narrative review of the literature and that clearly serves no other purpose than to further its political agenda.
Over the past six weeks, there have been daily reports in the media about the importance sun exposure and vitamin D in overall good health, especially the role of vitamin D in preventing cancer. The truth is exposing the flaws in the Academy’s message about the sun.
The fact is that after 25 years of a highly successful and well financed public relations campaign to scare us out of the sun, a significant number of Americans are suffering ill-health from that advice. The truth is finally evident and the American Academy of Dermatology is stuck in the dark ages.
