Study Suggests Teen Tanning Regs Are Ineffective

According to cancer researchers, policies enacted by states to restrict and limit indoor tanning by children under 18 aren't working. An article in the Washington Post details a study by Vilma Cokkinides, the American Cancer Society's strategic director of risk factor surveillance, and colleagues.

For the study, the researchers measured the effect of state policies by conducting two telephone surveys (one in 1998 and another in 2004) of more than 2,800 American children, ages 11 through 18, and their parents and guardians about whether the teens had tanned indoors in the year prior.

The results indicated that use of indoor tanning salons has changed very little in the years studied, increasing from 10 percent in 1998 to 11 percent in 2004. In addition, when the researchers looked specifically at the habits of teens in states with policies restricting teen tanning, the change in the rates wasn't considered statistically significant.

Source:

Washington Post:Laws Governing Indoor Tanning By Teens Don't Work