AURORA | Dermatologists have long warned about the potential dangers of indoor tanning.
But beyond the risk of skin cancer or the potential for burns, researchers at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora say tanning by young people could be a sign of other risky behavior, including drug use.
Robert Dellavalle, associate professor of dermatology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said he wasn’t surprised by the study’s finding because it makes sense that someone who engages in one risky behavior would engage in another.
“It seemed logical that risky behaviors go together,” he said.
Young people who tan are twice as likely to use drugs, the report said.
The report is based on the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey of health data from Colorado public schools. More than 12,000 students answered the question, “During the last 12 months, how many times did you use an indoor tanning device such as a sunlamp, sunbed or tanning booth?”
Dellavalle’s analysis showed females were almost twice as likely to engage in indoor tanning as males and that steroid use was strongly associated with indoor tanning among males.
The study also said: “Any alcohol consumption within the prior 30 days and marijuana use were also associated with indoor tanning, as was lifetime use of select illicit drugs.”
For doctors, the report said physicians who have a client who tans should be on the lookout for steroid use.
Dellavalle said while Colorado teens use indoor tanning facilities less than their counterparts around the country, it is still a risky practice for young people.
“When people are in high school they think they are invincible, they are much less likely to think about long term consequences of their actions,” he said.
Still, he said, many young people feel pressure to tan, particularly young women involved in dance teams or cheerleading.
In the case of steroid use, the use of the drug and indoor tanning are likely motivated by the same desire to improve someone’s outward appearance, he said.
Dellavalle said the report doesn’t claim sun tanning is a cause of drug use. But, he said, parents should know that if their teen is using an indoor tanning facility, they need to be on the lookout for other risky behavior.
“If your kids are tanning they are more likely to use drugs,” he said.
Dellavalle, who also practices at the Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center, said tanning can be addictive in some of the same ways that drug use is.
The American Suntanning Association, a trade group that represents the tanning industry, regularly fends off criticism of the industry.
On the association’s website, the group said suntanning can be risky, but said much of the research hasn’t been fair.
“Discussion of the nuance and critical confounding factors in the research isn’t happening yet,” the group wrote. “It’s time for a balanced discussion about the risks of UV exposure from any source, sunbeds or the sun.”
A spokesperson for the association did not respond to interview requests.