California this week became the first state in the country to ban indoor tanning for anyone under 18, a move that drew praise from health organizations.
About 30 other states have laws that place limits on indoor tanning for children and teenagers, but California’s new law will be the strictest in the nation, prohibiting any minor from using a tanning bed, even with a parent’s permission. The bill was signed by Gov. Jerry Brown over the weekend and goes into effect on January 1.
At least three other states are considering similar legislation, among them New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Four other states that tried to enact outright bans on tanning for all minors failed earlier this year.
The American Academy of Dermatology said it applauded California for being the first in the nation to successfully introduce the measure, and commended the legislature for “protecting youth from the dangers of indoor tanning.”
The law comes amid growing evidence from studies linking UV ray exposure to skin cancer. One large study of about 2,300 people last year found that those who have ever tanned indoors have about a 75 percent higher risk of melanoma than people who have never tried it. A World Health Organization study showed that using a tanning bed just one time increases the risk of melanoma by 15 percent. Researchers earlier this year also showed for the first time that frequent tanning causes changes in brain activity that mimic the patterns of drug addiction.
Nearly 30 million Americans use tanning beds, about 2.3 million of them teenagers. Indoor tanning is particularly popular in the Golden State, despite its reputation for natural sunshine: The new bill’s sponsor, State Sen. Ted Lieu, a Democrat, said there were more tanning salons in California than Starbucks or McDonald’s restaurants. He said he was inspired to push for a new law in part because of statistics showing that one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in women between 25 and 34 is skin cancer.
“One reason we wanted to ban it for children under 18 is because the medical evidence shows that the more exposure you get to UV rays early on, the worse it is later in life,” he said. “Melanoma doesn’t happen right when you walk out of the tanning salon. It happens years later.”
When the law takes effect, teenagers in California who want an artificially enhanced bronzed look will have to turn to other options, like spray tans or tanning creams. Sen. Lieu said he was also considering other steps to try to get adults to limit their use of indoor tanning beds as well.
“I thought Congress had the right idea when they put a 10 percent tax on tanning beds because they recognized the danger and they were trying to dis-incentivize people,” he said. “I might look at that later, but first I want to see how this law works.”
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