If your daughter is spending too much time in a tanning both, skin cancer may not be your only worry.
According to a new study in the medical journal the Archives of Dermatology, teens who overuse tanning booths are more likely to overuse alcohol and drugs too.
Researchers from the Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and State University of New York studied 421 college students, asking them questions that would reveal an "addiction" to indoor tanning salons such as "Do you ever feel guilty that you are using tanning beds too much?" and "Do you try other non-tanning related activities but find you really like spending time in tanning booths?"
About 42% of the students in the survey who were compulsive about indoor tanning reported using more than one drug in the previous month. They were more likely to drink alcohol and smoke more marijuana than other students.
A new federal law provides that tanning booth customers pay an extra 10% tax starting this summer. Studies from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found that indoor tanning causes skin cancer, premature aging, and eye damage.
Labels: alcohol, tanning, drug_use
Posted By: Jane St. Clair
