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Nordic countries warn against sun bed use
Health authorities across the Nordic countries advised their sun-craving citizens to avoid using sun beds, insisting that tanning in a salon is no safer than roasting on a beach.
"There is no evidence to suggest that any type of sun bed is less harmful than natural sun exposure. Since the exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation in general should be restricted, the use of sun beds for tanning or other non-medical purposes is not advisable," health authorities from Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Finland concluded in a report published on Monday.
While European national surveys show that on average between nine and 16 percent of the continent's inhabitants use tanning appliances, the numbers are far higher in the sun-starved Nordic region, especially among young people.
About 50 percent of all Icelanders between the ages of 16 and 24 use sun beds, and more than half of all Danes between 18 and 39 have used a tanning device in the past two years, according to the study.
Large numbers of young Norwegians, Swedes and Finns also try to make up for the somber winter months with a bit of artificial sunlight.
The young age of most Nordic sun bed users is especially worrying since children and adolescents are believed to be the most susceptible to the harmful effects of UV radiation.
"Among the biological effects of exposure to UV radiation are acute effects such as production of erythema, thickening of the epidermis (outer layer of the skin), DNA damage, suppression of several immune responses, damage to the cornea and conjunctiva of the eye, darkening of the skin and vitamin D synthesis. Long term effects are: increased risk of skin cancer, skin aging and cataract," the report stated.
Although the specific link between sun beds and cancer has yet to be proved conclusively, early US research quoted in the study indicates that young people who use sun beds are 20 percent more likely to develop certain types of skin cancer tumors than people who have never used one.
"Young persons below 18 years and UV sensitive people ... are strongly advised not to use sun beds," the study said.
People who want to continue using sun beds should make sure they keep their annual UV dose low to minimize skin damage and other health hazards, the Nordic health authorities said, calling for tanning salon UV levels to be harmonized at as low a level as possible.
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