Life> Health

Fake tan is the 'only safe tan'

By Ruth Hill (The Dominion Post )
Updated: 2007-04-25 11:00

There's no such thing as a "healthy tan" - unless it comes from a bottle, say dermatologists.

The Cancer Society is calling for stricter controls on sunbeds in light of an Australian study showing a 400 per cent explosion in the number of sunbeds in the past 15 years.

The society's skin cancer prevention adviser, Judith Galtry, said anecdotal evidence suggested New Zealand had experienced similar growth in the sunbed industry.

"It seems every gym and hair salon these days has a solarium."

Many users wrongly believed sunbeds were "a safer alternative" to the sun, she said.

"In fact, the UV radiation from solaria is five times stronger than the midday sun. It's especially risky for young people; international research shows the risk of melanoma increases by a massive 75 per cent if people use solaria before the age of 35."

A sting operation by the Consumers Institute last year found poor compliance with the voluntary code of practice agreed by the solarium industry, particularly in restricting access by those under 18.

Dr Galtry said the voluntary code was not working and the society and other health workers wanted to see the Government implement mandatory controls.

These should include ensuring customers were fully informed of health risks, banning unsupervised solaria and enforcing restrictions on age and very fair-skinned people.

"Some operators are always going to put making money ahead of client safety."

Skin cancer is New Zealand's most common cancer, with between 45,000 and 75,000 new cases diagnosed and more than 300 deaths each year.

Wellington dermatologist Bruce Taylor said there was no such thing as a safe tan.

"A tan is an injury to your skin ... Fake tan is the only safe tan."