Tanning Beds: Friend or Foe?

by Madison Gates

A tanning bed is a device you lay down on with bulbs which emit ultraviolet radiation, to make you tan. Sun beds, solariums, whatever you want to call it, it seems as if a lot of people are tanning now a days. Close to 30 million people use indoor tanning in the U.S every year. 2.3 million Of those people happen to be teens.

With prom getting closer, lots of teens, mostly girls, start hitting the beds more than ever. Most generally people start tanning around the beginning of January and stop or slow down by June. They tan then to get ready for warmer weather. It’s so that they can jump start their tan for summer.

“Jersey Shore,” a reality show on MTV seems to have a big influence on teens and young adults about tanning. All of the cast on the show are very tan. Teens may think they need to be tan like them when that shouldn’t be the case.

Illinois lawmakers have been trying to pass a law banning minors from tanning beds. If that law passes it means that you won’t be able to tan unless you’re 18 or older, even with a parents’ permission.

“I believe that tanning is what people do to feel pretty, and if you do it you’re just putting yourself out there even more to get cancer,” said Sara Powers a freshman at PCHS.

While the main reason for most people to use a tanning bed is cosmetic, there are many other reasons why people use them. Some people tan simply because it makes them feel good. However, most tanning beds generate a large amount of heat, including infrared, which has deep penetrating action that can relieve minor muscle aches.

“I like to go tanning,” stated Kaytlyn Elledge a freshman here at PCHS. “It relieves your stress,” she also said.

8.7% of teens ages 14-17 use indoor tanning beds, tanning however has lots of negatives. When you use a tanning bed your risk of melanoma increases by 75%. Tanning beds can be addictive, and for some people the UV radiation can have a drug like effect. They can feel dependent on it, and can feel withdrawal symptoms.