UV Radiation and Skin Cancer: The Science behind Age Restrictions for Tanning Beds

E very year, millions of people climb in various states of undress into warm, glowing tanning beds, where during a typical 2-to 15-minute session they'll absorb a controlled dose of ultraviolet (UV) radiation at an intensity up to two to three times stronger than the sunlight striking the equator at noon. The tanning industry has grown rapidly since the 1980s, 1 rising to an estimated 28 million users in the United States. 2 This rise has been accompanied by an increase in diagnoses of skin cancer. The reasons behind the rising skin cancer diagnoses remain open to debate. Some experts attribute the rise to more frequent skin cancer screening, whereas others blame environmental and behavioral risk factors, particularly changes in UV exposure. In this latter context, UV-emitting