FDA Advisory Panel Wants Tougher Controls for Tanning Beds

Washington, DCAn FDA advisory panel is urging tougher controls be brought in to regulate the use of tanning beds, especially where young people are concerned. The recommendation follows on from a study in 2009 that warned of the dangers of tanning beds.

According to a report on CNN.com doctors warn that unlike sunlight, tanning beds concentrate ultraviolet radiation directly to the skin, so people who use them can develop skin cancer at an earlier age. Skin cancer is affecting a greater number of young people than before, and advertising for tanning salons and tanning beds target youth.

Among the things reportedly being considered by the FDA is a ban on tanning bed use by teenagers, and the placement of warning labels either on the machines or in the tanning salons. A 10 percent tax has already been placed on indoor tanning salons in the newly passed health care bill.

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer according to the American Cancer Society, and the World Health Organization recently placed ultraviolet tanning beds at the top of its list of things that generate the greatest risk for cancer, together with cigarettes and arsenic.