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Support for indoor tanning policies among young adult women who indoor tan

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Translational Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

The purpose of this study to examine support for indoor tanning policies and correlates of policy support among young adult women who indoor tan. Non-Hispanic white women ages 18–30 who indoor tanned in the past year (n = 356, M 23.3 age, SD 3.1) recruited in the Washington, DC area from 2013 to 2016 completed measures of indoor tanning behaviors, attitudes, perceptions, beliefs, and policy support. Most women in the sample supported policies to prevent children under the age of 18 from indoor tanning (74.0 %) and stronger warnings about the risks of indoor tanning on tanning devices (77.6 %); only 10.1 % supported a total ban. In multivariable analyses, support for individual indoor tanning policies varied by demographics (e.g., age), frequent indoor tanning behavior, indoor tanning beliefs, and risk perceptions. Non-Hispanic white young adult women who indoor tan, the primary consumers of indoor tanning, and a high-risk population, largely support indoor tanning prevention policies implemented by many state governments and those currently under review for national enactment. Given low levels of support for a total indoor tanning ban, support for other potential policies (e.g., increasing the minimum age to 21) should be investigated to inform future steps to reduce indoor tanning and the associated health risks.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, USA

    Darren Mays, Sarah E. Murphy, Rachel Bubly, Michael B. Atkins & Kenneth P. Tercyak

  2. Department of Oncology, Cancer Prevention & Control Program, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University Medical Center, 3300 Whitehaven St NW, Suite 4100, Washington, DC, 20007, USA

    Darren Mays

  3. Melanoma Center, MedStar Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC, USA

    Michael B. Atkins

Authors
  1. Darren Mays
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  2. Sarah E. Murphy
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  4. Michael B. Atkins
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  5. Kenneth P. Tercyak
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Darren Mays.

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Funding sources

This research was supported through a grant from the Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust (PI: D. Mays). This work was also supported in part by the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center Support grant number P30CA051008 from the National Institutes of Health. The study sponsors had no role in the study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation data; in the writing of the report; and in the decision to submit the paper for publication. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Ethical approval

All procedures were conducted in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human subjects and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration.

Informed consent

All participants provided written informed consent.

IRB approval

The study was reviewed and approved by the Georgetown University Institutional Review Board.

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Not applicable.

Additional information

Implications

Researchers or research: In the future, as additional regulations are potentially considered to prevent indoor tanning and reduce the associated burden of skin cancer research can inform this process by ascertaining support for specific policies under consideration among key consumer groups.

Practitioners or practice: For public health practitioners, our data on the correlates of policy support can also help them to craft communications about policies including those conveying information about the potential risks of indoor tanning.

Policymakers or policy: For policymakers, these findings can potentially inform FDA’s decision-making as the recently proposed regulations are finalized to consider regulations that would be acceptable to consumers.

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Mays, D., Murphy, S.E., Bubly, R. et al. Support for indoor tanning policies among young adult women who indoor tan. Behav. Med. Pract. Policy Res. 6, 613–621 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-016-0432-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-016-0432-6

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