June 18, 2025 • 33 mins
The summer sun beckons with its warm embrace, but that golden tan comes with a hidden cost. Dr. Holly Thacker dives deep into the phenomenon known as "tanorexia" – the addiction to tanning that has serious health implications many don't recognize until it's too late.
This addiction isn't merely psychological. When your skin is exposed to ultraviolet radiation, your body releases endorphins – those feel-good neurochemicals that create a genuine physical dependency. "People can actually get addicted to this," Dr. Thacker explains, drawing parallels between tanorexia and other recognized addictive behaviors.
Whether you're concerned about your own tanning habits or protecting children's delicate skin, this episode delivers practical, science-backed advice for maintaining healthy skin while still enjoying outdoor activities. Because as Dr. Thacker reminds us, all natural complexions are beautiful – it's about being "happy in your own skin" while keeping that skin healthy for years to come.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Holly L. Thacker, MD (00:03):
Welcome to the Speaking of Women's Health
podcast.
I'm your host, dr Holly Thacker, and I'm back in the sunny
sunflower house for a newpodcast on tanorexia.
Tanorexia, you know, we've justpassed prom season, it's the
(00:24):
summertime.
People like that bronze glow.
I'll always remember a patientwho told me if you can't firm it
, then you better bronze it.
And, of course, nowadays, withself-tanning products and leg
makeup, you don't have to damageyour skin and actually tan
(00:49):
yourself.
But what is tanorexia?
Well, I wrote a column aboutthis back in May of 2012, and it
was titled Do you haveTanorexia?
Because I noticed that when mysons were starting high school,
I noticed during prom season howdeeply, deeply tan the young
(01:14):
ladies were.
They had very lovely dresses,but their skin was pretty crispy
and I remember thinking I hopethat their tans were from spray
tans rather than tanning beds.
And the word tanorexia is a termthat dermatologists have used
to report people that have avery addictive nature, because
(01:38):
actually ultraviolet radiationcan release.
Radiation can releaseendorphins, kind of the feel
good neurochemical transmitters,and there's people that can
actually get addicted to thisand that's how that term was
coined tanorexia, and it's alsosometimes associated with having
(02:05):
an altered body image, justlike those who suffer from
anorexia and there has been atriad scene of tanorexia with
anorexia and melanoma.
Some people will callthemselves tanaholics, saying
that their look isfan-tan-tan-sick Is that a
(02:30):
fantastic?
But it's important to know thatall natural complexions are
beautiful Dark skin, brown skin,lighter skin, pale skin,
various hues and we need toembrace the attitude of being
happy in our own skin as well askeeping a healthy organ, the
skin, which is the largest organin the body.
(02:51):
So I want to talk about some ofthe dangers of this indoor
tanning, and then I also want totalk about protecting the skin.
Protecting the skin.
So in 2024, last year, therewas almost 20,000 tanning salons
(03:12):
in the United States, but thisnumber is declining.
There was a decrease of 8.8%from the year before, according
to IbisWorld, and this bringsthe estimated number of salons
this year, in 2025, to 18,219.
Now we know that indoor tanningwith ultraviolet radiation is a
(03:33):
proven human carcinogen, and theInternational Agency for
Research on Cancer, an affiliateof the World Health
Organization, includes UVtanning devices in its group 1,
a list of agents known to causecancer and other things in group
1 include agents like plutonium, cigarettes, as well as solar
(03:55):
UV radiation.
So ultraviolet tanning deviceswere reclassified by the FDA
from a class one low risk to aclass two moderate to high risk
as of September of 2014.
So 11 years ago, indoor tanningdevices can emit ultraviolet
radiation in amounts 10 to 15times higher than the sun at its
(04:19):
peak intensity intensity Backin 2024, I had a podcast on this
total solar eclipse and howstrong the sun is and how you
need very protective lenses toprotect your eyes.
20 states plus the District ofColumbia actually prohibit
(04:44):
people under age 18 from goingto indoor tanning places Nevada,
new Hampshire, new York, northCarolina, oklahoma, rhode Island
, texas, vermont, virginia andWest Virginia and Oregon and
(05:12):
Washington prohibit those fromunder age 18 from using indoor
tanning devices unless aprescription a medical
prescription is provided.
Now Australia and Brazil andIran have banned indoor tanning
altogether in their countries,and it's important to note that
the cost of direct medical carefor skin cancer attributed to
(05:34):
indoor tanning is over $340million annually in the United
States, and we have almost ahalf a million cases of skin
cancer in the US each yearlinked to tanning indoor tanning
, including about 250,000 basalcell cancers and almost 170
squamous cell cancers, and over6,000 melanomas, and melanomas
(05:58):
really are potentially deadly,although there's been great
improvements made inimmunotherapy.
Potentially deadly, althoughthere's been great improvements
made in immunotherapy.
It's been estimated that morepeople develop skin cancer
because of indoor tanning thandevelop lung cancer because of
smoking.
And we know how strong thecausal association of lung
(06:19):
cancer and smoking is.
If you've ever tanned indoors,you have about an 83% increased
risk of developing squamous cellcancer and a 29% increased risk
of developing basal cell cancer.
And any history of indoortanning increases that risk of
developing basal cancer beforeage 40 by almost 70%.
(06:41):
And women who've ever gonetanning indoors are six times
more likely to be diagnosed withmelanoma in their twenties than
those who have never tannedindoors.
And at all ages, the more womentan indoors, the higher the
risk of melanoma.
And one study observing 63women diagnosed with melanoma
(07:03):
before age 30 found that 97% ofthem had in fact used tanning
beds.
And if you use a tanning bedbefore the age of 35, that risk
of melanoma is increased by 75%.
So indoor tanning amongst UShigh school students has
(07:33):
decreased by 53% between 2009and 2015.
And I would say that when I wasout seeing the young people
getting their prom pictures oneweekend was Derby, the Kentucky
Derby weekend, I did notice thatit looked like the students had
more of their own you knownatural skin color, without that
(07:54):
excessive, overly tanned look.
So maybe it's fading inpopularity, and I think that
tanning, indoor tanning booths,are fading in popularity too,
because of increased knowledge.
And I would say, though, thatultraviolet light is used
therapeutically, it's used tosterilize things, it's sometimes
(08:16):
used medicinally.
In fact, when I was in medicalschool, I developed a skin
condition called pitoriasisrosea, and the differential
diagnosis was syphilis, which Iassure you I didn't have.
I remember being mortified whenthe dermatologist said oh, I
know you don't have syphilis,this is classic pitoriasis rosea
(08:38):
.
With the first target lesionthat you had here, go to an
indoor tanning place and thatwill fade the rash, and it did.
And then, interestingly, Ideveloped uh the same rash with
my third um when I was pregnant,with my third son, and uh the
dermatologist chuckled and saidyou're still really young, cause
it's usually just young peoplethat get um pitoriasis rosea, um
(09:01):
.
So there can be some medicalreasons, and a lot of people say
that just natural ultravioletlight exposure uh not only
elevates their mood, but cansometimes help acne.
Um.
Certainly, being exposed tonatural light uh helps your
circadian rhythm and um.
(09:22):
Exposure to ultraviolet lightnaturally can also increase
vitamin D levels, although onceyou're over 40, it doesn't seem
to make it that much.
I think it's bad to avoid allsun exposure and have a low
vitamin D, because that in andof itself can also increase
cancer.
But the wavelengths that theyuse in some of these indoor
(09:44):
tanning booths makes the skindamaged and dark but really
doesn't even increase vitamin D.
But it does stimulate therelease of endorphins, which is
like kind of the body's naturalopiates, and and that's why you
have the term addiction, becausepeople get that hit Um, and
(10:11):
sometimes the addiction hidesother conditions like OCD or
depression or an anxietydisorder, um, and it can be
somewhat challenging, uh, totreat.
It's fine to have a healthy glowand to enjoy being outside, but
(10:33):
once you get tanning it is asign of skin damage and it is
evidence of some DNA damage toyour skin.
It does also visibly speed upthe signs of aging and it can
lead to cancer, some of whichcan be deadly, like melanoma,
(10:55):
and over time you'll definitelyhave an increased risk of basal
cell, squamous cell and melanoma.
So what happens is theultraviolet light causes genetic
damage to the cells on theoutside surface of the skin, and
the skin is trying to protectitself by making more melanin to
give it more of a natural typeof sunscreen, and that's why,
(11:19):
depending on what yourclassification for your skin is
based on how fair you are or howdark skinned you are generally
speaking, the darker skin youare, the stronger the skin is in
terms of resisting the damageand it takes more time to damage
(11:39):
the skin.
And those that are very fair,who don't tan, it takes the
least amount of time to damagetheir skin.
So most of us in the sunflowerhouse who want to be strong, be
healthy and be in charge, don'twant excessive aging, and the
(12:01):
wrinkles and dark spots andweathered skin is not
particularly attractive, and todo something that you think
might improve your appearancebut really increases the risk of
disease is not a good thing,and each time you get tanned,
(12:24):
the damage builds up and itcreates more genetic mutations.
And, in particular, indoortanning is dangerous because
it's not natural sunlight andTanning does damage all types of
skin, even people that aredarker skinned, and you can
(12:45):
still enjoy outdoor activitiesand being out in the Sun, but it
is important to be smart aboutthis.
So tanning beds.
Are they as harmful as the sun?
The answer is yes.
Whether indoors or outdoors,the UVA rays used in tanning
beds can increase cancer risk.
Is going to an indoor tanningbooth a good way to get vitamin
(13:09):
D?
No, the truth is thatultraviolet B radiation is what
helps with vitamin D, and mostindoor tanning is just the UVA
rays.
So you don't even get thevitamin D benefits.
So it's much better to getvitamin D with food or with
supplements D3K2, or exposure10-15 minutes a day of the
(13:35):
exposed arms or legs withoutsunscreen.
A lot of women ask me should Iget a base tan indoors before I
go to a tropical vacation so Idon't get a bad sunburn?
No, tanning does not protectagainst sunburn, it just exposes
you to more harmful rays.
So shade protective clothing, anice wide brimmed hat, big sun
(14:01):
umbrellas and UV blockingsunglasses, and after age six
months you know, a mineral basedzinc oxide uh sunscreen um can
be applied.
A lot of women will ask me youknow I feel so much better when
it's sunny out.
Does tanning help with seasonalaffective disorder?
(14:22):
And the answer is no, thetanning does not help treat
seasonal affective disorder.
Um, there are lights that have10,000 lux of light that you can
purchase and plug in, and fromSeptember to April in the
Northern Hemisphere, when thedays are shorter, 30 minutes of
that light exposed in themorning does elevate the mood.
(14:47):
So how can you protect yourselfand look great?
And you are listening to theSpeaking of Women's Health
podcast.
I'm in the Sunflower host, I'myour executive director and host
, dr Holly Thacker, and we aretalking about tanorexia, the
skin, vitamin D, and we haveseveral podcasts on caring for
(15:09):
your skin, interviews withskincare estheticians, and my
third podcast of season one isall about vitamin D, which is a
mood elevator and does help toreduce cancer and other
conditions.
And how can you protectyourself and look great?
So avoid tanning, avoiddamaging your skin and fake
(15:37):
don't bake is the term.
So if you want that golden glow, there's sunless tanning
products and there's a lot ofdifferent options to give you
kind of that sun-kissed bronzelook, but you still need sun
protection.
Bronze look, but you still needsun protection.
And even though I had thatpatient who told me if you can't
(16:00):
tone, just tan it or bronze it,it's much better to try to tone
your skin and tone your musclesand get radiant skin by doing
aerobic high intensity exercise,working out feels good.
It boosts your mood.
You stronger.
Staying hydrated helps yourskin having a good skincare
routine as well.
It's so important to hydrate,particularly in the hot weather,
and choose whole, unprocessedfoods and get foods rich in
(16:25):
vitamin A.
The yellow, red, orange coloredfruits and vegetables are good
for vitamin A and vitamin C,which helps your skin.
So making healthy skin a way ofyour general lifestyle is
important.
The Skin Cancer Foundationtalks about playing in the shade
(16:46):
, knowing all about sunscreen,and we did do a prior podcast on
sunscreen Covering up exposedskin.
Watch out for windows, becausethe ultraviolet light comes
through windows.
I don't know if you've noticedin your house areas that get a
lot of sun.
You can see how strong the sunis, how it can bleach out your
carpet and your draperies andyour furniture.
(17:08):
Definitely say no to tanningbeds.
Early detection of skin canceris important and the clothing
can give you a barrier and itdoesn't wear off like sunscreen.
New fabrics can be high-techand breathable.
A hat with a wide brim ishelpful.
(17:31):
A hat with a wide brim ishelpful where you be blocking.
Sunglasses to protect your eyes.
That's very important.
What does upf mean?
Well, that stands for theultraviolet protection factor
and you'll see that label onclothing, hats and some fabrics.
So the number indicates whatfraction of the sun's
(17:52):
ultraviolet light penetrate thefabric.
So a shirt that's UPF 50, forexample, only allows 1, 50th of
the radiation to reach your skin, as if you didn't have that
shirt on.
The pitfall is clothing leavessome skin exposed the face, you
know, the forearms, the décolletarea.
(18:15):
Playing in the shade is a goodidea, especially between 10 am
and 3 pm, peak hours of sunintensity.
When I go outside at lunch towalk, I'm trying to walk on the
shady side of the street.
I usually try to grab a visor,even if I'm going outside to get
the mail, to protect my face.
(18:36):
But ultraviolet light passesthrough leaves and branches and
even in the wintertime you can,even with makeup on and being in
your car with the window up,and it's the reason why in
America more people haveleft-sided skin cancers whereas,
say, in the United Kingdom,where they drive on the other
(18:57):
side of the road, they have moreright-sided skin cancers.
So shade's not a perfect shieldand ultraviolet light can be
reflected off of water, sand,glass, concrete.
It's important to know yoursunscreen and the number tells
you how long it takes for thesun's UVB rays to redden your
(19:20):
skin compared to the amount oftime without a sunscreen.
So if you put SPF 30, exactlyas generously and evenly applied
and reapplied two hours aftersweating or swimming, it would
take 30 times longer to burnthan if you weren't wearing
sunscreen.
Broad spectrum indicatesblocking A and B rays.
(19:42):
Water resistant, some claim tobe waterproof for 40 to 80
minutes and you can burn in thewater and it's important to
reapply even if it says it'swaterproof.
People with sensitive skin andyoung people might want to just
focus on the products that onlyuse zinc oxide and titanium
(20:02):
dioxide.
They're called mineral orphysical formulas.
You don't have to worry aboutabsorptions of chemicals.
The pitfall is you've got toapply it liberally enough and
not miss spots.
I'll always remember the timemy husband had this S-shaped red
sunburn on his chest because hetook sunscreen and just rubbed
(20:24):
it in an S form and he didn'thave all of his skin covered.
And people can have pain.
They can get blisters, scarring, be uncomfortable, it can ruin
your vacation and increase yourrisk of cancer.
Seek the seal.
The bottom line is you needseveral types of sun protection
(20:47):
to safeguard your skin.
It takes a village, so to speak.
Many products that meetstringent criteria for safe and
effective UV protection haveearned the Skin Cancer
Foundation seal ofrecommendation.
And be choosy about your hatsand sunglasses and sunscreens,
as well as your moisturizers andcosmetics.
(21:07):
Have nice awnings, umbrellas,window film that carry the seal.
So what do you do with the weeones, your young children or
grandchildren and I'm gettinganother grandbaby later this
summer it's best to keep infantsout of the sun for the first
(21:28):
six months rather than putanything on their skin.
Using hats, sunglasses,stroller shades is very
important.
Now, infants do need vitamin Dsupplementation.
Breastfed babies need vitamin Dand sometimes even bottle fed,
although it's usually um.
Added to that, august isbreastfeeding awareness month,
(21:51):
and last August of 2024, we hada great podcast on breastfeeding
and feeding your baby Toddlers.
Uh, sometimes it can be achallenge for them to wear a
protective hats and clothing.
Uh, but if you try to get inthat habit early, it's a good
one.
(22:12):
Sometimes there can beunexpected exposure.
If you're not planning aheadfor your outside trips.
You want to talk to caregiversand I think getting some sun
exposure is good because ofvitamin D, particularly if
you're not supplemented.
But certainly you do not wantto damage the skin.
So glass blocks UVB pretty well, but UVA gets in.
(22:38):
And the same thing is true ofwindows in your house your house
.
Generally speaking, car shieldsare treated to shield the
driver from most UVA rays, butnot the side back and sunroofs.
Interestingly, when you're inyour car, protect yourself and
your family, or you can get a UVprotective window film applied
(22:59):
to your window in your car or athome.
The windows on airplanes,trains and buses also allow UVA
rays to pass through, which isone reason why airline pilots,
crew members and even frequenttravelers may get more skin
(23:20):
cancers than other people.
Isn't that interesting?
The pitfall is you need to planahead before traveling and
having summer excursions andhaving protective clothing on.
Most importantly, please say noto tanning booths.
You deserve to enjoy yourselfin the summer and have fun and
(23:41):
get outdoor physical activityand fresh air.
But indoor tanning does raisethe risk of skin cancer and
melanoma.
And a pitfall is that, whilesome states have implemented
laws to try to protect minorsand prohibit them ages, you know
, varying from ages 18 to evendown to 14 from using tanning
(24:03):
beds or requiring parentalconsent Many states have not
restricted access.
So peer pressure to tan canaffect people's judgment and you
don't want to develop thecondition of tanorexia, where
you actually become addicted totanning, to tanning and this may
(24:33):
need to actually be medicallytreated with agents like
antidepressants.
Potentially, certainly,cognitive behavioral therapy can
be employed and that can helppeople's mood and is a
non-medication way.
Working with someone to kind ofwean down on that, dealing with
any kind of body dysmorphiaissues because you want to feel
(24:54):
good about yourself, can be veryimportant and any women that
have any disordered eating oreating disorders need to be
evaluated.
Sometimes low dose naltrexone,which in high doses blocks
opiates, in low doses helpspotentiate your own natural
(25:16):
endorphins and opiate receptorsand our functional medicine
doctors.
In fact, we have a column onspeaking of women's health on
the use of low dose naltrexonefor chronic pain and
inflammation, if you didn't hearour podcast on anti-aging with
(25:36):
Dr Christofides and we have twoparts of that.
The first part was in May of2025.
And the second one is going tobe in May of 2025.
And the second one is going tobe in mid-July of 2025.
(25:56):
She talks about using off-label, of course, rapamycin to affect
the mTOR pathway in aging andshe's personally found some
success in people with chronicpain or some autoimmune
conditions.
In fact, certain autoimmuneconditions, like systemic lupus
erythematosus, can getsignificantly worse with any
kind of ultraviolet lightexposure, indoor tanning or
(26:20):
outside radiation.
And people that inherit tworecessive genes from each parent
and have albinism, where theyhave zero pigment at all in
their skin, are at super, superhigh risk for skin cancer and
have to take protective measuresof their skin at all times.
(26:45):
And if you haven't been aregular subscriber to our
podcast, please hit follow orsubscribe.
And if you go on our websitespeakingofwomenshealthcom, you
can put in different topics.
We've done topics on enjoyingthe summer and protecting
yourself from summer hazards notjust the sun but bug bites and
(27:10):
just preparing for the summer.
We have several podcasts onskin and hair topics that
perennially women are interestedin.
In fact, the one with ouresthetician, lori Skarsgård, was
so good we reprised it withsome other skincare tips.
In fact, I learned that theblue light that comes off the
(27:35):
screens that so many of us workin front of the screens can be
very damaging to our skin, andthat's one reason to limit
screen time and also to protectthe skin.
And topical vitamin C with ironor ferric acid can also help
(27:57):
protect the skin, and so I'vecertainly incorporated that into
my routine.
I would like to emphasize ifyou've ever had pre-skin cancer,
actinic keratosis or a basalcell cancer or squamous cell
cancer or potentially the deadlymelanoma, it's very important
that you get regular skincarechecks and we're talking at
(28:22):
least once a year.
At least once a year.
And if you are someone, or youknow someone, who has been
afflicted with tanorexia andjust cannot stop the obsessive
behavior of constantly going tothe tanning booths which are,
you know, decreasing, like wesaid, there are less booths out
there, I think, because peopledon't want to be sued for cancer
(28:44):
, since they are, you know,known carcinogens please talk to
your healthcare team If theyparticularly can't help you, if
it's not within their expertise,they can hopefully refer you to
someone who can do cognitivebehavioral therapy, who can work
with you on an individualizedplan to kind of withdraw off of
(29:09):
that activity.
And, as I mentioned, you knowwe always really like lifestyle
first to improve the mood goodsleep we have so many good
podcasts on sleep hygiene, ongood nutrition.
I mean food really affects yourmood.
Vitamin D elevates the mood.
(29:31):
B-complex, omega-3sUnfortunately we have this
epidemic of people who are toolow in omega-3s and I've done a
couple of podcasts related tofood and heart healthy oils and
olive oil and how to get moreomega-3 in your diet.
That truly is a mood elevator,and other natural substances
(29:55):
like turmeric, saffron haverecently been shown to elevate
the mood.
So don't turn to tobacco oralcohol or tanning booth to
boost your mood Sleep, socialinteraction, exercise, natural,
bright light.
(30:15):
A lot of times people's mood isaffected by light and a lot of
people don't tolerate LED lightsand certainly flickering lights
can really irritate the brain,maybe even trigger seizures.
We had a podcast on seizuresand we do have an excellent
podcast on migraine headache,which affects half the
population.
(30:35):
So the light that affects youreyes and retina affect your
brain and there's all differentwavelengths of light and we've
even talked about laserdifferent wavelengths of light
and we've even talked aboutlaser, which is light therapy
for various conditions,medically as well as
cosmetically.
So protect your skin and nomethod is exactly perfect, but
(31:00):
at least one in five people byage 70 will have skin cancer and
that number seems to be rising.
And you should get used tochecking your own skin once a
month or so and seeing aphysician or someone specially
trained in checking your skinonce a year and if you have
something suspicious, make anappointment and get in and get
(31:23):
it checked out.
Thank you so much for listeningto our Speaking of Women's
Health podcast.
If you enjoyed this show,please give us a five-star
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You can find us on Apple,itunes, spotify, amazon Music.
(31:46):
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So subscribe and I'll lookforward to seeing you back in
the sunny but protected healthysunflower house next time.
Remember, be strong, be healthyand be in charge.
Welcome to the Speaking of Women's Health
podcast.
I'm your host, dr Holly Thacker, and I'm back in the sunny
sunflower house for a newpodcast on tanorexia.
Tanorexia, you know, we've justpassed prom season, it's the
(00:24):
summertime.
People like that bronze glow.
I'll always remember a patientwho told me if you can't firm it
, then you better bronze it.
And, of course, nowadays, withself-tanning products and leg
makeup, you don't have to damageyour skin and actually tan
(00:49):
yourself.
But what is tanorexia?
Well, I wrote a column aboutthis back in May of 2012, and it
was titled Do you haveTanorexia?
Because I noticed that when mysons were starting high school,
I noticed during prom season howdeeply, deeply tan the young
(01:14):
ladies were.
They had very lovely dresses,but their skin was pretty crispy
and I remember thinking I hopethat their tans were from spray
tans rather than tanning beds.
And the word tanorexia is a termthat dermatologists have used
to report people that have avery addictive nature, because
(01:38):
actually ultraviolet radiationcan release.
Radiation can releaseendorphins, kind of the feel
good neurochemical transmitters,and there's people that can
actually get addicted to thisand that's how that term was
coined tanorexia, and it's alsosometimes associated with having
(02:05):
an altered body image, justlike those who suffer from
anorexia and there has been atriad scene of tanorexia with
anorexia and melanoma.
Some people will callthemselves tanaholics, saying
that their look isfan-tan-tan-sick Is that a
(02:30):
fantastic?
But it's important to know thatall natural complexions are
beautiful Dark skin, brown skin,lighter skin, pale skin,
various hues and we need toembrace the attitude of being
happy in our own skin as well askeeping a healthy organ, the
skin, which is the largest organin the body.
(02:51):
So I want to talk about some ofthe dangers of this indoor
tanning, and then I also want totalk about protecting the skin.
Protecting the skin.
So in 2024, last year, therewas almost 20,000 tanning salons
(03:12):
in the United States, but thisnumber is declining.
There was a decrease of 8.8%from the year before, according
to IbisWorld, and this bringsthe estimated number of salons
this year, in 2025, to 18,219.
Now we know that indoor tanningwith ultraviolet radiation is a
(03:33):
proven human carcinogen, and theInternational Agency for
Research on Cancer, an affiliateof the World Health
Organization, includes UVtanning devices in its group 1,
a list of agents known to causecancer and other things in group
1 include agents like plutonium, cigarettes, as well as solar
(03:55):
UV radiation.
So ultraviolet tanning deviceswere reclassified by the FDA
from a class one low risk to aclass two moderate to high risk
as of September of 2014.
So 11 years ago, indoor tanningdevices can emit ultraviolet
radiation in amounts 10 to 15times higher than the sun at its
(04:19):
peak intensity intensity Backin 2024, I had a podcast on this
total solar eclipse and howstrong the sun is and how you
need very protective lenses toprotect your eyes.
20 states plus the District ofColumbia actually prohibit
(04:44):
people under age 18 from goingto indoor tanning places Nevada,
new Hampshire, new York, northCarolina, oklahoma, rhode Island
, texas, vermont, virginia andWest Virginia and Oregon and
(05:12):
Washington prohibit those fromunder age 18 from using indoor
tanning devices unless aprescription a medical
prescription is provided.
Now Australia and Brazil andIran have banned indoor tanning
altogether in their countries,and it's important to note that
the cost of direct medical carefor skin cancer attributed to
(05:34):
indoor tanning is over $340million annually in the United
States, and we have almost ahalf a million cases of skin
cancer in the US each yearlinked to tanning indoor tanning
, including about 250,000 basalcell cancers and almost 170
squamous cell cancers, and over6,000 melanomas, and melanomas
(05:58):
really are potentially deadly,although there's been great
improvements made inimmunotherapy.
Potentially deadly, althoughthere's been great improvements
made in immunotherapy.
It's been estimated that morepeople develop skin cancer
because of indoor tanning thandevelop lung cancer because of
smoking.
And we know how strong thecausal association of lung
(06:19):
cancer and smoking is.
If you've ever tanned indoors,you have about an 83% increased
risk of developing squamous cellcancer and a 29% increased risk
of developing basal cell cancer.
And any history of indoortanning increases that risk of
developing basal cancer beforeage 40 by almost 70%.
(06:41):
And women who've ever gonetanning indoors are six times
more likely to be diagnosed withmelanoma in their twenties than
those who have never tannedindoors.
And at all ages, the more womentan indoors, the higher the
risk of melanoma.
And one study observing 63women diagnosed with melanoma
(07:03):
before age 30 found that 97% ofthem had in fact used tanning
beds.
And if you use a tanning bedbefore the age of 35, that risk
of melanoma is increased by 75%.
So indoor tanning amongst UShigh school students has
(07:33):
decreased by 53% between 2009and 2015.
And I would say that when I wasout seeing the young people
getting their prom pictures oneweekend was Derby, the Kentucky
Derby weekend, I did notice thatit looked like the students had
more of their own you knownatural skin color, without that
(07:54):
excessive, overly tanned look.
So maybe it's fading inpopularity, and I think that
tanning, indoor tanning booths,are fading in popularity too,
because of increased knowledge.
And I would say, though, thatultraviolet light is used
therapeutically, it's used tosterilize things, it's sometimes
(08:16):
used medicinally.
In fact, when I was in medicalschool, I developed a skin
condition called pitoriasisrosea, and the differential
diagnosis was syphilis, which Iassure you I didn't have.
I remember being mortified whenthe dermatologist said oh, I
know you don't have syphilis,this is classic pitoriasis rosea
(08:38):
.
With the first target lesionthat you had here, go to an
indoor tanning place and thatwill fade the rash, and it did.
And then, interestingly, Ideveloped uh the same rash with
my third um when I was pregnant,with my third son, and uh the
dermatologist chuckled and saidyou're still really young, cause
it's usually just young peoplethat get um pitoriasis rosea, um
(09:01):
.
So there can be some medicalreasons, and a lot of people say
that just natural ultravioletlight exposure uh not only
elevates their mood, but cansometimes help acne.
Um.
Certainly, being exposed tonatural light uh helps your
circadian rhythm and um.
(09:22):
Exposure to ultraviolet lightnaturally can also increase
vitamin D levels, although onceyou're over 40, it doesn't seem
to make it that much.
I think it's bad to avoid allsun exposure and have a low
vitamin D, because that in andof itself can also increase
cancer.
But the wavelengths that theyuse in some of these indoor
(09:44):
tanning booths makes the skindamaged and dark but really
doesn't even increase vitamin D.
But it does stimulate therelease of endorphins, which is
like kind of the body's naturalopiates, and and that's why you
have the term addiction, becausepeople get that hit Um, and
(10:11):
sometimes the addiction hidesother conditions like OCD or
depression or an anxietydisorder, um, and it can be
somewhat challenging, uh, totreat.
It's fine to have a healthy glowand to enjoy being outside, but
(10:33):
once you get tanning it is asign of skin damage and it is
evidence of some DNA damage toyour skin.
It does also visibly speed upthe signs of aging and it can
lead to cancer, some of whichcan be deadly, like melanoma,
(10:55):
and over time you'll definitelyhave an increased risk of basal
cell, squamous cell and melanoma.
So what happens is theultraviolet light causes genetic
damage to the cells on theoutside surface of the skin, and
the skin is trying to protectitself by making more melanin to
give it more of a natural typeof sunscreen, and that's why,
(11:19):
depending on what yourclassification for your skin is
based on how fair you are or howdark skinned you are generally
speaking, the darker skin youare, the stronger the skin is in
terms of resisting the damageand it takes more time to damage
(11:39):
the skin.
And those that are very fair,who don't tan, it takes the
least amount of time to damagetheir skin.
So most of us in the sunflowerhouse who want to be strong, be
healthy and be in charge, don'twant excessive aging, and the
(12:01):
wrinkles and dark spots andweathered skin is not
particularly attractive, and todo something that you think
might improve your appearancebut really increases the risk of
disease is not a good thing,and each time you get tanned,
(12:24):
the damage builds up and itcreates more genetic mutations.
And, in particular, indoortanning is dangerous because
it's not natural sunlight andTanning does damage all types of
skin, even people that aredarker skinned, and you can
(12:45):
still enjoy outdoor activitiesand being out in the Sun, but it
is important to be smart aboutthis.
So tanning beds.
Are they as harmful as the sun?
The answer is yes.
Whether indoors or outdoors,the UVA rays used in tanning
beds can increase cancer risk.
Is going to an indoor tanningbooth a good way to get vitamin
(13:09):
D?
No, the truth is thatultraviolet B radiation is what
helps with vitamin D, and mostindoor tanning is just the UVA
rays.
So you don't even get thevitamin D benefits.
So it's much better to getvitamin D with food or with
supplements D3K2, or exposure10-15 minutes a day of the
(13:35):
exposed arms or legs withoutsunscreen.
A lot of women ask me should Iget a base tan indoors before I
go to a tropical vacation so Idon't get a bad sunburn?
No, tanning does not protectagainst sunburn, it just exposes
you to more harmful rays.
So shade protective clothing, anice wide brimmed hat, big sun
(14:01):
umbrellas and UV blockingsunglasses, and after age six
months you know, a mineral basedzinc oxide uh sunscreen um can
be applied.
A lot of women will ask me youknow I feel so much better when
it's sunny out.
Does tanning help with seasonalaffective disorder?
(14:22):
And the answer is no, thetanning does not help treat
seasonal affective disorder.
Um, there are lights that have10,000 lux of light that you can
purchase and plug in, and fromSeptember to April in the
Northern Hemisphere, when thedays are shorter, 30 minutes of
that light exposed in themorning does elevate the mood.
(14:47):
So how can you protect yourselfand look great?
And you are listening to theSpeaking of Women's Health
podcast.
I'm in the Sunflower host, I'myour executive director and host
, dr Holly Thacker, and we aretalking about tanorexia, the
skin, vitamin D, and we haveseveral podcasts on caring for
(15:09):
your skin, interviews withskincare estheticians, and my
third podcast of season one isall about vitamin D, which is a
mood elevator and does help toreduce cancer and other
conditions.
And how can you protectyourself and look great?
So avoid tanning, avoiddamaging your skin and fake
(15:37):
don't bake is the term.
So if you want that golden glow, there's sunless tanning
products and there's a lot ofdifferent options to give you
kind of that sun-kissed bronzelook, but you still need sun
protection.
Bronze look, but you still needsun protection.
And even though I had thatpatient who told me if you can't
(16:00):
tone, just tan it or bronze it,it's much better to try to tone
your skin and tone your musclesand get radiant skin by doing
aerobic high intensity exercise,working out feels good.
It boosts your mood.
You stronger.
Staying hydrated helps yourskin having a good skincare
routine as well.
It's so important to hydrate,particularly in the hot weather,
and choose whole, unprocessedfoods and get foods rich in
(16:25):
vitamin A.
The yellow, red, orange coloredfruits and vegetables are good
for vitamin A and vitamin C,which helps your skin.
So making healthy skin a way ofyour general lifestyle is
important.
The Skin Cancer Foundationtalks about playing in the shade
(16:46):
, knowing all about sunscreen,and we did do a prior podcast on
sunscreen Covering up exposedskin.
Watch out for windows, becausethe ultraviolet light comes
through windows.
I don't know if you've noticedin your house areas that get a
lot of sun.
You can see how strong the sunis, how it can bleach out your
carpet and your draperies andyour furniture.
(17:08):
Definitely say no to tanningbeds.
Early detection of skin canceris important and the clothing
can give you a barrier and itdoesn't wear off like sunscreen.
New fabrics can be high-techand breathable.
A hat with a wide brim ishelpful.
(17:31):
A hat with a wide brim ishelpful where you be blocking.
Sunglasses to protect your eyes.
That's very important.
What does upf mean?
Well, that stands for theultraviolet protection factor
and you'll see that label onclothing, hats and some fabrics.
So the number indicates whatfraction of the sun's
(17:52):
ultraviolet light penetrate thefabric.
So a shirt that's UPF 50, forexample, only allows 1, 50th of
the radiation to reach your skin, as if you didn't have that
shirt on.
The pitfall is clothing leavessome skin exposed the face, you
know, the forearms, the décolletarea.
(18:15):
Playing in the shade is a goodidea, especially between 10 am
and 3 pm, peak hours of sunintensity.
When I go outside at lunch towalk, I'm trying to walk on the
shady side of the street.
I usually try to grab a visor,even if I'm going outside to get
the mail, to protect my face.
(18:36):
But ultraviolet light passesthrough leaves and branches and
even in the wintertime you can,even with makeup on and being in
your car with the window up,and it's the reason why in
America more people haveleft-sided skin cancers whereas,
say, in the United Kingdom,where they drive on the other
(18:57):
side of the road, they have moreright-sided skin cancers.
So shade's not a perfect shieldand ultraviolet light can be
reflected off of water, sand,glass, concrete.
It's important to know yoursunscreen and the number tells
you how long it takes for thesun's UVB rays to redden your
(19:20):
skin compared to the amount oftime without a sunscreen.
So if you put SPF 30, exactlyas generously and evenly applied
and reapplied two hours aftersweating or swimming, it would
take 30 times longer to burnthan if you weren't wearing
sunscreen.
Broad spectrum indicatesblocking A and B rays.
(19:42):
Water resistant, some claim tobe waterproof for 40 to 80
minutes and you can burn in thewater and it's important to
reapply even if it says it'swaterproof.
People with sensitive skin andyoung people might want to just
focus on the products that onlyuse zinc oxide and titanium
(20:02):
dioxide.
They're called mineral orphysical formulas.
You don't have to worry aboutabsorptions of chemicals.
The pitfall is you've got toapply it liberally enough and
not miss spots.
I'll always remember the timemy husband had this S-shaped red
sunburn on his chest because hetook sunscreen and just rubbed
(20:24):
it in an S form and he didn'thave all of his skin covered.
And people can have pain.
They can get blisters, scarring, be uncomfortable, it can ruin
your vacation and increase yourrisk of cancer.
Seek the seal.
The bottom line is you needseveral types of sun protection
(20:47):
to safeguard your skin.
It takes a village, so to speak.
Many products that meetstringent criteria for safe and
effective UV protection haveearned the Skin Cancer
Foundation seal ofrecommendation.
And be choosy about your hatsand sunglasses and sunscreens,
as well as your moisturizers andcosmetics.
(21:07):
Have nice awnings, umbrellas,window film that carry the seal.
So what do you do with the weeones, your young children or
grandchildren and I'm gettinganother grandbaby later this
summer it's best to keep infantsout of the sun for the first
(21:28):
six months rather than putanything on their skin.
Using hats, sunglasses,stroller shades is very
important.
Now, infants do need vitamin Dsupplementation.
Breastfed babies need vitamin Dand sometimes even bottle fed,
although it's usually um.
Added to that, august isbreastfeeding awareness month,
(21:51):
and last August of 2024, we hada great podcast on breastfeeding
and feeding your baby Toddlers.
Uh, sometimes it can be achallenge for them to wear a
protective hats and clothing.
Uh, but if you try to get inthat habit early, it's a good
one.
(22:12):
Sometimes there can beunexpected exposure.
If you're not planning aheadfor your outside trips.
You want to talk to caregiversand I think getting some sun
exposure is good because ofvitamin D, particularly if
you're not supplemented.
But certainly you do not wantto damage the skin.
So glass blocks UVB pretty well, but UVA gets in.
(22:38):
And the same thing is true ofwindows in your house your house
.
Generally speaking, car shieldsare treated to shield the
driver from most UVA rays, butnot the side back and sunroofs.
Interestingly, when you're inyour car, protect yourself and
your family, or you can get a UVprotective window film applied
(22:59):
to your window in your car or athome.
The windows on airplanes,trains and buses also allow UVA
rays to pass through, which isone reason why airline pilots,
crew members and even frequenttravelers may get more skin
(23:20):
cancers than other people.
Isn't that interesting?
The pitfall is you need to planahead before traveling and
having summer excursions andhaving protective clothing on.
Most importantly, please say noto tanning booths.
You deserve to enjoy yourselfin the summer and have fun and
(23:41):
get outdoor physical activityand fresh air.
But indoor tanning does raisethe risk of skin cancer and
melanoma.
And a pitfall is that, whilesome states have implemented
laws to try to protect minorsand prohibit them ages, you know
, varying from ages 18 to evendown to 14 from using tanning
(24:03):
beds or requiring parentalconsent Many states have not
restricted access.
So peer pressure to tan canaffect people's judgment and you
don't want to develop thecondition of tanorexia, where
you actually become addicted totanning, to tanning and this may
(24:33):
need to actually be medicallytreated with agents like
antidepressants.
Potentially, certainly,cognitive behavioral therapy can
be employed and that can helppeople's mood and is a
non-medication way.
Working with someone to kind ofwean down on that, dealing with
any kind of body dysmorphiaissues because you want to feel
(24:54):
good about yourself, can be veryimportant and any women that
have any disordered eating oreating disorders need to be
evaluated.
Sometimes low dose naltrexone,which in high doses blocks
opiates, in low doses helpspotentiate your own natural
(25:16):
endorphins and opiate receptorsand our functional medicine
doctors.
In fact, we have a column onspeaking of women's health on
the use of low dose naltrexonefor chronic pain and
inflammation, if you didn't hearour podcast on anti-aging with
(25:36):
Dr Christofides and we have twoparts of that.
The first part was in May of2025.
And the second one is going tobe in May of 2025.
And the second one is going tobe in mid-July of 2025.
(25:56):
She talks about using off-label, of course, rapamycin to affect
the mTOR pathway in aging andshe's personally found some
success in people with chronicpain or some autoimmune
conditions.
In fact, certain autoimmuneconditions, like systemic lupus
erythematosus, can getsignificantly worse with any
kind of ultraviolet lightexposure, indoor tanning or
(26:20):
outside radiation.
And people that inherit tworecessive genes from each parent
and have albinism, where theyhave zero pigment at all in
their skin, are at super, superhigh risk for skin cancer and
have to take protective measuresof their skin at all times.
(26:45):
And if you haven't been aregular subscriber to our
podcast, please hit follow orsubscribe.
And if you go on our websitespeakingofwomenshealthcom, you
can put in different topics.
We've done topics on enjoyingthe summer and protecting
yourself from summer hazards notjust the sun but bug bites and
(27:10):
just preparing for the summer.
We have several podcasts onskin and hair topics that
perennially women are interestedin.
In fact, the one with ouresthetician, lori Skarsgård, was
so good we reprised it withsome other skincare tips.
In fact, I learned that theblue light that comes off the
(27:35):
screens that so many of us workin front of the screens can be
very damaging to our skin, andthat's one reason to limit
screen time and also to protectthe skin.
And topical vitamin C with ironor ferric acid can also help
(27:57):
protect the skin, and so I'vecertainly incorporated that into
my routine.
I would like to emphasize ifyou've ever had pre-skin cancer,
actinic keratosis or a basalcell cancer or squamous cell
cancer or potentially the deadlymelanoma, it's very important
that you get regular skincarechecks and we're talking at
(28:22):
least once a year.
At least once a year.
And if you are someone, or youknow someone, who has been
afflicted with tanorexia andjust cannot stop the obsessive
behavior of constantly going tothe tanning booths which are,
you know, decreasing, like wesaid, there are less booths out
there, I think, because peopledon't want to be sued for cancer
(28:44):
, since they are, you know,known carcinogens please talk to
your healthcare team If theyparticularly can't help you, if
it's not within their expertise,they can hopefully refer you to
someone who can do cognitivebehavioral therapy, who can work
with you on an individualizedplan to kind of withdraw off of
(29:09):
that activity.
And, as I mentioned, you knowwe always really like lifestyle
first to improve the mood goodsleep we have so many good
podcasts on sleep hygiene, ongood nutrition.
I mean food really affects yourmood.
Vitamin D elevates the mood.
(29:31):
B-complex, omega-3sUnfortunately we have this
epidemic of people who are toolow in omega-3s and I've done a
couple of podcasts related tofood and heart healthy oils and
olive oil and how to get moreomega-3 in your diet.
That truly is a mood elevator,and other natural substances
(29:55):
like turmeric, saffron haverecently been shown to elevate
the mood.
So don't turn to tobacco oralcohol or tanning booth to
boost your mood Sleep, socialinteraction, exercise, natural,
bright light.
(30:15):
A lot of times people's mood isaffected by light and a lot of
people don't tolerate LED lightsand certainly flickering lights
can really irritate the brain,maybe even trigger seizures.
We had a podcast on seizuresand we do have an excellent
podcast on migraine headache,which affects half the
population.
(30:35):
So the light that affects youreyes and retina affect your
brain and there's all differentwavelengths of light and we've
even talked about laserdifferent wavelengths of light
and we've even talked aboutlaser, which is light therapy
for various conditions,medically as well as
cosmetically.
So protect your skin and nomethod is exactly perfect, but
(31:00):
at least one in five people byage 70 will have skin cancer and
that number seems to be rising.
And you should get used tochecking your own skin once a
month or so and seeing aphysician or someone specially
trained in checking your skinonce a year and if you have
something suspicious, make anappointment and get in and get
(31:23):
it checked out.
Thank you so much for listeningto our Speaking of Women's
Health podcast.
If you enjoyed this show,please give us a five-star
rating and if you don'tsubscribe, hit follow or
subscribe.
You can find us on Apple,itunes, spotify, amazon Music.
(31:46):
Tune in.
You can make a donation to ournonprofit at
speakingofwomenshealthcom andhit the give button.
Don't miss a future episode.
So subscribe and I'll lookforward to seeing you back in
the sunny but protected healthysunflower house next time.
Remember, be strong, be healthyand be in charge.
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