3 One in Three US Adults Were Sunburned in 2015 In March 2018, JAMA Dermatology published an article examining national data on use of sun protection and the prevalence of sunburn among US adults.6 Shade and sunscreen were the most frequently used sun protection strategies among women; shade and pants were the most frequently used strategies among men. One-third of all adults had been sunburned in the past year; whereas, about half of adults aged 30 years or younger and half of adults with sun-sensitive skin had been sunburned. Sunburn was also associated with aerobic activity, binge drinking, and use of sunless tanning products. Seven US States Passed Legislation for Sunscreen Use Among Schools in 2017 A research letter published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology examined state legislation for sunscreen use at school.7 As of December 2017, 11 states had laws in place explicitly allowing students to carry and self-apply sunscreen at school. Of those 11 states, 7 passed the legislation in 2017, and only 2 states addressed other aspects of sun safety (e.g., protective clothing and sun-safety education) in their school sunscreen laws. Research Conducted by a CDC-Funded Prevention Research Center Continues to Advance our Understanding of Indoor Tanning Behaviors Young adults are more likely than other adults to engage in indoor tanning. In an effort to identify strategies for reducing harms from indoor tanning among this demographic group, CDC provided funds to the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Prevention Research Center, to examine frequent indoor tanning among young adults. Over time, the project team collected data on indoor tanning practices and the factors that influence tanning behaviors. Study findings led to numerous peer-reviewed publications and media attention. In addition, these research results prompted some universities to reconsider organizational policies that promoted indoor tanning among their students. Over the past year, additional findings from this work have been published in three new papers. Below are some key findings: More than half of urban schools in Worcester County, Massachusetts, are located within 1 mile of a tanning salon.8 Over one-third of tanners are unaware of their state’s legislation for use of commercial indoor tanning devices.9 Heavy tanners are twice as likely as light tanners to say that they would purchase a tanning bed if indoor tanning was banned in their state.9 Male indoor tanners are more likely than female tanners to engage in other risky behaviors, such as binge drinking.10 *This research was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, Prevention Research Center grant number CDC U48 DP001933-04 to Sherry L. Pagoto.
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