FDA Issues Mandatory Warning Labels for Tanning Beds

Despite frequent warnings that tanning can accelerate aging and increase the risk of skin cancer, many continue to use ultraviolet (UV) indoor tanning lamps. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is working to better regulate the use of tanning through higher-risk warning labels.

On Thursday, FDA officials announced that sunlamp products and UV lamps will be reclassified as low-risk devices to moderate-risk, according to Fox News.  In addition, tanning beds must carry a visible warning against their use for those under the age of 18. Warnings about the risk of skin cancer must also be included in any brochures, marketing materials, instructions or information provided online. However, the black box warning does not prohibit minors from tanning.

The American Academy of Dermatology estimates that indoor tanning can increase an individual's melanoma risk by 59 percent. To make matters worse, frequent use of indoor tanning is cumulative, upping radiation exposure.

According to director of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Jeffrey Shuren, minors under the age of 18 and family members with a history of skin cancer are those most at risk due to exposure from sunlamps. Shuren and health officials hope that the reclassification will prevent tanning in some individuals, and even the lower mortality risk. 

"The FDA's decision to more strictly regulate tanning beds will save lives and serve as a valuable resource in efforts to slow down the increasing rate of melanoma, particularly in the young," said Melanoma Research Foundation executive director Tim Turnham, via CNN.