Future darkens for tanning teens

Pearly white teeth shine behind 17-year-old Mariel Morales' vibrant, glowing skin. It just doesn't bother her when fellow students calls her "orange" or compare her to the cast of MTV's reality show "Jersey Shore."

She likes her tan.

"I look better in shorts," Morales said, with a laugh.

Morales' tan isn't natural, but it no longer comes from tanning beds. Like some of her fellow teens, she now spray tans because of the numerous health issues posed by tanning beds.

Under a law passed by the Texas Legislature in 2009, teens younger than 16½ years old are not allowed in tanning beds without a doctor's note. Enacted last September, the law also prohibits teens between 16½ and 18 years of age to tan without parents or guardians visting the facility and consenting in writing.

The law also requires tanning facilities to retain full records, including any parent or guardian's permission note, length of time spent tanning, each date and time the customer tanned and any history of skin cancer with the customer or in the customer's family.

These records must be kept for three years after a customer's last tanning session.

The law was prompted by potential health risks, said Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, the prime sponsor of the bill in the Texas House.

"You don't want children using tanning beds and increasing their chances by 400 percent of getting skin cancer," Solomons said.

In addition, tanning businesses face a new federal tax created by recently passed health care legislation. A 10 percent tax, starting in July, is expected to raise $2.7 billion over the next 10 years.

Steven Armstrong, owner of the salon Tan It Up, said he does not think the government will meet those projections because their figures are based on salons' overall profits, including spray tans and other services. The tax, however, will only tax tanning bed services.

"Tanning salons get picked on all the time," he said. "Ninety percent of my customers come in to prepare for a vacation or event," Armstrong said. "I have a handful of people who (are) actually effected. Everyone is paying, so if you want to tan, you will pay it. I personally don't think it will affect my business at all."

The laws and taxation on tanning facilities are designed to reduce the number of new melanoma cancer cases, estimated at 68,130 this year alone, according to the National Cancer Institute's website.

The number of Caucasian women ages 15-39 who had melanoma rose 50 percent from 1980 to 2004. The suspected causes of this increase are more burning and tanning in beds. Studies show children and teens are thought to be more susceptible to these dangers.

Teens are largely at risk for melanoma, but other dangers, such as freckles and sunspots, are also a concern, said Dr. John C. Browning, a pediatric dermatologist at University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.

"Tanning also leads to a condition in your skin called solar elastosis, which leads to wrinkles. So a tan now means wrinkles later," Browning said.

Mariel Morales considered these health concerns and, ultimately, were the reason she quit tanning in beds.

"I kept reading up on the health issues and how it could affect me in the long run," Morales said.

Tanning beds aren't the only risk when it comes to teens that desire a post-vacation glow. Tanning outside can also cause irreversible skin damage.

Edith Morales, Mariel's mother, also had concern for her daughter, but knew her child would use her best judgment.

"She kind of tried it, but she didn't like it," Morales said. "I mean, she just said ‘no, I don't want to do this.' So she knew, she just had to explore."

Mary Maloney, a 17-year-old senior at Clark High School, tans outside by her neighborhood pool nearly two hours each day. Asked about the risk, she says she should be worried, but it doesn't bother her.

"(My mom) would rather me not, but to her, it's better than tanning beds," Maloney said.