Is indoor tanning worse than outdoor tanning? If not, I can see a ban making sense in cold countries, where people might counterfactually tan, but in countries like Australia and Brazil I can assure you this just has a displacement effect of sending people outside (even in winter).
Yes, indoor tanning is worse for your health than outdoor tanning. Indoor tanning beds beam UV radiation that can be as much as 10 to 15 times stronger than what you get from the sun.[1]
It is worth mentioning that people who use indoor tanning are also more likely to not use sun protection when outdoors[2]. This means that we really would not want to ban indoor tanning if the result is people just spending more time outside in the sun and getting the same dose of exposure. I did not find any studies that have looked at to what extent this is what people do after indoor tanning is banned.
My guess, though, is that a ban would be significantly net positive, even after accounting for a potential increase in outdoor tanning.
Is indoor tanning worse than outdoor tanning? If not, I can see a ban making sense in cold countries, where people might counterfactually tan, but in countries like Australia and Brazil I can assure you this just has a displacement effect of sending people outside (even in winter).
Yes, indoor tanning is worse for your health than outdoor tanning. Indoor tanning beds beam UV radiation that can be as much as 10 to 15 times stronger than what you get from the sun.[1]
It is worth mentioning that people who use indoor tanning are also more likely to not use sun protection when outdoors[2]. This means that we really would not want to ban indoor tanning if the result is people just spending more time outside in the sun and getting the same dose of exposure. I did not find any studies that have looked at to what extent this is what people do after indoor tanning is banned.
My guess, though, is that a ban would be significantly net positive, even after accounting for a potential increase in outdoor tanning.
https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/12/14/nx-s1-5640088/tanning-bed-users-are-at-higher-risk-of-skin-cancer-especially-in-unusual-places
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/2565799