Consider Tanning Motivations and Counsel AccordinglyTANNING, SKIN CANCER, SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER

UV exposure is an avoidable cause of skin cancer. Despite evidence that UV exposure increases skin cancer risk, intentional suntanning and indoor tanning are prevalent among many young adults and adolescents.¹ It is widely accepted that these practices persist largely due to prevailing sociocultural values and the perceived attractiveness of tanned skin.² Additional motivations for tanning are increased confidence in appearance and the feeling of attractiveness of tanners, socialization with friends, and feeling of relaxation experienced both during and after a tanning session. Furthermore, recent studies point to motivations related to depression, manifested as seasonal affective disorder, and dependence or addiction factors.³ With administration of naltrexone, an opioid antagonist, frequent tanners had withdrawal symptoms, thus supporting a physiological hypothesis.³ The physiological basis of pathological tanning has been supported by studies demonstrating that UV induction of pigment secretes α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (a cleavage product of the prohormone peptide proopiomelanocortin; POMC), and cleavage of POMC yields β-endorphin, an endogenous opioid that can induce analgesia and euphoria.⁴