This is not a new issue. Already in 2006, the Scientific Committee on Consumer Products provided an Opinion on the biological effects of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) from sunbeds. There, it was stated that using UVR tanning devices was likely to increase the risk of malignant melanoma of the skin and possibly ocular melanoma. It was recommended for young people under 18 years to avoid sunbeds.
A few years later, in 2009, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified the use of UV-emitting tanning devices as carcinogenic to humans.
In light of new evidence, the European Commission asked the Scientific Committee on Health, Environmental and Emerging Risks (SCHEER) to update the previous Opinion on this topic.
Navigation
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Legislation
- 3. Use of sunbeds
- 4. Health effects
- 5. Cancers linked to the use of sunbeds
- 6. Studies on the use of sunbeds
- 7. Conclusions
2. LEGISLATION
2.1 What type of legislation is already in place regarding the safety of sunbeds?
Health and safety hazards associated with the use of sunbeds are determined by the safety of the sunbed itself (and its compliance with existing applicable legislation and device standards) and by the way in which the product is used (or misused) by the consumer, which greatly depends on the consumer's knowledge and on the information and advice given to the user by the tanning service operator.
Specifically, sunbeds are regulated under the Low Voltage Directive (2014/35/EU), which covers all risks, not just the electrical safety. The harmonised standard EN 60335-2-27:2013 sets out requirements for the safety of sunbeds, including limits for ultraviolet radiation emission. Like other European standards, it is a voluntary standard but its compliance assumes conformity with the directive.
In recent years, some Member States have adopted national legislation regulating the tanning services: several countries made it illegal for minors to use sunbeds for tanning. Nevertheless, market surveillance carried out in 2008-2009 in EU countries has shown some flaws in the enforcement of this rule.
2.2 What does the existing legislation specifically cover?
In the EU, placing sunbeds on the market with an input voltage between 50 and 1000 volts for alternating current or between 75 and 1500 volts for direct current is regulated by the Low Voltage Directive (Directive 2014/35/EC). This Directive stipulates that only safe products can be placed on the market, so it covers all types of risks. This is without prejudice to any other EU applicable legislation.
The harmonised standard EN 60335-2-27:2013 sets out requirements for the safety of sunbeds, including limits for ultraviolet radiation emission, and the strictest international ones on UV irradiance (0.3 W/m2). Like other European standards, it is a voluntary standard. If the standard is applied, it provides a presumption of conformity with the safety objectives of the Low Voltage Directive with respect to the risks covered by the standard. Some Member States have adopted national legislation regulating the tanning services and have, for example, banned commercial sunbed use for people under the age of 18. However, market surveillance carried out in 2008-2009 in EU countries has shown that the percentage of sunbeds not in compliance with the regulations varied between 10 and 90%; that customers are not always given adequate safety guidance in tanning studios and sunbed labelling (e.g. warnings) often fails to comply with the regulations (20% of the cases).
There is evidence that imposing restrictions in sunbed use may help reduce prevalence of use and, eventually, associated risks.
In the USA, data suggests that indoor tanning use laws, particularly those including age restrictions, may be effective in reducing indoor tanning among female high school students, for whom rates are the highest.
In Iceland, where the high prevalence of sunbed use probably contributed to the sharp increase in the incidence of melanoma, the decrease in incidence of trunk melanoma observed in women after 2002 is most probably due to campaigns initiated by the Icelandic health services at the end of the 1990s. A campaign by health authorities in 2004 to discourage sunbed use especially by teenage girls resulted in a 50% reduction in the number of sunbeds by 2008.
In France, in view of the limited efficiency of control measures on sunbeds’ use, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), and two non-governmental organisations (Sécurité Solaire, a WHO collaborating centre, and the European Society for Skin Cancer Prevention – EuroSkin) recently recommended the cessation of the marketing and commercial use of UV-emitting sunbeds.