As autumn begins and the warm temperatures of summer disappear, the last thing on a student’s mind is protection from the sun. Although that glowing tan seems well worth the hours spent on the beach or well worth the money spent for a session in the tanning bed, there is a possibility of a large drawback in the future. The drawback comes in the form of skin cancer.Dr. Anita Flick, the director of Health Professions Advising and teaching assistant professor at the University, co-wrote an activity book called “Slip Slop Slap” that provides useful information regarding skin cancer and protection from the sun. ”Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States and one in five Americans will develop some form of skin cancer in their lifetime,” Flick said. “It is almost the most common form of cancer among young adults ages 15-39.”Grace Williamson, a freshman in biology, believes the issue is a big problem, but thinks most students do not think about getting skin cancer.”They’re just thinking about now, about getting a good tan,” Williamson said. “I am worried about getting it, but I tend not to think about it. I love the sun, but I could definitely be at risk.”So while students are lying out in the sun for an extended period of time, the sunburn that follows damages the skin and increases the risk of developing skin cancer.”Studies have shown that one blistering sunburn in childhood or teen years or five or more sunburns in their life more than doubles a person’s risk for melanoma,” Flick said.Students who take protective measures, such as Danah Al-Subagha, a freshman in accounting, lower their risk for sunburn and skin damage that leads to skin cancer.”When I am out in the sun a lot, I’ll use sunscreen,” Al-Subagha said.While it may be tempting to pull out the SPF four or eight, Flick recommends an SPF of 30 or higher, which blocks out about 97 percent of the sun. She said to apply a coat of sunscreen at least twenty minutes before venturing outdoors and to reapply about every two hours and more often when swimming for long periods of time. ”On cloudy days, the sun’s rays can still pass through and give you a sunburn,” Flick said. “They can also give you a sunburn during the winter, because snow reflects the sun like a mirror.”Students like Al-Subagha sometimes use tanning beds to keep golden during the winter. However, she said she is not worried about the adverse effect they can have on her health because she does not use them excessively.According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the ultraviolet light that is used in tanning beds is a proven human carcinogen.”Frequent tanners using new high-pressure sunlamps may receive as much as twelve times the annual UVA dose compared to the dose they receive from sun exposure,” the HHS said. For the here and now, tanning beds produce an artificial tan that may look good on the outside, but in reality they are exactly what some students, such as Barbara Gray, a freshman in First Year College, call them: “cancer beds.” Since skin cancer is caused by the sun’s rays and rays produced by alternative tanning products, a student’s best bet, Flick said, is to take cover from the sun and use sunscreen.

So, while the weather may be getting cooler, keep your skin healthy: think twice before getting into that ever-so-dangereous tanning bed and take an extra two minutes to put on SPF — it’ll definitely be worth your while years from now.