Two years ago, in response to health concerns raised by Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick, Victoria Capital Regional District adopted a bylaw regulating tanning facilities.
This groundbreaking bylaw included a ban on minors under age 18 from using tanning beds. Many jurisdictions have since developed similar youth bans but not all Canadian children are protected. There are no federal regulations.
Tanning beds and cigarettes are both classified as Class-1 human carcinogens. Both products put the user at risk of harm when used as the manufacturer intends.
The Canadian Paediatric Society, among several recommendations, says kids under 18 years should be prohibited by law from using commercial, indoor tanning facilities and that “the tanning industry should be required to acknowledge their product is carcinogenic and to advise the public that artificial tanning has no health benefit.”
Children can’t buy cigarettes and yet the federal government will not ban them from using tanning beds. They will, however, update tanning bed warning labels. But by targeting only new and imported equipment, not existing beds, it could take decades before consumers of any age receive clear health-risk information so they can make informed decisions.
Meanwhile, the total economic burden of skin cancer in Canada is expected to rise to $922 million by 2031. Even the less deadly, more common non-melanoma skin cancers monopolize scarce health dollars as they occur frequently on the face and can require complex, intensive procedures to minimize scars and disfigurement.
At a time when the economic health of our entire medical system seems to be in question, surely it makes sense to prevent disease across Canada.
This Christmas, I plan to ask our Canadian senators for help. Perhaps they can set aside their partisan politics and stand up for our continued good health.
Linda Jeaurond, Victoria
The editorial pages editor is Gordon Clark, who can be reached at gclark@theprovince.com. Letters to the editor can be sent to provletters@theprovince.com.
