12 Outrageous Tanning Myths That Should Be Burned Immediately

Tanning is big business. There are 14,000 indoor tanning outfits in the United States, and about 10% of Americans visit one every year. (One study of big cities found that indoor tanning salons outnumber Starbucks and McDonald’s.) The annual economic impact of the tanning industry is an estimated $5 billion.

Unsurprisingly, the tanning industry produces a whole lot of marketing — through websites, social media, emails, and even text messages. And it’s gotten in hot waterwith the federal government for making false and deceptive claims.“The tanning salons promote these myths about the safety of tanning,” Carolyn Heckman of Fox Chase Cancer Center told BuzzFeed News. “They use a lot of strategies similar to the tobacco industry, in terms of trying to attract young people and get them hooked.”Here are the biggest myths to watch out for.Read more at...BuzzFeed News, July 2015.