The Dangers Of Indoor Tanning

May 3 - Summer is right around the corner. For those of us who want to get a head start, hitting the tanning salons may seem like a good idea. But ABC7's Dr. Dean Edell reports on a major new warning of a important new danger.

Everywhere you turn, the look is tall, thin and tan. But getting that bronzed glow can be dangerous, even if you do it indoors.

Just ask college student Heather Schulte. She tanned in a salon twice a week from the time she was 14.

Heather Schulte, indoor tanning client: "Me and my friends would all go together, almost like a hobby."

But when she was just 18, doctors diagnosed her with melanoma skin cancer.

Heather Schulte, indoor tanning client: "I thought tanning was better for you than the sun."

Dermatologist Lynn Cornelius says that's simply not the case.

Lynn Cornelius, MD: "It really is not safer."

Today, most tanning beds only contain UVA rays, not UVB rays, which are thought to cause burning. But new research shows UVA rays may be worse for you.

Vic Narurkar, CPMC dermatologist: "We don't know how intense these are because they're not regulated. And it's a very concentrated amount of ultra-violet A. It could be ten-fold, twenty-fold, a hundred-fold. You're filtering a very narrow band of light that's a potent carcinogen."

CPMC dermatologist Victor Narurkar who sees a lot of sun-damaged skin, says the American Academy of Dermatology is now warning that tanning beds may be more dangerous than the sun.

Dr. Narurkar: "We now know for a fact that the incidence of melanoma is dramatically increased upon exposure to ultra-violet light."

A recent study shows women who visited tanning salons more than once a month were about twice as likely to develop melanoma.

But you can get a healthy glow with airbrush tanning and creams you buy at the store.

Tanning creams have gotten better -- no longer making you that orange, yellow color of cheddar cheese. And you can even get an all-over spray on tan.

Once the spray begins, a client just turns in four different directions to get an all-over tan. It's generally considered a safe alternative.

Heather now uses a spray tan and is thankful surgery was all she needed to get rid of her cancer.

Heather Schulte, indoor tanning client: "Don't think it can't happen to you because it can."

And she hopes others will take that lesson to heart.

Dermatologists say you must apply sunscreen even if you have a spray tan. The only concern with the spray tanning products is that you don't want to inhale them.