Even though it is only just getting warm enough for students to sunbathe on the residential quad, for some Jumbos who just can't seem to get enough of the sun, there's always the option of tanning beds and spray tans to get that bronzed look.
Studies consistently show, however, how dangerous tanning can be. According to a study conducted by the World Health Organization, the risk of melanoma, a type of skin cancer, increases by 75 percent for people under 30 who use tanning frequently. Additionally, there has been a significant spike in the number of melanoma cases in the United States, the rate of which nearly tripled between 1973 and 2004, according to the National Institute of Health.
Dr. Eva Balash, a dermatologist in Boston, says tanning indoors is no more "safe" than tanning in the sun and is in fact quite the opposite. She has noticed a trend of small, dark moles on patients who tan indoors rather than through natural sun exposure.
"It's very harmful to the skin either way," Balash told the Daily.
Freshman Arielle Egozi only tans outside, mostly because of the strong causal link between tanning booths and skin cancer.
"Not that [ultraviolet light (UV)] is much better, but the exposure isn't as harsh," Egozi said. "Plus, the whole point of being tan is being outside and at the beach."
"There is no such thing as a safe tan," according to the United States Food and Drug Administration website. However, many don't realize the harsh effects of both artificial and natural tanning.
According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, there are two main types of ultraviolet rays. The kind found in tanning beds, UVA, is much more damaging and penetrating than UVB, which only harms the external layers of the skin. UVA rays affect skin pigmentation and don't create the sunburns caused by UVB rays; tanning booths only emit UVA rays, ultimately creating more long-term damage to the skin.
Increased risk of skin cancer and other skin damage seems to be a fact that numerous Tufts students are aware of, and even deterred by.
"It's truly devastating to your health," Lisa Zingman, a sophomore majoring in community health, said. "It causes cancer, and I personally would never go in a tanning booth or artificially tan."
Senior Victoria Gilbert, a member of the Tufts Ballroom Dance Team, tans with liquid tanner or lotion before certain competitions but said she wouldn't otherwise.
"Without a doubt I would never have considered tanning if it were not for ballroom," Gilbert said.
Ballroom team members occasionally tan artificially before competitions in order to maintain a certain appearance, according to Gilbert.
"At a certain level, you reach a point where you have to have a certain look, and that often happens to be a very absurdly tan color," fellow ballroom team member Alex Freedman, a sophomore, said.
"Part of the idea is that that's what it looks like to be ‘Latin,' kind of exotic-looking," Gilbert said. Though Gilbert, who has been using liquid tanner since her junior year, added that pale skin isn't necessarily cause for a point deduction, a tan is somewhat implied as the standard in higher-level competitions. "It's just taken to be a part of the act, almost more like a stage performance, if you will," she said.
The obligation to tan for an extracurricular activity such as ballroom dancing indicates the extent to which tanning has become a serious consideration for young people. The cultural phenomenon of "Jersey Shore," the MTV show about self-described "guidos" and "guidettes," also demonstrates how many people consider tanning a necessity for an attractive appearance. "Jersey Shore" star Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino's three steps to looking good for a night out are "gym, tan and laundry."
However, members of one group of reality television stars, Tufts' own Beelzebubs, do not artificially tan. "None of the Bubs do artificial tanning. None of us really have the time," sophomore, and Beelzebubs member Evan Powell said. "It's also a little ridiculous, but that's my personal opinion."
Outside the world of reality television, many teenagers and young adults do see tanning as an essential component of their overall look.
Tanning has become such a serious problem among teens and young adults that many develop something of an addiction to it, commonly referred to as "tanorexia." A recent study published on "Paging Dr. Gupta," CNN's medical blog, reports that increased artificial tanning is linked to underlying issues of addiction, anxiety, and substance abuse.
400 undergraduate students, half of whom reported they frequented tanning salons, were studied, and those who tanned more often also had problems with anxiety, and were more likely to use alcohol and marijuana.
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Carter Rogers contributed reporting to this article.
