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If you’re thinking about hitting a tanning bed to get a head start on your summer tan, you might want to think again.
As CBS2’s Tracee Carrasco reported, doctors say bacteria and viruses can lurk inside those beds – including the dreaded herpes virus.
Dermatologist Dr. David Goldberg, of the Skin Laser & Surgery Specialists of New York and New Jersey is among those who say you could be getting more than a just nice glow the next time you get into a tanning bed.
“You just need one person going in there who has an active herpes infection, and they’re lying on the table and some of that virus gets on the table — again, the ultraviolet is not killing the virus,” Goldberg said. “And then if you’re the unlucky next person lying on the table, and that table hasn’t been cleaned enough, there’s no question you can get that virus.”
Despite sanitation regulations, Dr. Goldberg said tanning beds could even be a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses like herpes, if they’re not properly disinfected.
“People come in there; they sweat, and the sweating causes the bacteria and viruses to grow,” he said. “The heat itself from the lamps can cause those bacteria and viruses to grow.”
Other infections are also a possibility, Goldberg said. “Staph infections; impetigo can occur; warts,” he said.
Dr. Goldberg needs a refresher course in virology. Unless you have a partner with herpes in the bed with you, you are not going to catch herpes in a tanning bed. If you do have herpes already, exposure to ultraviolet light from the bed can activate the virus and cause an outbreak.
I will believe the good doctor when he shows me some case reports of people actually being infected by a tanning bed or studies of cultures from tanning beds that recover herpes viruses.
Genital warts? Maybe. That virus is a bit hardier than herpes.
Molluscum contagiosum? Yes. it's a virus that causes bumps with a small pit in the center.
Bacteria like staph? Definitely.
He's a dermatologist and he does not tell people to avoid all tanning because it increases the risk of skin cancer, including melanoma? That it can cause eye injuries, cataracts, and melanoma in the eye? Maybe he just wants more business for his surgery practice.
Ultraviolet (UV) light exposure (from the sun or tanning salons) is known to re-activate oral herpes infections. A Smart Living person would then avoid UV light exposure, or use a sunscreen of Factor 25 or higher on the face prior to UV exposure. People with genital Herpes recurrences would also be advised not to sun-bathe in the nude or use tanning beds nude. Smart Living with Genital Herpes | Herpes.org
According to new studies, genital warts, a common sexually transmitted disease caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) can be contracted and transmitted through the use of tanning beds if and when proper precautions are not taken.
The warm moist environment associated with tanning bed usage often provides prime conditions in which the HPV virus can thrive for longer periods of time on inanimate objects; normally the virus thrives on skin alone. The virus can easily be transferred to the bed’s surface when a person infected with HPV sits naked or in minimal coverage type clothing, on the bed prior to proceeding to the laying position.
Nearly 30 million people are expected to visit a tanning salon this year, according to the February issue of Consumer Reports. During Spring Break and Prom season, the numbers are bound to increase in the visits a person makes to the tanning salons, therefore increasing their risk of contracting HPV.
Dermatologist Dr. David Goldberg, of the Skin Laser & Surgery Specialists of New York and New Jersey is among those who say you could be getting more than a just nice glow the next time you get into a tanning bed.
And this guy's a doctor.....................
If we're going to use that same logic, then you could say the same about airports, bus stops, all methods of public transportation, gyms, restaurants....etc. You might as well just never leave home, but even there you're not safe, roughly about one third of all people are carriers of staph which can lead to an infection during times of compromised or weakened immune function.
There are good reasons to avoid tanning beds, namely avoiding skin cancer and not having your face resemble alligator skin luggage in your 40's but I wouldn't rate contracting a particular disease from a tanning bed very high up there. This is just the latest edition of the media's neverending mission to use hyperbole to try and scare the **** out of you.
That's the 1st thing j thought of too!
I like Pedro's answer better, "sex"
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