Tanning, Skin Cancer Risk, and Prevention: A Content Analysis of Eight Popular Magazines That Target Female Readers, 1997–2006

Abstract

The majority of tanning bed users in the U.S. are women. Previous health communication research frequently focused on the risk of skin cancer, but few studies assessed the mediated communication environment that may surround women’s beliefs and behaviors relevant to tanning. A content analysis of articles in eight magazines targeting girls, young women, older women, and women who are interested in fitness during the ten-year period of 1997–2006 was conducted. The amount of coverage of tanning bed use consequences was less than 50% of the coverage of tanning benefits. About 40% of the tanning benefits coverage touted looking healthy. The coverage of prevention methods focused on sunscreen use (55%), while the more important methods (e.g., protective clothing use) were rarely featured. Longitudinally, the coverage of the risk and prevention relevant issues increased between 1997 and 2006. The data indicate that the coverage of tanning benefits also increased during the same period.

Sun-Care Product Advertising in Parenting Magazines: What Information Does It Provide About Sun Protection?

“…Stryker, Solky, and Emmons (2005) found that using sunscreen was the most frequently presented skin cancer prevention method in the content of newspaper coverage related to skin cancer from 1979 to 2003. Cho, Hall, Kosmoski, Fox, and Mastin (2010) examined eight magazines geared toward girls, women, and those specifically interested in fitness and found that 55% of articles that mentioned skin cancer prevention focused on sunscreen use; other types of prevention methods were seldom mentioned.…”

“…Eight items were included as possible benefits in accordance with the Cho et al (2010) methods: beauty benefits for skin (e.g., makes skin smoother, softer, etc. ), benefits for tanning (e.g., tan faster, tan lasts longer, etc.…”

“…Based on previous studies (Cho et al, 2010;Eide & Weinstock, 2006;George et al, 1996;Nicol, Gaudy, Gouvernet, Richard, & Grob, 2007), as well as an examination of sun-care product ads not included in the study sample, the researchers developed a coding scheme to collect the following information about the ads: First, the ads were coded for the presence or absence of messages about eight types of product benefits, operationally defined as what the manufacturer promises users will get from using the products. Eight items were included as possible benefits in accordance with the Cho et al (2010) methods: beauty benefits for skin (e.g., makes skin smoother, softer, etc.…”

Time to Get Serious About Skin Cancer Prevention

“…Even though its systematic review of intervention research for sun protection identified effective strategies to improve sunscreen use (38), the Task Force did not issue any sunscreen-specific recommendations on the basis that sunscreen alone was inadequate for sun protection. Regardless of the inconsistency by national groups in their sun protection recommendations, the media emphasizes sunscreen as the preferred approach to sun protection (39,40). The dominance of sunscreen more than other sun protection strategies in the media is undoubtedly reinforced by the advertising expenditures for sunscreen by the skin care industry, estimated to be US $75 million in 2011 (41).…”

Indoor Tanning: A Bio-Behavioral Risk Factor for Skin Cancer

“…Despite the current widespread knowledge regarding skin cancer etiology, media representations of tanning have continued to be primarily positive. For example, an analysis of articles in eight American magazines targeting girls and women from 1997 to 2006 found that the amount of coverage of negative consequences of indoor tanning was less than 50% of the amount of coverage of tanning benefits (Cho et al, 2010). Indoor tanning is now a $5 billion per year industry in the US with more than 40,000 indoor tanning establishments (Looking Fit, 2009-2010.…”