FEDERAL SUN PROTECTION MEASURING INDICATORS INSUFFICIENT
MINNEAPOLIS, June 9, 2003 -- Although skin cancer incidence levels are rising in the U.S. and the most important factor in its development is exposure to the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays, existing federal sun protection standards are insufficient, according to a survey of dermatologists attending the annual meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology.
?Dermatologists are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of people with skin cancer," said John Barrow, founder and president of Coolibar. ?We will continue to see these increases until the public get the message that covering your skin is a must. In addition, people need to understand most physicians believe tanning beds cause cancer."
74 percent of survey respondents said it is ?very important" to ?extremely important" that the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) modify the SPF rating scheme to include information about the UVA protection level provided by sunscreens. The current SPF rating on sunscreens only measures protection against UVB, despite general medical community acceptance that UVA also causes aging of the skin, skin cancer and other health problems.
Regarding the dangers of tanning beds, dermatologists unanimously responded that tanning beds produced skin cancer and 77 percent said that the tanning bed industry should either fall under mandatory federal regulation or be banned as an unacceptable health risk.
The survey also asked dermatologists to identify the sunscreens that they most often recommend to their patients. The top five brands of sunscreen named were: SolBar, Neutrogena, Ombrelle, Coppertone and Blue Lizard. Each of these sunscreens provides protection against both UVA and UVB rays.
?Most people don't realize that while UVB varies in cycles according to the time of day, season, latitude and altitude, UVA does not change in intensity," said Barrow. ?So the UVA in the early morning in Seattle in winter is similar to the UVA in the middle of the day in Miami during the summer. To protect against UVA, you need to protect yourself year round regardless of where you live in the U.S."
The survey reported that on average the dermatologists see 60 skin cancer patients each week with 84 percent of respondents reporting that the number of skin cancer patients in their practice is increasing. Also, 74 percent of dermatologist surveyed said that only one-half or fewer of their skin cancer patients take adequate sun protection steps.
Coolibar was founded in 2001 to bring Australia's world-leading approaches to sun protection to the American market. The company has extensively redesigned Australian sun protective clothing styles to meet the tastes and needs of fashion- and health-conscious Americans.
For information about Coolibar, go to www.coolibar.com or call 1-800-926-6509.