High School Students Sign No-Tanning Pledges for Prom - East Idaho News

High School Students Sign No-Tanning Pledges for Prom

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GETTY H 031711 TanningBed?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1337087571860Stockbyte/Thinkstock(MAYNARD, Mass.) — On Friday, students at Maynard High School in Maynard, Mass. made good on an important promise: no tanning before this year’s prom.

Many of the students signed a pledge in February that they would skip the tanning bed and sunbathing before prom this year in an effort to reduce their risk of melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer.

Allison Bosse, the high school senior who organized the pledge, said convincing everyone to flaunt their pale skin was no easy task.

“Our school is known for a lot of people tanning.  Kids start in March because they want to be tan in their dresses for prom,” she said.

Bosse said the pressure for students to get a golden glow is so great that freshmen start visiting tanning beds even though they don’t go to the prom.

Bosse said she wanted to educate her classmates about the dangers of tanning.  She set up tables at lunch and started asking for people to sign the no-tanning pledge.  Of the school’s 283 seniors, 209 signed the pledge.

“A couple of people said ‘I like tanning too much, I can’t sign that.  I won’t get skin cancer,'” Bosse said.  “But it seemed like a lot really listened and weren’t going to do it anymore.”

The pledges taken at Maynard High School are part of a growing trend at high schools around the U.S., aimed at educating students about the connection between tanning and skin cancer.

Rates of melanoma have been rising steadily among young adults for the past few decades.  In April, researchers at the Mayo Clinic found that rates of melanoma increased by a factor of more than six from 1970 to 2009, and the rates were highest among young women. 

Though any exposure to ultraviolet rays can increase the risk of melanoma, experts believe the rise is linked to widespread use of tanning beds among teenagers.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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